7.5 Million Americans Lost Their Religion in the Past Two Years

[AmyintheBibleBelt]

You are looking at one half of the equation. For all those years there were people who felt compassion and who were reasonable. There are compassionate people in poor and uneducated parts of the world. When you say that we behave the way we do because it benefits us you are ignoring the countless people throughout history and throughout the world that have sacrificed their lives to do the right thing. How do you rationalize that in your system if people are only self seeking?

I argue that compassion is natural to us. And to be cruel requires some kind of force to get people to act against their nature. For people to ignore their impulse to empathy there must be some kind or coercion, fear, hunger, intense indoctrination.

I disagree. A few enlightened people saw the light first and started a movement, against slavery, against oppression, against inequality, against cruelty. They took their reason and enlightenment to others and convinced them to support a cause. Cruelty only requires ignorance, repression, or dysfunction.

 

[AmyintheBibleBelt]

People are self seeking. We are only animals with reason. We know we can live better, longer, safer, and enriched lives by taking part in society. But if there is no food, we will eventually eat one another, I assure you.

 

[The Hammer]

I think it's unfortunate that Americans are losing their religion; because this will lead to a rise in our nation's immorality. As a Christian nation, most of the people would be god-fearing Christians who always strive to follow the Golden Rule. Christians are compelled by their beliefs to behave morally; because they believe in a God who watches their every move and they believe in a God will hold them accountable for their lack of faith and immorality. However, many atheists are probably only compelled to behave morally when they are being watched by somebody in society who can hold them accountable for their immoral behavior. Of course, society can't always look over the shoulder of everybody and it is therefore unable to hold everyone accountable for their immorality; whereas, an omnipotent and omnipresent Christian God can always hold everyone accountable for their lack of faith and immorality. I could be wrong here, but I do expect immoral behavior and violent crime statistics will increase due to a lack of Christian faith and values.

I only read the first couple sentences and just wanted to point out that the US is not a "Christian" nation. Never has been, never will be. And a lack of Abrahamic faith does not make one immoral either.

 

[The Hammer]

Never heard of them. My point was that a very small portion of the US population identifies as pagan and has little influence.

Even the smallest number has influence. Just because you haven't heard of them, does not mean there aren't more out there. Again, there is no proper way to poll for Pagans because the questions asked by these surveys are pointed and skewed towards an abrahamic line of thought.

 

[Sapiens]

Fascinating article....

7.5 Million Americans Lost Their Religion Since 2012 - Tobin Grant | God's Politics Blog | Sojourners

Please discuss.

"Lost" it ... or never believed it in the first place and are coming out of the closet?

 

[Tumah]

It's not lost. It was stolen. There's a leprechaun with a big pot o' religion at the end of a rainbow somewhere. I would have the CIA start in Ireland, if these things were up to me.

 

[George-ananda]

Please discuss.

It seems logical to me that as education and information increase people will less and less look to their family's traditional religion for guidance. Everybody prides themselves now on thinking for themselves. "Spiritual but not Religious' is the growing trend; DIY Religion.

So I think the article is considering Organized Religion.

 

[George-ananda]

You got to think about statistics after you hear them. For example, I was raised in a traditional Catholic family; I no longer am a member and don't go to church. However, I am a seriously spiritual person and believe in Advaita but I am part of no organization. So, in this survey I probably would get classified as having lost my religion which is kind of misleading maybe?

To quote Mark Twain: There are lies; There are damn lies; and then there's Statistics.

 

[arthra]

I was thinking that there could be a number of reasons for a growing lack of religious identity...

brought on by breakdown in the structure of the family;

lack of standards or models in growing up...

Many families are what we would call today non-traditional..

divorce is high..and children are being raised in "broken" families

It would be interesting to consider how often people move...that is, they tend to scatter a good deal these days..

I have friends whose children move away for what ever reasons..employment, unemployment..

all the above could be factors in why people no longer have strong religious identities as say our grandparents had...

