Look at the former Communist bloc countries. They went from being officially atheist to experiencing a strong religious revival. It’s impossible to mention Poland without mentioning the cultural importance of Catholicism there. Religion is also a common theme in any discussion of Russia, where the Orthodox Church has stepped in to provide a sense of Russian identity and become — for better or worse, given its alliance with the Putin regime — a key force shaping the country’s culture.

Then there’s China. While still officially atheist, it has never been wholly atheist in practice. In particular, Chinese folk religion and Buddhism never really went away, they just went underground (or, in some cases, not even underground). And one of the most noted phenomena about China is the astonishing growth of Christianity there, to the horror and dismay of the regime, which plays a game of both trying to coopt and suppress it.

By some estimates, pretty soon there will be more Christians in China than in the United States. What that will mean for the future of the country is anybody’s guess, but it will certainly mean something.

Now look at Latin America.