When 1 in 5 Americans Don't Belong to a Religion, is God Dead in 2013?

[cbayer]

http://www.policymic.com/articles/21950/when-1-in-5-americans-don-t-belong-to-a-religion-is-god-dead-in-2013

Andy Morgan
inCulture, Religion 2 hours ago



Is God dead in 2013? At the very least, organized religions are facing a radical change.

Forget the hype and believe the stats. Religious affiliation is falling, and more Americans than ever label themselves as “nones” (answer surveys as “no affiliation”).

According to the Pew Forum, “The number of Americans who do not identify with any religion continues to grow at a rapid pace. One-fifth of the U.S. public – and a third of adults under 30 – are religiously unaffiliated today, the highest percentages ever in Pew Research Center polling.”



Why the change? Many millennials (ages 18-30) are eligible for polling for the first time over the last five years, replacing older generations who are dying. Thirty-four percent of millennials polled claim “no affiliation,” compared to less than 10% of the Greatest Generation.



more at link

[EvilAL]

1. Less people going to churches

means less people bringing their kids to churches. That leads to the kids that grew up not going to church or bringing their kids to church and identifying as non-religious. It only takes a few generations.. Once the older generations die and people find that they have better things to do I don't think it will take very long for those numbers to increase.
God isn't "dead" in 2013, but I think the religious institutions' influences are weening and once that scale is tipped, only the hardcores will remain and become the minority.. Not in my lifetime, but it's coming.

[cbayer]

3. I predict some rather rather significant changes among mainstream religious/spiritual institutions.

There will be no disappearance, though, imo. Not in your or anyone's lifetime.

But I think the changes will be good - more open, more affirming, more working for causes that I support and less dogma.

[EvilAL]

5. Yeah, the only way to change

the things you don't like about it is to not be involved. I don't think it's because people don't care to be told what to do as much as it is people either have other things to do or don't want to be associated with the structure of it.
I don't think it will totally disappear either, but it may become the minority, at least in North America. The Middle East has a long way to go, for example.

[cbayer]

6. From my reading, the nones have walked away from both organized religion and

organized politics.

They are disenchanted by both, but that does not mean that they don't maintain and interest/belief in religious/spiritual ideas or political causes.

They will find or establish new groups that better meet their needs. People will continue to seek out groups of like minded people.

Neither religious groups nor political parties are going to disappear.

At least not in this country.

[EvilAL]

41. yeah, they will

find new groups of like minded people, minus god.
The won't totally disappear, like I said, they will be the minority.

[cbayer]

42. The majority still believe in god. They will find new groups - some will include

god and some will not. What you *dream* of will never come true, imo. They're here. They believe. Get used to it.

[trotsky]

43. And the number of atheists is steadily increasing.

We're here. We don't believe. Get used to it!

[tama]

12. Estonia

"Estonia is one of the least religious countries in the world, with 75.7% of the population claiming to be irreligious. The Eurobarometer Poll 2005 found that only 16% of Estonians profess a belief in a god, the lowest belief of all countries studied (EU study).[172]"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estonia#Religion

However most Estonians support/believe in some sort of nature spirituality:

"Aigar says his place of worship is the forest yet with neither ceremony nor routine nor religious text, it is hard to say it is an organised religion.

His daughter, Kotre, 22, chips in: "Most of us say, yes, we're Maausk but we don't go into [detail]. We just know that it is in harmony with nature and our own souls."

I am invited to a midsummer festival with Aigar and his family at which they dance around a huge bonfire, mount a giant wooden swing and sing songs.

Young girls pick wild flowers and make crowns, which, apparently, according to ancient beliefs, they must put under their pillow at night in the hope it will bring them a husband.

Traditions like these are deeply embedded in the Estonian culture: well over 50% of Estonians say they do believe in a spirit or life force, however ill-defined."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-14635021

[cbayer]

14. My take is that the baltic peoples often cherish deeper roots in terms of spirituality.

It is an area I would like to visit.

[tama]

16. Yup

Finnish situation (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_Finland) is quite different from Estonia though similar trends, largely because of different historical destinies with Soviet Union. Also history of largely pagan "multi-ethnic and multi-confessional state" of Grand Duchy of Lithuania (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Duchy_of_Lithuania) can play a significant role in Baltic identities.

Note that Finns and Estonians speak Fenno-Ugric languages and share same mythology, Lithuanians and Latvians speak Indo-European languages.