 

[Shadow Wolf]

This is a crucial step in reaching the goals set forth by the holy prophet Roddenberry, who prophecized it would be gone by the 24th century, if not before that. It is a step towards there being one less difference that separates us.

 

[leibowde84]

My thought on the matter?

Meh.

Thanks for the insight.

 

[Revoltingest]

This is a crucial step in reaching the goals set forth by the holy prophet Roddenberry, who prophecized it would be gone by the 24th century, if not before that. It is a step towards there being one less difference that separates us.

He didn't believe that religion would be gone, but he clearly showed that contemporary religions wouldn't predominate. We saw Klingon, Vulcan, Bajoran, etc religious practices all over the place. I thought this made for a more interesting & less baggage laden vision of the future.

 

[Cephus]

He didn't believe that religion would be gone, but he clearly showed that contemporary religions wouldn't predominate. We saw Klingon, Vulcan, Bajoran, etc religious practices all over the place. I thought this made for a more interesting & less baggage laden vision of the future.

But none of those were human religions, which is all Roddenberry ever spoke about. I really think he was subtly saying that aliens are inferior to his version of humans in the future.

 

[Revoltingest]

But none of those were human religions, which is all Roddenberry ever spoke about. I really think he was subtly saying that aliens are inferior to his version of humans in the future.

Roddenberry wasn't an atheist though.
And I don't think he intended to make aliens inferior, since some were superior.

 

[Cephus]

Roddenberry wasn't an atheist though.
And I don't think he intended to make aliens inferior, since some were superior.

He was a humanist and an agnostic, from what I've read, he didn't believe in any particular kind of personal deity but in the concept of gods. And, at least in TOS, which is the only series that Roddenberry was personally responsible for, there were technologically superior aliens, but he always found a way to make humans morally or intellectually superior.

 

[Revoltingest]

He was a humanist and an agnostic, from what I've read, he didn't believe in any particular kind of personal deity but in the concept of gods. And, at least in TOS, which is the only series that Roddenberry was personally responsible for, there were technologically superior aliens, but he always found a way to make humans morally or intellectually superior.

I saw the Vulcans portrayed as superior to humans.
And there were the Organians in "Errand Of Mercy".
I'm sure there were others, but I can't summon them on command.

 

[Shadow Wolf]

He didn't believe that religion would be gone, but he clearly showed that contemporary religions wouldn't predominate. We saw Klingon, Vulcan, Bajoran, etc religious practices all over the place. I thought this made for a more interesting & less baggage laden vision of the future.

I didn't think to specify here on earth.

But none of those were human religions, which is all Roddenberry ever spoke about. I really think he was subtly saying that aliens are inferior to his version of humans in the future.

I never got that impression from the show. The Edo, for example, run everywhere making them more physically fit than humans and their affectionate ways that makes them lovers rather than fighters is hard to label as inferior. It's also hard to call the Vulcans inferior when their logical is so sharp. It would also seem to be counter to the politics and social themes present in Star Trek, which revolve around inclusiveness and acceptance of others.
I also don't think it's really Roddenberry's own view of human society as human politics in Star Trek are very Cosmopolitan, which is a combination of some forms of Communitarianism and Liberalism. The economy is also not consumer based, and probably very socialist, perhaps communist, because material wants have been done away with. I think he just read a lot, had many good conversations, and put the plethora of ideas and books into a world of monocultures so these different ideas could be shown and expressed in an easier to understand and catch onto way than had the series not featured the different species (including humans) in such a monocultured way.

And, at least in TOS, which is the only series that Roddenberry was personally responsible for,

He was also involved in TAS and the first few years of TNG.

 

[Tiapan]

7.5 Million Americans Lost Their Religion in the Past Two Years
thus gaining wisdom.

 

[icehorse]

Back to the OP - hooray! Maybe someday we can start electing politicians who don't have to pretend to have faith in a deity.

 

[Shadow Wolf]

7.5 Million Americans Lost Their Religion in the Past Two Years
thus gaining wisdom.

This remains to be seen.