From “Under God” to “Under Algorithm”

I get this sneaky suspicion that after World War II our whole national mentality quietly shifted.

The smoke settled, the world caught its breath, and we realized National Socialism had been one brutal attempt to slam the brakes on communism. So the new fight became crystal clear: America vs. godless communism. That’s not conspiracy talk — that’s exactly how the history books lay it out.

And look what happened next.

In 1954, on Flag Day, President Eisenhower signed the bill that put “Under God” into the Pledge of Allegiance. Two years later, in 1956, he made “In God We Trust” our official national motto and required it on all our paper money (it started showing up on bills in 1957). These weren’t accidents. They were deliberate moves to draw a bright line between us and the atheistic Soviet Union. Eisenhower himself said we were “reaffirming the transcendence of religious faith in America’s heritage and future.”

For a while, it stuck. Up through the 1950s and early 60s, America was functionally a Christian country in everyday life — even if the Constitution never called us one on paper. Churches were packed. Kids grew up with Sunday school and vacation Bible school as normal. Biblical stories and basic Christian ethics were just background noise in the culture.

Then the ground started moving under our feet.

The sexual revolution, Vietnam, civil-rights tension, and television exploding into every living room all hit at once. Suddenly we had this brand-new invention called “the teenager” — something previous generations never really had. Kids who used to step into adult responsibilities early (Jonathan Edwards heading off to college at 13 was completely normal back then) were now told to stay kids longer. Keep them occupied with TV, music, and later video games. Prolonged adolescence became the new normal.

By the 1980s the patriotism was still there, but it felt more like national pride and Olympic medal counts than anything deeper. The flag-waving was real, but the roots were already thinning.

And now, eighty years later?

We’ve arrived at what I call the age of the Algorithm. Our attention is the product. Our days are chopped into endless little dopamine hits from phones, feeds, and streaming. Comfort replaced conviction. Wants replaced needs. We’re more connected than ever, yet somehow more spiritually asleep.

I’m not saying it was some grand plot. I’m just saying look at the results. We traded rigor for entertainment, discipline for distraction, and a living relationship with our Creator for cultural Christianity that eventually ran out of gas.

Most of us can’t even read the old Puritan or Baptist writers anymore — not just because the English is too hard, but because the mindset is so foreign. They assumed a level of seriousness and biblical literacy that we’ve largely lost.

That’s where we are.

But here’s the thing I keep coming back to: we didn’t just lose national pride or old-school values. We lost something much deeper.

That’s what I want to talk about in Part 2 — “The Spark We Lost.” Because once we see clearly what actually slipped away, we can start talking about how to get the jolt back.

Stay with me on this one. The diagnosis is the first step.