Looking at it through a religious lens is pretty narrow-minded. Secular people have values too. You're limiting your ability to understand the world around you.

Some secular people have values, I don't think religious people are saints. Secular people however don't have a framework to 'force' others with supposed values to adhere to them. I don't believe it's narrow minded to believes changes in religion might have an effect on things, the way people follow their religion is influenced by external factors, don't see why it wouldn't be the other way around as well. Atheists are quite new we'll see what happens.

I would reckon looking at these kinds of things through religious lenses is actually VERY useful.

I don't follow sportsball, but there are masses of population and massive institutions that are built upon for and on sportsball.

So, seeing large changes or shifts within sportsball can be useful in gleaning some sort of trend.

While, I don't fully follow the gp comment, I can see the other side of yours.