A Brookings Institution study says that today’s Democrats are less interested in even liberal Christianity, but that it still might be possible to bring back the religious left. I would think this is true. Pope Francis seems to be bringing liberal Catholicism back into power. Many ostensible evangelicals are reconfiguring their teachings to promote liberal, rather than conservative, politics. And of course there are the mainline liberal Protestants who are still around in significant, though reduced, numbers. (Do notice that I am not referring to people who are liberal politically though conservative theologically, which used to be commonplace and is still evident in many congregations and on this blog. I’m referring to new iterations of the social gospel.)…

The report, by the institute’s Governance Studies Program, is based on polling and interviews with many of the top players among Washington’s religious left. They include John Carr, formerly of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops; evangelical writer Jim Wallis; and Rabbi David Saperstein of the Reform Jewish movement.