Ben Shapiro, as many people know, is an Orthodox Jew. His top recommendation for American politics? Go back to church.
The conservative commentator made the appeal in a CBN News interview as he warned that conspiracy theories and distrust are pulling Americans away from shared truths.
“When people ask, ‘What’s your number one recommendation for American politics?’ My number one answer is always the same,” Shapiro said. “Go back to church.”
He directed the message beyond Christians. “Everybody who’s Christian needs to go back to church. If you’re a secular, go back to church,” he said. “This is where you learn fundamental truths. It’s where you form social fabric.”
Shapiro described a political culture in which some people assume a claim must be true because it draws criticism. Others dismiss evidence against a conspiracy theory because they distrust the source. Once every institution becomes suspect, he said, people lose the ability to settle even basic disagreements.
“You need a lighthouse,” Shapiro said. He identified religious community and leadership as that source of grounding. Without it, he said, people are “adrift in a sea of nonsense.”
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The interview ranged across antisemitism and the future of the conservative movement, but Shapiro repeatedly returned to faith and personal responsibility. He argued that politicians gain support by telling people the system is to blame for every setback. Scripture, he said, calls people to examine their own choices.
Shapiro pointed to Cain and Abel. After God accepted Abel’s sacrifice, Cain could have learned from his brother. Instead, he killed him.
Shapiro said that same choice runs through politics: Blame someone else, or ask what we can do better. “It is significantly easier to kill Abel than it is to live with Abel, figure out why Abel’s sacrifice was better, and maybe do better yourself,” he said.
His Orthodox Jewish faith, Shapiro added, shapes how he raises his children and treats other people. He said God cares about the decisions we make throughout each day.
Asked for a message to the next generation, he put responsibility squarely in their hands.
“The decision is yours,” Shapiro said.
Then he offered a place to start: “Go to a church, pray, go to a church, get involved in charity.” He urged young people to spend time with friends and make choices that improve someone else’s life.
“Go out and make a choice today,” he said.
James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a journalism background from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and at the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact [email protected].
