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Losing Our Religion?

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  • Losing Our Religion?

    I'm surprised that 70% of the population still consider themselves Christian.

    To be sure, the United States remains home to more Christians than any other country in the world, and a large majority of Americans – roughly seven-in-ten – continue to identify with some branch of the Christian faith.1 But the major new survey of more than 35,000 Americans by the Pew Research Center finds that the percentage of adults (ages 18 and older) who describe themselves as Christians has dropped by nearly eight percentage points in just seven years, from 78.4% in an equally massive Pew Research survey in 2007 to 70.6% in 2014. Over the same period, the percentage of Americans who are religiously unaffiliated – describing themselves as atheist, agnostic or “nothing in particular” – has jumped more than six points, from 16.1% to 22.8%. And the share of Americans who identify with non-Christian faiths also has inched up, rising 1.2 percentage points, from 4.7% in 2007 to 5.9% in 2014. Growth has been especially great among Muslims and Hindus, albeit from a very low base.

    And it seems that evangelical Protestant churches are doing better than the mainline Protestant churches or the Catholic Church.

    The drop in the Christian share of the population has been driven mainly by declines among mainline Protestants and Catholics. Each of those large religious traditions has shrunk by approximately three percentage points since 2007. The evangelical Protestant share of the U.S. population also has dipped, but at a slower rate, falling by about one percentage point since 2007.
    http://www.pewforum.org/2015/05/12/a...ous-landscape/
    Atheism is the cult of death, the death of hope. The universe is doomed, you are doomed, the only thing that remains is to await your execution...

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jbnueb2OI4o&t=3s

  • #2
    I wonder how this compares in more traditional countries.
    I am become death...

    Comment


    • #3
      Originally posted by seer View Post
      I'm surprised that 70% of the population still consider themselves Christian.
      This is Allah giving Jehovah a good kicking while the Jehovah worshipers are realising that their man’s run out of talent and they are starting to line up with the righteous atheists to fight the last god standing. Diderot had it right – surely I don’t have to explain it again! Yes, you are loosing your religion, your chains, in fact. Goodbye and good riddance.

      “And the three men I admire most
      The Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost
      They caught the last train for the coast
      The day the music died.” – Don McLean
      “I think God, in creating man, somewhat overestimated his ability.” ― Oscar Wilde
      “And if there were a God, I think it very unlikely that He would have such an uneasy vanity as to be offended by those who doubt His existence” ― Bertrand Russell
      “not all there” - you know who you are

      Comment


      • #4
        Originally posted by seer View Post
        I'm surprised that 70% of the population still consider themselves Christian.




        And it seems that evangelical Protestant churches are doing better than the mainline Protestant churches or the Catholic Church.



        http://www.pewforum.org/2015/05/12/a...ous-landscape/
        We're not losing our religion, it's just that the facade is finally falling away. My whole life has been filled with people who, when asked "are you a Christian?" will answer that they are, but when pushed for details don't know much beyond some sort of karmic "if I do good, I'll get into heaven to see my dead relatives". Most people vaguely believed that God lives in the clouds, and has a big white flowing beard, and he wears a toga and sandals, and he is surrounded by our dead relatives who have turned into winged angels playing harps, and that when we die, we will see a bright light, and our dead relatives pleading for us to come into the light so that we may join them. They don't know what salvation is. They don't know what the purpose of Jesus dieing on the cross is. They don't know what the trinity is or who the Holy Spirit is. They don't know that through Christ Jesus, Christians are filled with power and live more than abundant lives in the here and now. They just have no real clue what Christianity is about outside of some old Sunday school classes they took as a child.

        My mother was telling me the other day that she was getting her hair done or at a shop some place in town, and she was wearing a pendant that said "Born Again", and the person working there asked her what that 'Born Again" meant. My mother asked her if she knew what "salvation" was, and the girl shook her head no. So my mom asked her if she ever went to church, and the girl answered, "oh yes! I go to Shawnee Methodist (a church down the street) every week". My mom was confused, "You go to church regularly and you've never heard of salvation?", and the girl shook her head no again. So my mom witnessed to her and led her to Christ.

        That's common Christianity in the United States. It's absolutely no surprise to me to hear that, in this day and age, people are no longer pretending to be Christian anymore. Christianity is not a social club. It's not a cultural identity. It's a personal commitment and a conscious decision to make Jesus first in your life. It's a way of life that permeates everything that you say, think and do. In my opinion it's about time that the wheat was separated from the chaff. I can't think of a better thing for the health of Christianity or for evangelism.

        Comment


        • #5
          Originally posted by Adrift View Post
          We're not losing our religion, it's just that the facade is finally falling away. My whole life has been filled with people who, when asked "are you a Christian?" will answer that they are, but when pushed for details don't know much beyond some sort of karmic "if I do good, I'll get into heaven to see my dead relatives". Most people vaguely believed that God lives in the clouds, and has a big white flowing beard, and he wears a toga and sandals, and he is surrounded by our dead relatives who have turned into winged angels playing harps, and that when we die, we will see a bright light, and our dead relatives pleading for us to come into the light so that we may join them. They don't know what salvation is. They don't know what the purpose of Jesus dieing on the cross is. They don't know what the trinity is or who the Holy Spirit is. They don't know that through Christ Jesus, Christians are filled with power and live more than abundant lives in the here and now. They just have no real clue what Christianity is about outside of some old Sunday school classes they took as a child.

