THE DEATH OF THE ENLIGHTENMENT?

In her book, "The Great Emergence", author Phyllis Tickle asserts that Christianity experiences a major upheaval every 500 years or so. The last upheaval was the Reformation of the 1500s. She now asserts that Christianity is at the beginning of another such upheaval which she calls the "great emergence".

But Christianity does not exist in a vacuum. Christianity influences, and is influenced by, society at large. I would argue, therefore, that each of the discontinuities in Christianity has a direct parallel in secular society. For every Reformation there is a corresponding Enlightenment. And, like Christianity, the secular world sits on the cusp of its latest radical upheaval. 

The Enlightenment was based on the supremacy of facts, logic, and reason. Only that which could be proven empirically was true. That which could not be proven remained suspect or relegated to opinion. Today we are witnessing the erosion of the pillars of the Enlightenment. Proven facts are now considered mere opinions. And since facts are no longer sacrosanct, my facts, née opinions, are just as valid as yours, and I'm free to pick "facts" that fit my worldview or ideology and ignore those that conflict. Nor is this new way of thinking confined to any particular political party or ideology. Some conservatives deny the reality of climate change while some liberals believe that vaccines cause autism, despite all demonstrable evidence to the contrary. 

Is the Enlightenment coming to and end? Has the demonstrated power of reason outlived its usefulness? Among some elements of society this appears to be true, and I am fearful for our future.