[okasha]

21. Sounds like a good old-fashioned Beltane ceremony.

Enjoy!

[tama]

23. Actually

here that's midsummer / St. Johns Eve tradition with the bonfires, which is also most popular date for getting married. And there's always a big peak in births about nine months after midsummer fest.

Beltane, at least according to wiki, is spring fest, same as Wallburg?

[Arugula Latte]

28. It would be a beautiful thing indeed if paganism roared back to kick Christianity's ass in the end.

[tama]

30. Better than to "kick ass"

is to hug and heal. You ever heard the pagan story about Sun and North Wind?

[Arugula Latte]

31. Aww, how about a little revenge for centuries of Xtian malfeasance?

[tama]

33. Like stripping them naked

and then sending back to Garden of Eden to have fun with the snake?

[longship]

2. I can think of a number of reasons, all highly speculative.

First, the younger folks are turned on by the most fervent religious, especially those most prominently in the public eye. Why people like Pat Robertson, the AFA crowd, Westboro, etc. do not realize what they are doing to their brand is a bit astounding. But why would an intelligent person not see these people for what they are. Their very words condemn them, to say nothing of their politics.

I imagine there are many other explanations which might fit here. But, I think the self-inflicted Bar-B-Que theory fits. They are cooking their own goose with their radical pronouncements.

They that sow the wind, shall reap the whirlwind.

(I love that Bible quote, oft used by Churchill.)

[cbayer]

8. Agree that the extremists are cooking their own goose.

The nones are rejecting the dogma and extremism, but not god(s).

[trotsky]

13. The nones are rejecting dogma, extremism, AND gods.

Look at the graph.

[cleanhippie]

46. I find it interesting how at every turn, you need to reassure yourself that people believe in a god.

Despite the data, and when people express their own opinion about the trend, you seem to feel the need to tell them they are wrong.




It is the same exact thing you admonish so many others for doing.

[Moonwalk]

4. Oh, yawn, are we at this again? I thought we got over the shock! shock! shock! of "god is dead"...

...reports back in 1966.



I mean, honestly, aren't you religious folk over this stupid scare tactic yet? Here's the atheist talking, and soothing you. god was never "dead" in the 60's. Organized, mainstream religions were just being rejected for alternative religions. There were plenty of people praying to Krishna, or singing and dancing to "Long Live god" from godspell. By the 70's there was a whole new, born-again Christian scene and enough believers that cults were recruiting and Jim Jones was able to get everyone in his group to drink the Kool-Aid.

So, take heart. god is not dead, he's not even sick or on vacation. But the way organized religions have been acting, preaching, politicking, demanding, restricting, interfering and focusing on things like being gay rather than being kind and spiritual has driven the faithful away. They still believe, they just don't want to believe that way.

As for us non-believers, we're about the same as we're always been, as the charts show. Not much growth in atheists is there? We're just more vocal and more visible because these same bullying organized religions pushed their way into schools and tried to take over science classes, pushed into court houses and tried to replace secular law with theology, and have been trying to take away the civil rights of others (see Catholic/Momon Church on gays, anti-contraceptives, etc.) because such rights are against their religion. And that made us mad enough to fight back rather than just stay politely out of the way, as we tended to do. We don't like it when organized religions of any kind bully us or others into following their religious dictates.

THAT is why you're seeing all this. Not because god (belief in god) is dead. So relax, and put away that old Time Magazine. It wasn't right in 1966, it's not right now, and it probably will never be right. Human beings like magical thinking and imaginary friends far too much to ever give up god.

[cbayer]

9. Your thoughts are not inconsistent with the thoughts of the author.

Though he does it without attacking or supporting any particular group for how/what they believe..

[cleanhippie]

11. Yeah, like calling creationists a "bunch of dumbasses", right?

Hypocrisy much?

[Moonwalk]

17. How very nice of him, as for me...

"...Though he does it without attacking or supporting any particular group for how/what they believe.."

No apologies. No regrets.

[BlueStreak]

7. Those charts are extremely misleading. Real church participation is MUCH lower than that

Only about 20% of Americans regularly attend any church. I am an atheist (semi-professional musician) and I attend church about 10 times more than 80% of the public.

So who are these 60% who don't admit to being agnostic/atheist, but also don't attend church?

a) Hypocrites.
b) People that are easily bullied by the religious
c) Gamblers who aren't religious but think if they say they are, maybe they will sneak into heaven through the back door.

