a struggle against an atheistic individualism and an unrelenting rationalism in politics and religion, in favor of a Christian understanding of authority, social order and theology itself

“atheistic” here is a meaningless word merely thrown in to cast a negative light on “individualism”, normally touted as a very positive value as far as americans, not to mention conservatives, are concerned

as for “unrelenting rationalism”, i should only wish for such a thing!

in reality a government dominated by laissez-faire entrepreneurs and expansionist big business overwhelmed a society that was archaic and immoral even by the standards of spartan greece in the 4th century bc