Ex-COG Posted May 27, 2007 Share Posted May 27, 2007 I found this article interesting and encouraging, in that non-believers are on the rise despite impassioned attempts by Christians and those of other religions to gain converts. The authors present the premise that the level and nature of religious faith is determined by socio-economic conditions, and "only secular egalitarian prosperous democracies that reject extreme social Darwinism can produce the best practical conditions." I had thought that the idea of religious belief being more prominent among less educated and lower income groups had been debunked, as many successful and educated people do attend church. From the sound of this article, even in the case of those with higher income levels, the insecurity of America's social/economic system is what keeps them within the arms of religion. What do you think? Disbelief now rivals the great faiths in numbers and influence. Never before has religion faced such enormous levels of disbelief, or faced a hazard as powerful as that posed by modernity. How is organized religion going to regain the true, choice-based initiative when only one of them is growing, and it is doing so with reproductive activity rather than by convincing the masses to join in, when no major faith is proving able to grow as they break out of their ancestral lands via mass conversion, and when securely prosperous democracies appear immune to mass devotion? The religious industry simply lacks a reliable stratagem for defeating disbelief in the 21st century. Read the full article here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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