I think Mr. Donohue has a very good point since more and more America is becoming a nation of individuals (unless of course you are a teenager) and we want to do our own thing. But I also think now that science is beginning to answer more questions more people are starting to question things they have been taught to believe from religious scriptures. Creation stories being the main one that I can think of. Science is constantly collecting more data on evolution and showing how it probably worked, so that right there goes against just about every religion worldwide. There is always going to be a group of people who will say science is wrong, which is fine since this is America and you can believe whatever you want, but I think the majority of people will just accept things because it has been shown to be correct. With that accepting they might begin to question some of their other beliefs...it's all part of being human.
As I've said in previous posts, I don't consider myself religious so I suppose I fit into that group that is growing in America. I do not consider myself an Atheist because I can't say for sure there is no supernatural being out there. I guess the best thing I can classify myself as is an Agnostic, or in layman's terms "I don't know" and as I've stated I really think more and more Americans feel the same way. Religion is confusing since there is little or no evidence to go on and people are scared of things they do not understand for the most part.
So on to my point in all of this, is this the sign the apocalypse is nigh? Depends on who you ask. Some of the more bible-thumping people I know would say this shows what happens to a country when a liberal takes over (Link), when you legalise gay marriage or allow stem cell research. They would also tell me that this un-Christianising of America shows our moral decay and will lead to the end of the world. What I think this people don't understand is that you have morals even if you don't have religion. Yes religion can enforce certain morals but morals are not the result of religion no matter what your bible-thumping friends tell you.
So no the apocalypse is not nigh and no just because people are turning away from organised religion doesn't spell doom and gloom (unless of course you consider Wall St. a religion). There are plenty of other countries where religion isn't very strong and they have not imploded yet so I don't really think we have much to worry about here in America.
2 comments:
I found this study to be quite interesting. While I do believe the data, I've noticed another trend thorough my personal experiences in the last few months. More and more avidly-practicing Christians insist that their lives are in the hands of God. Following this logic (their own assertions, not mine), there's no need to worry about the current problems in America or in their own lives. They entirely believe that their lives are in the 'hands' of God/Jesus.
Aside from the fact that this avoidance of responsibility is rather terrifying to me, it's also interesting. Are two extreme camps forming (Atheists vs. those handled by God)? Are people just avoiding their own problems and using God as their scapegoat?
Personally, I think that studying religions is fascinating. I'm pretty much agnostic (or perhaps a Deist). What I find most troubling is not the religions, but the powerful and influential church institutions and their bureaucrat leaders.
I agree I see many avidly practising Christians doing the same thing and yes it terrifies me as well. I really wish more people would take their problems into their own hands and work for a better America, especially our politicians.
Thank you for your comments, cheers!
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