Religion follows politics / politics follow religion: what is said here in regards to politics, might be said equally to religion. "The late 1960s and the bulk of the 1970s constituted the darkest, most ominous time in America's postwar path" -- which coincides with the "Catholic experience" regarding the people-impact/ reaction of/ to Vatican II within local churches.
The awakening of 'competitive democracy' (people versus hierarchy) has challenged Catholic Church history with respect to alienation of men and women due to false pretenses of male cultic dominionism within the RCC:
"remaining stuck in our polarized politics of nostalgia" is not a workable option for the future of Church;
"It is time for the grown-ups (in Church) to take over the conservative movement and the Republican Party" (Church) -- what is certainly a dynamic occurring within Churches at the present time.