Current Religious Statistics for the USA

In a lot of ways I think that the bigger the church or movement is, the bigger the target for investigative journalism and critical satire on TV. The Catholic molestation story has been going on forever because the Catholic church is so big (not to mention how they failed to deal with it right away).

And I think there is a desire for many intelligent people to embrace religion as moral encouragement, shared spiritual experiences, and meaningful rituals (sacraments, what have you). However, a lot of religions don't seem to answer the hard questions. They also sermonize wedge issues and make them into good vs. evil, and try to push out dissent.

Of course there are also a lot of people that enjoy having open week ends and not having to feel bad about the stupid things they did on Saturday night.
 
I don't know, makes complete sense to me. If you compare the catholics decline vs rise in atheism, it's kind of logical.

Also, "other cristians" category is very broad and misleading. They could/should have singled out a few big protestant churches, since it's US we're talking about.
 
More and more stories like this-

http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1883598,00.html

-that make me understand why someone might not be too receptive to any religious entity in today's day and age. Maybe ever so slowly Americans are beginning to have no need for religion. Or maybe this is a study like most, that can't possibly capture the entirety of the subject.


I myself do not see a need for religion in my life. I understand its use for controlling a populous or providing something to believe in but when things like the above happen... I just plain want to spit in the face of those religious authorities and all whom follow them blindly.
 
I spit in the face of the Khmer Rouge and their past attempts to murder all religious persons and those of intellectual quality.

It goes both ways, c'est la vie, atheism is no better, we are still human, become an existentialist loaf and let it soar.
 
Maphusio said:
-that make me understand why someone might not be too receptive to any religious entity in today's day and age. Maybe ever so slowly Americans are beginning to have no need for religion. Or maybe this is a study like most, that can't possibly capture the entirety of the subject.
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Well, Americas biggest problem is that there was never a "separation of church and state" that most European counties went through. Having a government that is not secular in this day and age is ridiculous; take religion the fuck out of politics.

Crni Vuk said:
If God did not exist, it would be necessary to invent Him.
- Voltaire
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...which I think could/should be extended to mean any god in general. Humen (lol) may need a god, but it could be anything - a made-up celestial being, another person, an occupation, an object, or even yourself.
 
Crni Vuk said:
If God did not exist, it would be necessary to invent Him.
- Voltaire
Click to expand...

I see your Voiltaire, and raise you a Nietzche:

What is it: is man only a blunder of God, or God only a blunder of man?

(always loved that line)
 
Ausdoerrt said:
Well, Americas biggest problem is that there was never a "separation of church and state" that most European counties went through. Having a government that is not secular in this day and age is ridiculous; take religion the fuck out of politics.
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Yes and no, the mention of God was about where religion began and ended in government originally. The problem was that over time, the references to religion increased and were not removed as what was accepted to be irreligious became less religious (essentially the belief that there is a god in some form to there being no god). It helps even less that the 20th century saw an increased focus on religion in politics, a trend which has continued to this day to create the ridiculous amount of pandering to Christianity. It probably helps even less that people actually believe that the US was founded as a Christian nation and that one of the two major political parties is highly religious.
 
Ausdoerrt said:
Well, Americas biggest problem is that there was never a "separation of church and state" that most European counties went through. Having a government that is not secular in this day and age is ridiculous; take religion the fuck out of politics.
Click to expand...
Please eloborate what you mean by seperation. In norway we had it the other way around. The takeover of church by the state, which I think was the thing that happened in most of skandinavia and GB aswell.
 
Ausdoerrt said:
...which I think could/should be extended to mean any god in general. Humen (lol) may need a god, but it could be anything - a made-up celestial being, another person, an occupation, an object, or even yourself.
Click to expand...
If the "thoughts" about god keeps only one person alive (which it definetly does) then its already doing the thing right. And I knew a few people that only managed to overcome some burdens with the believing in god or at least a god like entity. Alone the people which do not commit suicide for example cause they believe its a sin. Or do not do crimes, or anything else. We are not talking about fanatics at the moment. Just a moderate believing regarding one self and his own feelings. It has nothing to do with people maybe beeing weak compared to others that do not have a believing in god or something similar. They just found a way to deal with their situation in a different way.

lugaru said:
Crni Vuk said:
If God did not exist, it would be necessary to invent Him.
- Voltaire
Click to expand...

