The physical effect of declawing is gradual weakening of the muscles of the legs, shoulders, and back. (communitycatcoalitionwa.org)
The decline of Christianity from approximately 500 A.D. to 950 A.D. can be ascribed to the gradual weakening of the Roman Empire, the inroads of the barbarians from the North and the conquests of the Arabs, the bearers of a new religion, Islam. (religion-online.org)
the gradual weakening of the doctrine of Parliamentary sovereignty as the universally accepted agent of all constitutional authority. (blog.politics.ox.ac.uk)