Modernity and the Church

On the eve of the next Catholic conclave of cardinals, George Will writes:

The challenge confronting the church can be expressed in one word: modernity. The church preaches that freedom is life lived in conformity to God's will as manifested in revelation and interpreted by the church. Modernity teaches that freedom is the sovereignty of the individual's will – personal volition that is spontaneous, unconditioned, inviolable and self-legitimizing.

So what does this mean here in America?

In America, a market-driven society, there is a religion market in which the most successful competitors for congregations are churches with clear doctrinal and strict moral positions. For these churches, the "crisis of Christianity" is congestion in their parking lots.

Interesting. Will's observations about Europe's forthcoming population decline are also worth noting.

[Hat tip: Real Clear Politics]