          My mother was telling me the other day that she was getting her hair done or at a shop some place in town, and she was wearing a pendant that said "Born Again", and the person working there asked her what that 'Born Again" meant. My mother asked her if she knew what "salvation" was, and the girl shook her head no. So my mom asked her if she ever went to church, and the girl answered, "oh yes! I go to Shawnee Methodist (a church down the street) every week". My mom was confused, "You go to church regularly and you've never heard of salvation?", and the girl shook her head no again. So my mom witnessed to her and led her to Christ.

          That's common Christianity in the United States. It's absolutely no surprise to me to hear that, in this day and age, people are no longer pretending to be Christian anymore. Christianity is not a social club. It's not a cultural identity. It's a personal commitment and a conscious decision to make Jesus first in your life. It's a way of life that permeates everything that you say, think and do. In my opinion it's about time that the wheat was separated from the chaff. I can't think of a better thing for the health of Christianity or for evangelism.
          I agree 100%. When I was a kid every house emptied out on Sunday morning to go to Catholic Church. Most of the men stood in the back of the church commenting on the women and talking politics.
          Atheism is the cult of death, the death of hope. The universe is doomed, you are doomed, the only thing that remains is to await your execution...

          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jbnueb2OI4o&t=3s

          Comment


          • #6
            Originally posted by firstfloor View Post
            This is Allah giving Jehovah a good kicking while the Jehovah worshipers are realising that their man’s run out of talent and they are starting to line up with the righteous atheists to fight the last god standing. Diderot had it right – surely I don’t have to explain it again! Yes, you are loosing your religion, your chains, in fact. Goodbye and good riddance.

            “And the three men I admire most
            The Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost
            They caught the last train for the coast
            The day the music died.” – Don McLean
            "It's evolution; every time you invent something fool-proof, the world invents a better fool."
            -Unknown

            "Preach the gospel, and if necessary use words." - Most likely St.Francis


            I find that evolution is the best proof of God.
            ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
            I support the :
            sigpic

            Comment


            • #7
              Originally posted by Adrift View Post
              We're not losing our religion, it's just that the facade is finally falling away. My whole life has been filled with people who, when asked "are you a Christian?" will answer that they are, but when pushed for details don't know much beyond some sort of karmic "if I do good, I'll get into heaven to see my dead relatives". Most people vaguely believed that God lives in the clouds, and has a big white flowing beard, and he wears a toga and sandals, and he is surrounded by our dead relatives who have turned into winged angels playing harps, and that when we die, we will see a bright light, and our dead relatives pleading for us to come into the light so that we may join them. They don't know what salvation is. They don't know what the purpose of Jesus dieing on the cross is. They don't know what the trinity is or who the Holy Spirit is. They don't know that through Christ Jesus, Christians are filled with power and live more than abundant lives in the here and now. They just have no real clue what Christianity is about outside of some old Sunday school classes they took as a child.

              My mother was telling me the other day that she was getting her hair done or at a shop some place in town, and she was wearing a pendant that said "Born Again", and the person working there asked her what that 'Born Again" meant. My mother asked her if she knew what "salvation" was, and the girl shook her head no. So my mom asked her if she ever went to church, and the girl answered, "oh yes! I go to Shawnee Methodist (a church down the street) every week". My mom was confused, "You go to church regularly and you've never heard of salvation?", and the girl shook her head no again. So my mom witnessed to her and led her to Christ.

              That's common Christianity in the United States. It's absolutely no surprise to me to hear that, in this day and age, people are no longer pretending to be Christian anymore. Christianity is not a social club. It's not a cultural identity. It's a personal commitment and a conscious decision to make Jesus first in your life. It's a way of life that permeates everything that you say, think and do. In my opinion it's about time that the wheat was separated from the chaff. I can't think of a better thing for the health of Christianity or for evangelism.
              I have to agree. In the UK the only people who identify as Christian are those that are serious about it to a higher degree. They at least know the basics. Some might still be a bit stupid but they at least know that Jesus died for their sins.
              “I didn’t go to religion to make me happy. I always knew a bottle of Port would do that. If you want a religion to make you feel really comfortable, I certainly don’t recommend Christianity.” - C.S. Lewis

              Comment


              • #8
                Originally posted by firstfloor View Post
                This is Allah giving Jehovah a good kicking while the Jehovah worshipers are realising that their man’s run out of talent and they are starting to line up with the righteous atheists to fight the last god standing. Diderot had it right – surely I don’t have to explain it again! Yes, you are loosing your religion, your chains, in fact. Goodbye and good riddance.