Take your pick.

Any way you cut it, this is a 20% religious country, with that 20% screaming really loudly.

[cbayer]

10. Disagree about you choices for the 60%.

Available information show that they:

1) Believe in a god

2) Reject the politicization of the church

3) Distrust religious institutions due to scandal/hypocrisy

4) Have found community in other kinds of organizations.

[cleanhippie]

15. With such an ambiguous characterization, how can one be sure?

Available information show that they:

1) Believe in a god

Just what does that mean, to "believe in a god" ? Without first defining just what "god" is supposed to be, and then defining what one means by "believing in it", it is useless as a character trait. I think it would be safe to assume that those is this category "believe in a god" because as children they were indoctrinated into the system of guilt and shame where this "god" sees everything one does and is responsible for everything. That kind of brainwashing is difficult at best to overcome. But the simple fact that they also...

2) Reject the politicization of the church

3) Distrust religious institutions due to scandal/hypocrisy

4) Have found community in other kinds of organizations.

lends support to this idea and that this belief may simply be a relic from that indoctrination. It also provides hope that the patriarchal religions of old are on their way out.

[BlueStreak]

19. I am an atheist, but I believe in god

I play recreational volleyball. When there is a dispute about a call, rather than resorting to fisticuffs, we simply replay the point. Invariably after that replay, the team winning the point says "The Volleyball God has spoken."

And you know what, it seems to me that most of the time, the Volleyball God gets it right.

A rational person would say:

a) this is just random chance and my perception of it is skewed because I want to believe in the notion of a higher power that enforces fair play; or

b) there actually is a tendency for the replay to end up in the fair result because the wronged team tries a little harder or the other team felt a little guilty and didn't play as hard.

I would suggest that "the 60%" believe in the god-of-misunderstood-coincidence, just as I do. Nothing much deeper than that. They see coincidences. They attribute them to a god. They want to believe in a god and a heavenly reward, but they aren't willing to actually make any earthly effort to that end. They are not religious people, just sloppy thinkers.

[trotsky]

20. You pretty much nailed what I wanted to say.

These are kids who have grown up in a religion-saturated culture. Breaking free of god-belief isn't something a lot of people are comfortable doing after being subjected to that kind of indoctrination from birth.

It is sad that there really are people who don't believe in gods but yet refuse to admit they're atheists because they've bought into the hatred and distrust our culture has propagated against the term.

[humblebum]

26. Still playing the poor abused atheist card, I see?

Might it not be that some of the "hatred and distrust our culture has propagated against the term" is actually propagated by radical atheism itself?

[LeftishBrit]

45. How would you react to someone saying

'Still playing the poor abused Muslim card, I see? Might it not be that some of the "hatred and distrust our culture has propagated against Muslims" is actually propagated by Islam itself?'

or

'(in a Protestant-majority country): 'Still playing the poor abused Catholic card, I see? 'Might it not be that some of the "hatred and distrust our culture has propagated against Catholics" is actually propagated by the actions of Catholics themselves?'

or

'Still playing the poor abused Jew card, I see? Might it not be that some of the "hatred and distrust our culture has propagated against Jews" is actually propagated by the actions of Jews themselves?'

or

'Still playing the poor abused woman card, I see? Might it not be that some of the "hatred and distrust our culture has propagated against women" is actually propagated by radical feminism itself?'


In all these case such comments are blaming the victim, and doing so in a very prejudiced way. Why is it OK to do the same with regard to atheists?

[okasha]

47. The difference is that

the groups you cite actually have suffered widespread, sometimes fatal, discrimination.

[LeftishBrit]

48. So have atheists.

[okasha]

49. Pehaps I'm missing some history here.

Could you point me to the ghettoes and exterminarion camps where millions of atheists were murdered?

Or the laws that made arhests legal chattel for centuries and still make it possible to treat them as unequal in the workplace? Do you have any idea how many women are raped and/or murdered every single day?

How about laws denying them an education? Where are those?

I don't doubt that individual atheists have suffered acts of discrimination. But statistics show that most atheists are male, overwhrlmingly white, heterosexual, well_educated and relatively affluent. In other words, they form a very privileged population in all but one area of their lives.

It was wise of you,by the way, to avoid the currently fashionable comparison to LGBTs and people of color.

