How social conservatives became a minority in need of protection

During the Bush era, the religious right was ascendant and scarily intolerant. Now the same can be said of the secular left.

Religious freedom
(Image credit: (Scott Olson/Getty Images))

Thirteen years ago, I was a committed social conservative, recently hired as an editor at First Things, a monthly magazine devoted to bringing traditionalist religion into American public life for the purpose of overthrowing the liberal secularism that had been growing in power and influence since the 1960s.

Though I was skeptical about some aspects of the magazine's agenda, I was broadly sympathetic with its goals. At least until I saw them guiding White House policy. I opposed the Iraq War before it started and found particularly outrageous the theologically tinged arguments the magazine published in support of it. I dissented from the sexism that pervaded the magazine's offices and permeated its pages. I changed my mind on same-sex marriage, eventually becoming persuaded by Andrew Sullivan's conservative case for allowing gay couples to marry — and feeling disgust at the Bush administration's support for a constitutional amendment banning such arrangements.

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Damon Linker

Damon Linker is a senior correspondent at TheWeek.com. He is also a former contributing editor at The New Republic and the author of The Theocons and The Religious Test.