Some argue that government restrictions on larger church gatherings are a violation of religious freedom. Others argue they are responsible and legitimate. Paul Marshall believes both positions are, or can be, correct.

Formal religious adherence is declining, but America’s longtime religious self-identity as a lodestar of democratic responsibility in the world continues unabashed.

The real 2020 questions about the US-China contest lie in how they influence the context for global trade, technology standards, military tools, and power projection.

If we are going to get anywhere in this debate about liberalism, we should take on the strongest arguments from our opponents and not their weakest or most caricatured. While I do not think Christians should see liberal democracy as the enemy, I do think its critics often have a point.

For all of the hand-wringing about the power technology holds over our society, it is indisputable that immense good has flown from such innovations.

In the fate of Egypt and its Christians, we should read one crucial fact: neither democratic nor authoritarian governance delivered anything resembling equal citizenship.

From a liberal Augustinian perspective, Christians should affirm several liberal institutions, such as the separation of church and state, religious tolerance, and a number of individual rights. Beyond that, it’s over to the considerations of wisdom. And democracy, best I can tell, remains the best of the worst.

For now, let us cling to liberal democracy as a common grace of God. If God in his providence gave us modernity, let Christians be the stewards who use the freedoms of liberal democracy for the sake of the gospel.

For many in America, including Christians, America is seen as a repressive force in history and in the world. So…