America's nonreligious are a growing, diverse phenomenon. They really don't like organized religion

[Eugene]

Source: Associated Press

America’s nonreligious are a growing, diverse phenomenon. They really don’t like organized religion

BY PETER SMITH
Updated 12:01 AM EDT, October 5, 2023

-snip-

The decades-long rise of the nones — a diverse, hard-to-summarize group — is one of the most talked about phenomena in U.S. religion. They are reshaping America’s religious landscape as we know it.

-snip-

They’re the atheists, the agnostics, the “nothing in particular.” Many are “spiritual but not religious,” and some are neither or both. They span class, gender, age, race and ethnicity.

While the nones’ diversity splinters them into myriad subgroups, most of them have this in common:

They. Really. Don’t. Like. Organized. Religion.

Nor its leaders. Nor its politics and social stances. That’s according to a large majority of nones in the AP-NORC survey.

-snip-

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/nonreligious-united-states-nones-spirituality-humanist-91bb8430280c88fd88530a7ad64b03f8

[Aussie105]

1. Nothing wrong with faith, belief, religion.

As long as it stays a personal thing, kept private.

Who or what you see as being a guiding light in your life is up to you. Not open to discussion.

Could be the benevolent purple 10 tentacled octopus king from Jupiter, for all it is someone else's business.

As soon as it becomes organised, with some select people claiming to be 'in charge', it morphs into something quite different.

Some non-profit charitable religious groups are fine, as long as they focus on their charity work.
Few do.

[Trueblue Texan]

4. You can be as public as you want with your religion...

Just don’t try to dictate the lives of others by your beliefs.

[Voltaire2]

7. Except of course it doesn't and never has.

[edhopper]

12. This

While you have the right to your faith or belief or religion, I can say there is a lot wrong with having those things. I just can't force you to not have them.

[Iggo]

14. But it doesn't.

[NEOBuckeye]

2. The Republican Party is terrified of the Nones

Their whole platform is based on evangelical belief in God. They have tied their fate to the fate of organized Conservative Christianity in the US.

[Skittles]

3. GOOD

THAT IS A GOOD THING.

[Chainfire]

5. All I ask is that you keep your religion out of my face, my schools, and my government.

What you do in your homes or clubs is no skin off my teeth.

[Iggo]

15. But they don't, and I'm done asking.

[Lunabell]

6. you can worship the tooth fairy for all I care.

Just don't mandate that we all have to put our lost teeth under our pillows.

[no_hypocrisy]

8. Not all non-theists are alike.

There are humanists, freethinkers, atheists, agnostics, ethical culturalists, Buddhists, etc.

There are virulent anti-religionists, yes.

And there are more discriminating varieties. For example, religion, as a comparison to their beliefs, generally is not offensive. It doesn't seek to destroy their belief system and communities. But OTOH, there are certain sects of religion, say Christian denominationalists who want to supplant a religiously neutral government(s) with their own narrow interpretation of the Bible notwithstanding others' beliefs and choices. Most non-theists would oppose their efforts to gain power over them and the rest of the country.

As a humanist, I have attended a myriad of religious ceremonies of all religions and have not felt uncomfortable. Nobody's made me feel compelled to convert. I even faced the wrath of my immediate family when my brother married in a Muslim ceremony. I don't challenge anyone's pursuit of THEIR truth, not mine.

[2naSalit]

9. K&R

[3Hotdogs]

10. Two problems with organized religions. The first is trying to believe in something you know

can't possibly be true.


The second is the character of many of the leaders. At least twice a week, D.U. has posts about adultery, misuse of funds, buggery, child abuse and on and on, committed by pastors, priests, rabbis youth pastors and such. In past, these were hidden from the fuckd - sorry, flock. Priests were transferred, parishioners were discouraged from airing about abuse.

It will only get worse for organized religion.

[ms liberty]

11. Had to share this on fb. I'm pleased that others agree with me, lol!

[mike_c]

13. I've been a "none" for most of my 69 years.

I don't recall ever believing in that particular fairy tale. I do have vague memories of internal debate about whether Santa Claus was real when I was very young, and if I ever accepted religion it would likely be during that period of childhood gullibility. I have unambiguous memories of rejecting religion around eight or nine years old. My family was super religious. When I was twenty-ish my parents quit the SBC because it was "too liberal." They meant religiously liberal, not socially liberal.

I left home and began couch surfing at various friends' houses at fifteen. My family's religiosity was part of the reason.

[brewens]

17. Look at the Trump cult. I thought Joseph Smith and the Mormons was almost like someone set up an elaborate

experiment to demonstrate how a cult could become a mainstream religion.

So, believe what you will, but try and tell me some dude called Jesus couldn't have just known the faith healer con and a few other tricks. You have to be a little less certain you haven't been had.