                “And the three men I admire most
                The Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost
                They caught the last train for the coast
                The day the music died.” – Don McLean
                Yeah fedora neckbeards driving around in walmart scooters are right there on the front lines fighting Islam.
                "As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths." Isaiah 3:12

                There is no such thing as innocence, only degrees of guilt.

                Comment


                • #9
                  I found this interesting:

                  As the shifting religious profiles of these generational cohorts suggest, switching religion is a common occurrence in the United States. If all Protestants were treated as a single religious group, then fully 34% of American adults currently have a religious identity different from the one in which they were raised. This is up six points since 2007, when 28% of adults identified with a religion different from their childhood faith. If switching among the three Protestant traditions (e.g., from mainline Protestantism to the evangelical tradition, or from evangelicalism to a historically black Protestant denomination) is added to the total, then the share of Americans who currently have a different religion than they did in childhood rises to 42%.
                  So much for the canard that we believe what we do because we were raised that way.

                  Nearly one-in-five U.S. adults (18%) were raised in a religious faith and now identify with no religion. Some switching also has occurred in the other direction: 9% of American adults say they were raised with no religious affiliation, and almost half of them (4.3% of all U.S. adults) now identify with some religion.
                  IOW percentage-wise, those who are raised without faith are much more likely to become religious than those who are raised in a faith to leave religion altogether - so the current trend will more likely than not come to a balance rather than continue to decline.
                  Enter the Church and wash away your sins. For here there is a hospital and not a court of law. Do not be ashamed to enter the Church; be ashamed when you sin, but not when you repent. – St. John Chrysostom

                  Veritas vos Liberabit<>< Learn Greek <>< Look here for an Orthodox Church in America<><Ancient Faith Radio
                  sigpic
                  I recommend you do not try too hard and ...research as little as possible. Such weighty things give me a headache. - Shunyadragon, Baha'i apologist

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Originally posted by Darth Executor View Post
                    Yeah fedora neckbeards driving around in walmart scooters are right there on the front lines fighting Islam.
                    Gods are not defeated by swords and bullets. They are defeated by indifference.
                    “I think God, in creating man, somewhat overestimated his ability.” ― Oscar Wilde
                    “And if there were a God, I think it very unlikely that He would have such an uneasy vanity as to be offended by those who doubt His existence” ― Bertrand Russell
                    “not all there” - you know who you are

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Originally posted by firstfloor View Post
                      Gods are not defeated by swords and bullets. They are defeated by indifference.
                      Then judging by your posting record you seem to be losing that war badly.
                      "As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths." Isaiah 3:12

                      There is no such thing as innocence, only degrees of guilt.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Originally posted by Darth Executor View Post
                        Then judging by your posting record you seem to be losing that war badly.
                        I am just a humble commentator. I do not pretend to be right. The zeitgeist is much bigger than any individual. The change in god worship is noticeable over a lifetime but definitely not over the course of a few posts on a forum like this.
                        “I think God, in creating man, somewhat overestimated his ability.” ― Oscar Wilde
                        “And if there were a God, I think it very unlikely that He would have such an uneasy vanity as to be offended by those who doubt His existence” ― Bertrand Russell
                        “not all there” - you know who you are

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          I seem to remember some country practicing state atheism and then totally falling apart and now it's 75% Russian Orthodox Church. I wonder what country that was again.
                          “I didn’t go to religion to make me happy. I always knew a bottle of Port would do that. If you want a religion to make you feel really comfortable, I certainly don’t recommend Christianity.” - C.S. Lewis

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Originally posted by Darth Ovious View Post
                            I seem to remember some country practicing state atheism and then totally falling apart and now it's 75% Russian Orthodox Church. I wonder what country that was again.
                            I do not agree with atheism, but the history of the Russian Orthodox Church is indeed questionable and a very bad choice. In reality, many never changed, When the Soviets took over they put away their Cross and took up the Sickle and Hammer. When the Soviets collapsed they took off the Sickle and Hammer and put on the Cross. There is a dark side to the Russian Orthodox Church. The persecution of the Jews is equally intense and did not change.
                            Glendower: I can call spirits from the vasty deep.
                            Hotspur: Why, so can I, or so can any man;
                            But will they come when you do call for them? Shakespeare’s Henry IV, Part 1, Act III:

                            go with the flow the river knows . . .

                            Frank

                            I do not know, therefore everything is in pencil.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Originally posted by shunyadragon View Post
                              The persecution of the Jews is equally intense and did not change.
                              I'm not sure what you mean. Jews were instrumental in the rise of communism, it's part of how Hitler's antisemitism got him to power in the first place. They definitely weren't persecuting themselves when they were part of the Soviet Union's power structure. And nobody is persecuting them these days, Putin just opened a holocaust museum a while back and a lot of Russian jews are leaders of industry or high ranking government officials. Compared to Tsarist Russia it's like heaven and earth.
                              "As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths." Isaiah 3:12

                              There is no such thing as innocence, only degrees of guilt.

                              Comment

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