Short answer: almost, but not entirely. And it can be won back. I explain why, at the University of Mobile’s Center for Leadership.

Some of the good signs:

  Moreover, much of the news on the legal fight for religious freedom in recent months has been good. With a few notable exceptions, court after court has issued preliminary injunctionsin favor of charities and businesses fighting the infamous “HHS mandate” that would force institutions to pay for abortion-inducing services against the strong, clear dictates of their faith….   A few other statistics also are encouraging: In 2010 (the last year available), the birth rate for U.S. teenagersreached historic lows for all ages and ethnic groups. This is not because abortions have gone up, but, it appears, because early sexual activity has slightly declined. As the Guttmmacher Institute reported last year, “teens are waiting longer to have sex than they did in the recent past” and “the most common reason that sexually inexperienced teens gave for not having had sex was that it was ‘against religion or morals’.”

There’s more. And you’ll see that I am anything but a Pollyanna. Traditionalists (which by now basically means anybody of decent standards at all) are back on our heels. But as Winston Churchill said, “never give in.”