According to a new Gallup poll, Americans are continuing their steady march away from organized religion. Almost 49 percent of those polled identify as Protestant or some other Christian affiliation, but less and less people are openly identifying as “Christian,” the poll found.

The dominance of Christianity in the U.S. is not new, but it has changed over time. The U.S. has seen an increase in those with no formal religious identity (sometimes called "nones") and a related decrease in those identifying with a Christian religion. Since 2008, when Gallup began tracking religion on its daily survey, the "nones" have increased by six percentage points, while those identifying as Christian have decreased by six points. The 5% who identify with a non-Christian religion has stayed constant.

However, it’s not just organized Christianity in America that is taking the hit.

The most significant trend in Americans' religiosity in recent decades has been the growing shift away from formal or official religion. About one in five U.S. adults (21%) don't have a formal religious identity. This represents a major change from the late 1940s and 1950s when only 2% to 3% of Americans did not report a formal religious identity when asked about it in Gallup surveys. The increase in those claiming no religious identity began in the 1970s, with the percentage crossing the 10% threshold in 1990 and climbing into the teens in the 2000s.

This was true for Muslims and Jews in their claimed affiliations with a mosque or synagogue. This doesn’t necessarily mean that Americans are less “religious.” There has only been a slight decline in people saying that religion is important in their lives. It’s the organized practice and direction that seems to be waning. A telling find here is that seven out of ten people felt that religion was having less of an influence on American life. Since Gallup has been conducting this poll, the perceptions of religious influence on American life fluctuate and seem to have more political origins than spiritual ones.

The connection between religion and politics manifested itself in the presidential election this fall. Exit poll data showed that among those who reported attending religious services weekly, 55% voted for Donald Trump and 41% voted for Hillary Clinton. Among those who never attend religious services, 62% voted for Clinton and 30% voted for Trump.

The good news is that evangelicals have been telling me that Donald Trump is the vessel of God. The three times married, fornicator and practicer of at least six of the seven deadly sins is here to bring us all into the light.