When I entered graduate school in the fall of 2005, I knew I wanted to study religion and politics in the United States. The reason for that was simple—I cared deeply about both subjects and knew that if I could combine my passions with academic training and earn an educational credential, I would be in good shape to build a career. But here’s what else I knew: the United States was undergoing an incredibly significant religious transition. The rise of non-religious Americans was happening at a pace that was hard to grasp fully. I believed it would have profound implications for every aspect of society, including politics. I wanted to make it my career goal to describe these shifts and what they could mean for the average person.
What I didn’t fully understand back in the late 2010s as I was moving my way through my doctoral program was that
