What Do You Believe? The Future of Religion in the World

 

I don’t know about you, but of late my news feed has been inundated with stories about religion of all varieties, but especially expansion of radical Islam (now being called “Islamic Imperialism”). Typically, my focus is on politics, economics, and history. Topics such as religion are a little outside of my usual bailiwick despite coming from a very long line of minsters, theologians, reformers, founders, crusaders, and so on. Nevertheless, with all the posts I've been receiving, it's made me curious about the trend of religion throughout the world. 

Since the end of World War II religion (particularly the militant kind) has increasingly with politics and affected global trade, war, climate change (when discussing oil and gas), population replacement, and what some are calling the “conquest with babies” of the West and Asia. What is the current state of organized religion in the world and in the United States, and what does the future look like?

In America’s post WWII “golden years”, the economy was booming. Suburbia  was booming. Everyone had a good paying job (and only dad had to work. Mom got to stay home and run things there. Housing, food, electricity, and medical care was affordable. If you lived downtown, as many Americans did, public transportation was plentiful and cheap.

If you lived out in one of the new sprawling suburbs, everyone had at least on car, although most had access to a bus line. It seems that nearly everyone could afford to take a vacation to some state or national park. And over half of every household attended religious services on a regular basis.

This was the American Dream that many of us remember or have heard stories about. We could still trust the news and government. Television was entertaining and never contained overt violence, sex, or foul language. Even cartoons were funny and didn't require parental supervision.

From the start of the 1950’s, church attendance accounted for 57% of the population and rose to 63.3% by 1960 (prior to WWII, just 37% of households attended church on a regular basis (as a disclaimer, when I discuss topics such as attending “church”, I am not specifically referencing Christianity. I am referring to any organized religious service be it Protestant, Catholic, Jewish, or other).

All that changed on a sunny afternoon in Dallas Texas on November 22, 1963, in a place named Daley Plaza at 12:30 PM. If there was a demarcation or transition point in society, that was it. It’s where our confidence and trust in the media and government was first called into question. It was the day “America’s Camelot” came to an end. It was the day when President John F. Kennedy was murdered and the coverup began.

November 7^, 1963 marked the beginning of the turbulent 1960s, with the mass protests,  some violent and some not. It marked the beginning of fundamental changes in society from the civil rights movement, the “Freedom Riders”, boycotts, desegregation,  the murders of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr and Bobby Kennedy, the Vietnam War, Women’s liberation, the decline of unions, and so much more. It also marked the beginning organized religion’s decline in America.

By the late 1960’s, weekly attendance had dropped from 63.3% in 1960 to 39% by the start of the 1970’s. It also saw the rise of so-called “alternative” religious and spiritual movements such as the "Moonies", Buddhism, yoga, Transcendental meditation blossomed along with  the "Flower Power" generation. There was a return to Native America spirituality and nature based religions of old. Today, roughly 40% of U.S. households attend services on a regular basis. 

So, what is the health of religion today? What does religion look like globally and in America? What faith is growing and what’s not, and what might it look like just a few decades down the road? To answer those questions, we need to look at how many people identify with some sort of religion.

According to most polls, roughly 84% of the world’s population claim to identify with one or more religion or faith. Of that 84%, approximately 77% self-identify as a Christian, Muslim, Hindu, or Buddhist. Out of that 77%, the largest organized religion in the world is Christianity (which includes Western with Protestantism and Catholicism as well as Eastern with denominations such as Orthodox and Coptic) represents 31% of the world’s religiously affiliated. As of 2020, there were roughly 2.3 billion Christians in the world, an increase of 121.6 million from 2010.

Christianity’s largest growth is now to be found in Sub Saharan Africa who has grown by 30.7% from 2010 to 2020. In Latin America, it has declined slightly, from 24.8% to 24.1% over the same period, and in Europe it’s dropped from 25.8% in 2010 to 22.3% ten years later. In Asia and the Pacific Rim, Christianity has remained the same with 11.8% while here at home in North America, its dropped from 12.4% to 10.5% as of 2020.

Islam, with its various sects, is the second largest with about 2 billion followers as of 2020, which represents an increase of 346.8 million since 2010, making it the fastest growing religion in the world and is nearly a quarter of the world’s population at 25%. It’s fastest growing areas are mainly in the Middle East.

Hindus are the next largest organized religion with 1.2 billion adherents, up 126.3 million from ten years earlier. That’s 15% of global population. Incidentally, India, the home of the majority of the world’s Hindus, also has the world’s largest population, having recently surpassing China.