I see your Voiltaire, and raise you a Nietzche:

What is it: is man only a blunder of God, or God only a blunder of man?

(always loved that line)
Click to expand...



Nietzche says: "God Is dead"

God says : "Nietzche is dead"

Oh and another one (from Kepler maybe?), if our world is really just a blunder what kind of genious someone has to be to afford such kind of mistakes.
 
Loxley said:
Ausdoerrt said:
Well, Americas biggest problem is that there was never a "separation of church and state" that most European counties went through. Having a government that is not secular in this day and age is ridiculous; take religion the fuck out of politics.
Click to expand...
Please eloborate what you mean by seperation. In norway we had it the other way around. The takeover of church by the state, which I think was the thing that happened in most of skandinavia and GB aswell.
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I'm not sure what you mean by "takeover" exactly, not extremely familiar with the way religion is treated in Northern Europe. But, for all it matters, the government has a right to exercise a reasonable amount of control over the church. Religion is a freedom, but churches are secular organizations. And also, a freedom can only extend as far as it does not affect others. These days, in US especially, religion is too convenient a shield for anything. On the other hand (bad example, I know, but imho), religious values are almost as paramount to holding a high gov't position in the US as being "in the party" was necessary to have a gov't job in the USSR. It's both the fault of the system and of the people themselves. As of now, Americans would not vote anyone non-Christian for president.
 
Loxley said:
Please eloborate what you mean by seperation. In norway we had it the other way around. The takeover of church by the state, which I think was the thing that happened in most of skandinavia and GB aswell.
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You mean when catholism spread here and it controlled the kings?
 
Well, Americas biggest problem is that there was never a "separation of church and state" that most European counties went through
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:S

Dude. The US's First Amendment to the constitution, adopted in 1791, explicitly *rules out* any kind of institutionalized, 'state religion'. Note that it not only adresses the entire country's religion, it rules out the adoption of official religions in individual federal states. In fact, the States were, at that time, a nation founded on the premises of the European Enlightment period, which strongly encouraged a schism between Church and State. Furthermore, the French Revolution occured simultaneously to the nascent stages of the American republic, and had a very powerful impact on its formation, wether the gringos like it or not.

So no. One can't really say 'there wasn't a real separation between church and state' in Gringolandia. They didn't experience it firsthand on such a scale and with such violence as the Frogs, but the country is based on that principle.

I believe you were adressing the current situation, and the archetypal die-hard, church-going, republican-voting Palin supporters glued to their Pat Robertson shows, sporting Jesus bumper stickers. The fact that whacko tele-evangelism is a powerful political drive today is another subject, and made its emergence only in the mid 1950's. Dunno, maybe I'm wrong and you weren't alluding to this at all.

In any case, the fact that a society overall becomes more secular doesn't mean it's losing its values and morals. It can be a symptom that the universal values promoted by the dominant religion are integrated into society so deeply that the nation's citizens don't realize said values' provenance.

it always sounded like a way to "increase the numbers" for some future attempt at world takeover or something like that.
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Yes, my Catholic brethren in Uzbekistan are planning a coup as we speak, and we're using Redemptionists as gate rams to their main castle!
 
Dragula said:
Loxley said:
Please eloborate what you mean by seperation. In norway we had it the other way around. The takeover of church by the state, which I think was the thing that happened in most of skandinavia and GB aswell.
Click to expand...
You mean when catholism spread here and it controlled the kings?
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No. Other way around. When the church was taken over by the kings. In sweden as I remember it, it was Wasa that had to pay back his debt to lübeck that took all church property. Basically what I mean is that the church in those countries were taken over by the state. Statecontrolled church.
 
who does seriously believe in the seperation of politics and religion is a fool. Sorry if it sounds harsh.
 
NMA - where I go for riveting religious discussions.
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who does seriously believe in the seperation of politics and religion is a fool. Sorry if it sounds harsh.
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Remember posting 101:

"If you don't have anything constructive to add, shut the fuck up"
 
People are leaving the major religions?


Gee, did the world suddenly realized praying to something that won't answer won't give you shit even if it does exist?
 
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