Is “Wokeness” a New Religion?

Does the World Need a New Self-Righteous Cult?

Victor Davis Hanson, historian and political commentator across a spectrum of news outlets from The New York Times to Fox News, said:

“Wokeness is the new religion, growing faster and larger than Christianity. Its priesthood outnumbers the clergy and exercises far more power. Silicon Valley is the new Vatican, and Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google, and Twitter are the new gospels.”

Is he right?

Is Wokeness a new religion that is replacing Christianity in influence and reach? Some have argued that its rapid rise, powerful advocates, and social dominance make it a competing belief system.

To explore these questions, we’ll examine three key aspects: the nature of Wokeness as a belief system, its structure of power and influence, and how Christians can respond to its rise.

Wokeness as a Belief System

“Woke” ideology emphasizes being acutely aware of social injustices, particularly those related to race, gender, and sexual orientation. Originating within African American Vernacular English (Black blues singer Lead Belly advised listeners to “stay woke” in a 1938 song), the term initially signified alertness to racial discrimination and inequality. That was a noble sentiment.

However, over time, it became a cornerstone of Marxist-Progressive ideology, with other groups hijacking the Black experience to gain their own power.

Every group tends to believe they are suffering some form of social inequity, and the Wokeness ideology provides a framework for blaming others and trying to extract penance or payment from them.

At its core, Wokeness can be understood as a worldview—a way of interpreting reality. But is it religious in nature?

The Language of Wokeness Reflects Religious Zeal

Wokeness often carries the intensity of religious conviction. Concepts like systemic oppression, privilege, and intersectionality function as doctrines, providing a framework for understanding social and moral realities.

Confession and repentance of privilege are akin to spiritual practices, requiring individuals to acknowledge their guilt and seek absolution through tacit agreement or outright activism.

For example, during the Black Lives Matter (BLM) riots sparked by the death of druggie and petty criminal George Floyd, news reports revealed that Blacks forced Whites to get on their knees and repent of their alleged racism.

Likewise, as we’ll see in-depth later, modern “Cancel Culture” is a kind of excommunication where dissenters are ostracized for not aligning with the prevailing orthodoxy. Could it be that Wokeness mimics the witch-burning excesses of Calvinism?

Calvinists are known for their argumentative, self-righteous attitudes, and Wokeness is guilty of perpetrating the same sins. Both claim they are the gold standard for morality but operate in less than virtuous ways.

Woke Justice is a Biblical Ideal with a Secular Twist

Wokeness places justice and equity at the forefront, echoing themes central to the Bible. However, it often redefines these terms through a secular lens.

Justice, in Wokeness, focuses primarily on dismantling structures of power, often through cultural revolution rather than personal transformation.

The Bible, by contrast, roots justice in the character of God and his call for repentance and reconciliation (Micah 6:8). This passage reminds us that the biblical concept of justice is two-fold. It requires both kindness and humility.

There is never justice when people from one group are subjugated for others to achieve it. The coercive tactics we see by Black groups, the LGBTQ+ community, or Islamic terrorists have nothing to do with justice. They are typically political power plays.

Wokeness lacks a transcendent foundation, leading to a shifting and subjective justice.

Wokeness Pirates Concepts of Hope and Salvation

Wokeness offers its own version of the Christian gospel of hope. They distort it into a utopia achieved through activism, dismantling oppressive systems, and societal reformation.

This mirrors Christianity’s vision of the kingdom of God but replaces divine sovereignty with human effort.

However, the gospel warns that human solutions, apart from Christ, cannot ultimately solve the problem of sin and brokenness (Romans 3:23). Wokeness falls short because it offers salvation, but its savior is a flawed humanity.

The Structures of Power and Influence

If Wokeness functions as a belief system, how has it achieved such dominance? Let’s look at its modern “priesthood” and one important way it wields power.

Tech Titans as the New Clergy

The commentator’s analogy of Silicon Valley as a “new Vatican” is striking. The leaders of tech giants—Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google, and Twitter—act as cultural gatekeepers. They want to force you to believe as they do:

Through algorithms that determine what ideas are amplified or suppressed, much like a religious institution deciding what doctrines to promote.
By social media platforms enforcing cultural orthodoxy, silencing voices deemed “heretical” through shadow-banning, de-platforming, or censorship.
By making confessions public through the abuse of privacy laws, Apple had to pay a $95 million fine because Siri regularly recorded private conversations.