Next on the list is Buddhism with 7% of world’s population. They make up just 0.3 million believers. Since 2010, their numbers have dropped18.6 million. Judaism comprises just 0.2% of the global population with about 14.8 million, an increase of 1 million since 2010.  Other religions such as Zoroastrianism, Taoism, Sikhs, Baha, and Shintoism comprise roughly 0.9 billion believers, which as grown 18.1 million over the previous decade.  So, is that it? Well, no, it isn’t.

While the survey looked at those who were religiously affiliated, it also examined a new and growing trend. Snuggled in between Islam and Hinduism is another group, those who fall outside of established norms. This group doesn’t identify with any particular faith or follow some deity. It’s the “unaffiliated” and according to the survey, there’s 1.9 billion of them and they’ve seen the second largest growth---270.1 million---of any group.

Who are the “unaffiliated”? They are individuals who’ve chosen different paths away from organized religion. Many say they are “spiritual”. They may dabble at being Wiccans, pantheists, or pagans. They may explore traditional paths such as shamanism (such as the Asian “Tengrism”), ethno-centric such as Celtic, Slavic, Norse, as well as African based (like Afro-Caribbean Voodoo and Hoodoo), or Native American type spirituality. They may have created their own paths such as through meditation and/or yoga (bear in mind that often these “unaffiliated” individuals are sometimes grouped into a “other” category as well just as Independents are sometimes mislabeled as "leaning" Democrat or Republican).

However, the largest segment of “unaffiliated” are simply those with no religious attachments (often saying they're “nothing in particular”). They may be agnostics or even atheist. Regardless of how they describe themselves, they aren't buying what organized religion is selling no matter how many times they change the packaging. Nevertheless, whatever path they’ve chosen to follow, they are the third largest group in numbers and the second fastest growing group. Keep them in mind, we’ll come back to them shortly.

So, let’s dig a little deeper into the unaffiliated. As pointed out above, the majority say they don’t belong to any specific religion. The largest number of unaffiliated are those who have left Christianity for some reason. Some may claim some form of spirituality, while most claim to be agnostic or atheist. China has the largest number of unaffiliated with 1.3 billion so self-identifying though they have their own private beliefs. This is roughly 90% of China’s population. The large number could be due to China’s long policy of discrediting religion since the Communist came to power under Mao in 1949.

The United States, which doesn’t have any similar policy, has the second largest number of unaffiliated---101 million---with the largest number coming from Christianity (due to the fact that Christianity is the nation’s largest religion).  Various projections show that by the year 2070, the U.S. could have 46% to 41% majority Christian to unaffiliated or a reverse of 48% to 39% unaffiliated to Christian ratio while other religions (most notably Islam)  reaches 12% of the population, mostly in large cities and among minorities.

 Aside from the United States, people moving from Christianity to unaffiliated is happening worldwide. As of 2020, they are no longer the majority in the UK (49%), Australia (47%), France (46%), or Uruguay (44%). Note too that both France and Uruguay were once heavily Catholic. In addition, Uruguay now has a majority unaffiliated population (52%). 

Netherlands now has an unaffiliated majority of 54%. In New Zealand, 51% identify as unaffiliated. Other countries with an unaffiliated majority (aside from China), include North Korea and Vietnam (which have a similar “no religion” policy), the Czech Republic, Macao, and Japan with the fastest growing number of individuals adopting the “none of the above”, which I find both interesting and a bit sad given its long history of Shintoism and devotion to ancestors. In countries where Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, or Judaism were the majority, there were no changes in their majority positions.

So, globally speaking, what does this mean? The short answer is that Christianity is losing numbers to those who seek answers outside of the religious Status Quo. They no longer want inner guidance from those with a vested interest in the answer, especially without historical proof. Religious intermediaries no longer need apply. 

 While Islam is growing (particularly outside the U.S.) the number of “none of the above” are growing rapidly everywhere around the world while Islam is growing only in certain areas. Islam will not be able to keep pace. It will, of course, try to enforce adherence, especially through intimidation and violence as it historically has done, but as long as they are unable to control what people think or feel, they’re facing a losing battle. I will add that, in my opinion, any system, secular or religious, which demands absolute obedience through fear and intimidation cannot be divinely inspired and therefore acts out of moral weakness.

Hinduism may face a similar fate as Christianity in that it will find itself confronted with the very same science based rational used by the much of the unaffiliated that it has embraced to save its economy.  This is more so when you consider that people will turn more and more to AI for their social, political, economic, and perhaps ultimately, spiritual answers.

