only 51 percent of the French own to being Catholic, and only 17 percent of these observe Catholic rituals. Evangelical Protestants are trying to fill the Christian void—there may now be twice as many evangelicals as mainstream Protestants—and the Catholic Church itself, or at least the laity, is attempting to fight back, so far without discernible success. As for the French secular religions (the free-thinkers, the so-called “humanistic” schools of thought, the old socialist and Communist sub-cultures), these are faring even worse.The classic illustration of Chesterton's axiom, that those who stand for nothing will fall for anything. Whether Sarkozy can roll back the tide is an open question. In the absence of a Great Awakening, I'm doubtful. Culture trumps politics, and French culture as elucidated above, is nearly defunct.