At the turn of the 20th century, many Americans predicted religion's demise citing improved access to higher levels of education, but a quick appeal to the statistics reveals that more people believe in God today than in 1900 (as a percentage of the population) - Source - The Science Channel. Your thoughts.
2007-03-12 18:47:51 · 20 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Nicholas: I was surprised too. But according to a show titled "Beyond Death", more people (as a percentage of the population) believe in God at the end of the 20th century than believed at the beginning. No links, sorry, but you might want to check your local listings.
2007-03-12 18:58:24 · update #1
I'm skeptical of your statistic, frankly. At any rate, between 1915 and 1930, there was a massive influx of Irish, German, and other Catholic immigrants -- that changed the face of America in a very theistic direction. (Similarly, the current influx of Latinos is making the country far more religious!)
My prediction? Postmodernism will spread. Today more people might "believe" in God than 100 years ago, but there are probably less fundamental in their beliefs.
Yes, US atheists should continue to "come out" and be I encourage them to do so.
2007-03-12 18:51:53 · answer #1 · answered by STFU Dude 6 · 6⤊ 1⤋
Religion is the backbone to any society; and it is also the downfall to everything. Every religion is wrong. There isn't a single religion that has gotten it all right yet; granted every religion has its facts, but those facts have been tainted and mutilated through translation, misconception, and own gain.
The US has The Constitution for a reason; even though the government takes its loopholes and amendments to work in their favor, its there. You're basically saying that Atheism is wrong. Who are you to judge if the religion is wrong or right? I could sit here all day and night and tell you why Christianity, Buddhism, Taoism, etc. are wrong; or where they're right. Honestly, I'd rather not get into that though, simply because it'd take too long. :)
But yes, religion is here to stay-- sorry to say. As long as mankind lives, religion will live. People need SOMETHING to believe in, it doesn't matter what, as long as you believe.
2007-03-13 02:32:22 · answer #2 · answered by twiztid_phreq420 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'd be curious to see them include/allow them to ask what the faith of an individual is during the next census.
I'm skeptical of this statistic though. Its been proven many times that its rather easy to skew results in a survey. Geography, the number of people asked, how they were asked, comparison to old numbers without taking into account population growth...these things and others can lead to an inaccurate sampling.
As Nicholas said, everything that I've read indicates that, as a whole, the numbers of atheists is on the rise.
2007-03-13 02:28:30 · answer #3 · answered by Bill K Atheist Goodfella 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Why does it matter? What people believe doesn't affect you unless it infringes on your civil rights. As long as religions stays out of the goverment, why worry if some people want to believe in something that you think is silly? If there was no religion, people would still murder, rape, etc. Having faith doesn't automatically mean you're an idiot.
I'm fairly certain you're not lost and sad because you don't believe in God. Why imply that a lack of education means you're more willing to believe in God? I don't practice any religion whatsoever but, I do believe in God. Strangely enough, I can form complex sentences and walk upright and chew gum while doing so.
2007-03-13 02:05:56 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 4⤊ 0⤋
I think that with education a lot of people are opening up to new ideas and new lifestyles to try and improve themselves. Plus people often want to find themselves in religion, it makes some people better thinking(or knowing)that there is something after death. Plus as we are in the 21st century now and have the technologies we have today that scares some people and some feel they need to latch onto an idea to feel protected. I don't think atheists, or agnostics, or anyone from any other religious or non-religious group should feel discouraged. My view is that if your religion, or not having a religion gets you through the night then that's one less sleeping medication I have to hear about.
2007-03-13 01:54:35 · answer #5 · answered by Shannon A 4 · 1⤊ 4⤋
I suspect that, yes, religion is here to stay, but that shouldn't discourage atheists. The notion that atheists should proselytize is rather a silly one, and one that might well be let go.
2007-03-13 02:14:33 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The majority of Americans also believe in ghosts and UFO's too
2007-03-13 01:51:30 · answer #7 · answered by pavano_carl 4 · 4⤊ 0⤋
I am Christian,We are never going away.Yes, more people believe in God now than ever in history.
2007-03-13 02:14:14 · answer #8 · answered by gwhiz1052 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I don't see how it is possible to discourage a non-belief in something. christians have been pushing religion onto non-believers for a long time and yet atheism and scepticism is on the rise. We live in an age where information is easier to access, therefore armed with greater knowledge, more and more people are turning away from established religions and dogma.
2007-03-13 02:00:02 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 5⤋
who else do you want to discourage, pagans, jews, muslims. hey, why not just throw out the first amendment while your at it. i know you are only looking for people who will agree with you and i'm sure you will find plenty of people who will, but just remember plenty of atheist have fought and died to protect yours and everyone else's right to believe or disbelieve as they see fit.
2007-03-13 01:58:00 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 5⤊ 0⤋