[LeftishBrit]

50. It's more complicated because atheists are often grouped with 'heretics'

Those who persecute atheists usually persecute ALL who do not belong to, or fail to conform to, the dominant religion. It is rare for ONLY atheists to be persecuted, because that would require that members of different faiths co-operate with each other more than they generally do.

However, this does not mean that it is safe to be an open atheist in Iran, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, or any country that has the death penalty for 'blasphemy'.

And discrimination can exist at different levels; and even the relatively mild ones are still discrimination. For instance, I don't suppose that 1960s Switzerland was a place of terror for women, or even one where they were denied education; nevertheless, their denial of the vote and political representation should still be seen as discriminatory. The same goes for places where atheists cannot have political representation.

In any case: my real objection was not to the idea that discrimination against atheists isn't as great as against certain other groups, or even the claim that it doesn't exist, but to the idea that atheists DESERVE to be discriminated against because of their own actions. This is disgusting when applied to any group. By the way, if you check my posts, you will see that I have objected several times to such statements, and that when I have done so, it has usually been in the I/P forum and has concerned either Jews or Muslims.

[okasha]

51. i think we're actually pretty much on the same frequency, here. Thanks for the clarification.

The sad fact is that in tyrannies, which Pakistan, Iran, Saudi, China and a number of other nations are, it's unsafe to be any kind of non-conformist: religious, non-religious, feminist, LGBT, democratic, you name it.

And of course, no one deserves to be discriminated against for his/her convictions or for attempting to secure what should be universal human rights.

[humblebum]

52. Um? Statements such as those are quite common around here. nt

[skepticscott]

27. Or because

going to a middle-of-the-road Protestant church is a habit of long standing for them, and because giving up an hour or two on Sunday morning is what average white suburban folk do to remain socially acceptable. How much they deeply and sincerely believe of what they mouth is another matter.

[cleanhippie]

39. I will not respond to trolls. I will not respond to trolls.

No matter how much a troll spews "radical atheist", "militant atheist", or any other tried, worn-out nonsense, I will not respond to trolls!

I cannot put some particular trolls on ignore, simply because of the loss of comedic value in their posts....but I will not respond to trolls.

You feeling me?

[humblebum]

40. I think he's a step ahead of you and put me on ignore long ago. But comments are still warranted

IMO. In your perfect world you could continue to spout anti religious vitriol without critique, but this is not it.

Goodbye, troll.

[okasha]

22. And those who "believe in a god" but are largely absent on Sunday mornings

also include the Christmas and Easter twice-a-year churchgoers, and what the Episcopalians call the "hatched, matched and dispatched" group that show up for baptisms, weddings and funerals.
They're not atheists or agnostics; they're lethargics.

[tama]

34. The members of our state church

are mostly "lethargics". But surprisingly many of those "lethargics" and probably also few atheists, nones etc. showed up e.g. to a drumming ceremony (with professional shaman and a professor of religious studies) organized to protect a forest from urban development. And surprisingly many of those asked if they could bring their own drum, which was of course more than fine. And there happened to be an altar made of stones in the forest that people wanted to save from building that none of the participants knew who had built.

And yes, after long struggle and lot of activism in various forms, the forest was saved.

[LeftishBrit]

18. I don't believe in a God; but IF there were a God, he would not die just because people didn't

go to church, or affiliate themselves with a religion. That would put him on a par with Tinker Bell in 'Peter Pan' - not with an all-powerful, immortal being.

[tama]

36. Have you read "Small Gods" by Terry Pratchet? nt

[humblebum]

24. So if there is indeed a god, does that being's life depend on how many believe in

the god's existence? Wouldn't that kinda be like asking if a dog lives in may back yard, would he be dead if no one believed he lived in my backyard?

[white_wolf]

25. Years ago I remember reading something on Misotheism....

The hatred of God for those who don't know. Anyway I read that some misotheists believed you could harm the gods or God by not worshiping them so your statement is true to some sects throughout history.

[tama]

37. Same question as above to LB nt

[demwing]

29. Wow, affiliated religious believers down to 80%?

Whatever will God do?

[skepticscott]

32. Anyone any more writing an article

entitled "Is (blank) dead?" or "The Death of (blank)" (substitute god, history, science, liberalism, conservatism, etc.) should be flogged.

[2on2u]

35. He is simply 20% less filling but with more taste. n/t

[dimbear]

38. Poor Nietzsche! How he suffered (true) and was rejected by kith and kin. Now God dances on his

grave.


It fits the pattern.

[Coyotl]

44. Not on Fox News