As I stood in the heart of Times Square, kicking off my Walk Across America — a 3,000-mile journey to restore faith, merit and the American Dream—I couldn’t help but reflect on this iconic city. This is the city where Americans built skyscrapers, Wall Street traders chased fortunes, and immigrants arrived with nothing, working day and night to achieve their dreams. This is the city that once embodied the pure spirit of capitalism, a place where the American Dream wasn’t just a slogan.
Yet, in the rise of Zohran Mamdani as the Democratic nominee for mayor — after decisively winning the primary — we see this once-proud capitalist city surrendering to socialism. What's missing is faith.
As I walked through the streets of Manhattan, I sensed a profound absence. I passed some of the world's most magnificent churches and cathedrals: St. Patrick's, with its Gothic spires reaching toward heaven; Trinity Church, standing sentinel over Wall Street since the days of the Founding Fathers and the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, with its rose window and garden. I also encountered countless neighborhood parishes and synagogues — some full of the faithful, but many, sadly, standing empty.
These places of worship are not mere buildings; they are beacons of hope, reminders of a higher power that guides us through life's chaos. Yet, in New York's public square, faith feels like a forgotten relic.
Prayer isn't invoked in policy debates, and scripture no longer forms the foundation for justice. In one church, I even saw a rainbow flag obscuring the cross, as too many houses of worship have surrendered their message to politics. Is it any wonder that so many now look to government — in the form of Mamdani promises — for answers to life's deepest questions?
The hard truth, as a pastor who grapples with these issues in Chicago, is that New York has traded its faith for the idols of materialism, activism and politics. The pursuit of wealth has become an end in itself, not a means to bless others as God intended. Activism breeds rage and division, turning neighbors into enemies over every grievance. And politics has morphed into a false religion, offering salvation through government programs rather than grace.
Look no further than the current mayoral race for proof of this spiritual drift. Mamdani's vision of rent freezes, wealth taxes and expansive government intervention shows how we've veered from the cradle of free enterprise toward failed collectivist policies.
New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani attends a news conference in the Bronx where he was endorsed by Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie on Sept. 17, 2025, in New York City. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
How did we get here, from fortunes built on individual liberty to dependence on the state? The answer is clear: Without God as our anchor, we've clutched at earthly ideologies to fill the divine void.
This isn't just a New York story. It’s a national crisis. From the streets of Los Angeles to the halls of Washington, D.C., faith has receded from public life, supplanted by cults of consumerism and ideology. Crime surges not solely from poverty but from abandoning religion's moral compass. Families fracture not just from economic strain but from a culture that mocks traditional values. As a nation, we're reaping division, dependency and a hollow pursuit of progress without purpose.
But there's hope. As I've learned through Project H.O.O.D., my nonprofit on Chicago's South Side, real change begins by rebuilding from the ground up with faith as our foundation.
That's why I'm walking: to reignite that spark across America, starting here in New York. Reclaim your churches not as tourist stops, but as living centers of community and conviction.
Turn back to the God who blessed this land of opportunity. Reject the false gods of socialism and identity politics. Believe in God, believe in yourselves, and this city can reclaim its legacy as America's heartbeat. The bright lights can shine with true meaning if we let faith's light guide us once more.