The western world can boast of an abundance of worldviews.  The generality of the worldviews in our nation do not find their roots in religion, but rather in philosophy.  It is particularly dangerous to believe that the United States is a Christian nation.  Such thinking promotes the idea that the world views espoused by the majority of the citizens of this nation are rooted in Christianity.
   
 Secularism is a worldview that encompasses many worldviews and is rapidly ascending in popularity.  The western world has experienced a rise in secularism, as a worldview, during the 20th century.  Secularism is the most influential philosophy in the western world.  This is important for Christians to understand, because Secularism is in direct opposition to Christianity.  The tragedy, is that during the last decade of the 20th century, Secularism is being widely accepted by Christians.

 The root of the word Secularism is the word secular.  The word secular describes the here and now.  "Live for today, because there may not be a tomorrow," so says the Secularist.  The aestheticians, the world of media (especially news media), and the literary artists of our age are overwhelmingly committed to Secularism.  There is nothing wrong with secular; it simply defines the present time.  The conflict with Christianity is when the secular claims to exclude the eternal.  Christians are interested in the present world, but their primary concern ought to be the eternal.  The Bible teaches that Christians must be involved in the secular, but Christians cannot deny the sacred.  Secularism excludes the eternal.  Secularism not only conflicts with Christianity, but by excluding the eternal, it rejects Christianity.

 The secular is inseparably connected to the sacred or the eternal.  The danger for Christians is to profess hope for the eternal, yet embrace Secularism and therefore reject the hope of the eternal.  "For man goes to his eternal home while mourners go about in the street" (Ecclesiastes 12:5).