This immense power rivals, and in some ways surpasses, that of traditional religious institutions, shaping not just beliefs but behaviors on a global scale.

Cancel Culture is the Modern Inquisition

Previously, I mentioned that Woke ideology thrives on “canceling” those who hold different ideas. It operates as a form of discipline within the Woke movement.

Individuals or organizations that deviate from accepted norms face public shaming, job loss, or social ostracism. This parallels religious excommunication but without the offer of redemption or restoration. Once “canceled,” there’s often no path back.

For Christians, this underscores the stark contrast between a culture of condemnation and the gospel’s message of grace.

The Gospel of Consumerism

The corporate world has embraced Wokeness, making it a central part of marketing and branding strategies. From rainbow logos during Pride Month to sustainability pledges, companies present themselves as moral authorities.

This aligns with Wokeness’s emphasis on public displays of virtue but also exposes its transactional nature—virtue signaling often serves profit motives. Regular people are seeing the manipulativeness of Woke ideology and are pushing back. We saw in the Bud Lite boycott, the policy changes at Disney, and major corporations dropping Woke DEI initiatives.

Unlike Christ’s sacrificial love, the Woke version of morality is superficial, driven by optics rather than heart transformation.

A Christian Response to the Cancer of Wokeness

Given the parallels and contrasts between Wokeness and Christianity, how should believers engage with this cultural phenomenon?

Discern the Spirit of the Age

Christians are called to be discerning, testing every idea against Scripture (1 John 4:1). Those who have lived any length of time know that ideologies come and go.

For example, even Marxism failed after only 70 years with the fall of the Soviet Union. Its present incarnation in China would have Karl Marx spinning in his grave as it serves as a superficial underpinning of a vibrant Capitalism. In China today, Marxism is more about power for manipulating the population than economic theory.

Since all sorts of ideologies come and go. Jesus Christ is eternal. Therefore, we must be discerning and not jump on any cultic belief system bandwagon, whether it be Mormonism, Scientology, or Wokeism.

Wokeness concerns can offer insights but must be evaluated through a biblical lens. Christians can engage constructively when it aligns with God’s heart for justice and compassion. But believers must stand firm in the faith where it departs from biblical truth.

Standing firm against sin in its endless forms requires wisdom, humility, and a deep commitment to Scripture as the ultimate authority. Woke justice for one group often imposes an injustice on another group. Christians can and should be watchers on the wall to mediate that.

Speak Truth in Love

The gospel calls us to proclaim truth, but always with grace and love (Ephesians 4:15). This means resisting the urge to caricature or vilify those who embrace Wokeness, recognizing their dignity as image-bearers of God.

Christians must never demean individuals in any way. Christians want to treat all people with respect on a personal level. Ephesians 6:12 reminds us our battle is not against flesh and blood (individuals) but against the “present darkness” of ideologies like Wokeness.

By embodying the gospel in word and deed, Christians can offer a compelling alternative to the shallow moralism of Wokeness.

Live as Salt and Light

In a culture shaped by Wokeness, Christians are called to be distinct, living as salt and light (Matthew 5:13-16). This means pursuing true justice, not as a performance but as an outworking of faith.

It also means prioritizing the eternal over the temporal, remembering that the ultimate transformation of society comes through the gospel, not human effort.

By living out the love of Christ, believers can shine a light that exposes the limitations of Wokeness and points others to the Savior.

Three Steps Forward

The rise of Wokeness challenges Christians to respond thoughtfully, faithfully, and lovingly. Here are three practical steps:

Immerse Yourself in Scripture. Stay grounded in biblical truth to navigate cultural complexities. A robust knowledge of God’s Word will equip you to discern and engage with Wokeness from a gospel-centered perspective.
Build Bridges, Not Walls. Seek opportunities to engage with those who embrace Wokeness. Show genuine interest in their concerns, offering a gospel-centered vision of justice and hope.
Model Kingdom Living. Let your life be a testimony to the power of Christ. In how you love, forgive, and seek justice, demonstrate the beauty of the gospel in action.

Wokeness may resemble a new religion, but it cannot offer what Christianity does—a Savior who redeems, a truth that endures, and a hope that transforms. As believers, we are called to stand firm in this truth, shining the light of Christ in a world searching for answers.