Buddhism, as a religion, is losing numbers. That trend is likely to continue, however, Buddhism is unique in that it can be applied as either a religion or as a philosophy, and it is in the latter that it may find its own redemption since it can be applied unilaterally to the religious, spiritual, or unaffiliated akin to the teachings of Chinese philosopher, Lao Tzu or that of Confucius. Meanwhile, the growth of other non-traditional belief systems will also likely continue to grow as people turn from outside sources to more internal way of spiritual growth.

 

Thank you for reading "Another Opinion", the Op/Ed blog page for the "militant middle".  Here at "A/O" we truly value our readers. At A/O we seek the facts as they exist, not partisan talking points.  We hope you find our articles informative and engaging. Comments are welcome, provided they are not vulgar, insulting or demeaning.  Another Opinion is offered without charge and is directed toward all independent and free-thinking individuals. We ask, however, that you "like" us on whatever platform you found us on in order to keep our articles available for free to others. Lastly, in order to keep costs down, we depend on passive marketing, and therefore, depend on our readers to please forward our posts along. Below you will find links to the sources we used in writing this article. Thank you. 

  

The Four Largest Religions

How the Global Religious Landscape Changed From 2010 to 2020

How U.S. Religious Composition Has Changed in Recent Decades

Projecting U.S. religious groups’ population shares by 2070

Modeling the Future of Religion in America

 

Church Attendance Has Declined in Most U.S. Religious Groups

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Understanding the Role of Religion in Today’s World of Power Politics: Are We the Player or the Played?

Religion, in its various manifestations, is supposed to bring us a measure of comfort and reassurance. It was also intended to explain essentially everything such as the stars, how we got here, why life is so tough, and so forth.  However, it’s institutionalization has simply provided a degree of control and ability of manipulation, promising something which is unmeasurable and illusionary in the “hereafter” for you obedience in the here and now for a handful of individuals.

 Of course, what’s a system of rewards---eternal happiness, meeting up with departed friends and family, singing hymns and playing harps ad nauseum, 72 virgins, and so on without a corresponding systems of punishments---a lake of fire, the smell of sulfur,  eternal torment by demons and pitchforks, endless reruns of “I Love Lucy”, those hymns and harps ad nauseum again, and having to put up with 72 virgins?

It’s always about rewards and punishments. The stick and carrot (or apple I suppose in this case). Countless institutions and individuals have made a pretty good living as this. The Vatican for instance, is one of the richest and most powerful corporations on the planet.  They’ve amassed a level of wealth that would have Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, Exxon, and Google look like paupers. Most estimates put its wealth at around $10 to $15 billion dollars, plus they pay no---zero---taxes on that wealth, not to mention priceless artifacts and documents. For centuries it’s also been the great keeper of secrets.

This has ranged for the ordinary peasant confessing his or her lust for the neighbor’s crops, cows, or son/daughter all the way up to the plans of princes and princess. Kings and queens have been made to grovel on the bellies to the papal throne. It’s been the power mover behind the scenes in global politics for over 2000 years.

It’s given legitimacy to kings and governments for thousands of years, raising some up and bringing many down. No other institution has welded such power over its fellow human beings.  Of course, that doesn’t mean it hasn’t gone unchallenged. There has been numerous political ideologies which has tried to supplant religion down through the centuries.

Take the Greek Empire under Alexander the Great for instance. He conquered hundreds of nation-states, empires, and tribes during his brief reign. In each instance, he would often leave much of the old government and religion in place with only minor changes. The Roman Empire did much the same, asking only that the Emperor be acknowledged as the supreme secular power. Genghis Khan, who amassed the largest land empire in history, followed pretty much the same political philosophy.

However, there has been numerous schisms, reformations, separatist movements, protests, and so forth which has rejected the institutional power of organized religion such as the “Great Schism” (aka “The East-West Schism”) of 1054, separating the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church (a fight essentially over power, giving a “holier than thou”  authority of the Bishop of Rome over other Bishops), Martin Luther’s Reformation of 1517, King Henry VIII’s Reformation of 1527 (aka “The English Reformation”), and countless others, There’s the Sunni and Shia split of 632 CE which is still being battled everyday on TV screens and across the internet.

 Hinduism, the third largest religion behind Christianity and Islam, dates back some 4000 years, has experienced four major internal breaks with dozens of subsets. Buddhism, known for its peaceful philosophical doctrine, had its first schism just one hundred years after Buddha died in 483 BC. Christianity at least waited three hundred years before it began purging competing ideologies like the Arians, Gnostics, and so forth.

So, with all the reformations, schisms, and other breaks, how many religions are there today? Although no exact number is possible, there’s an estimated 10,000 distinct religions in the world today. They range from having thousands of deities to alleged having one (or is it three with a subset of hundreds of the lesser divine?) while others have no specific entities, preferring nature or the natural world. Most (though not necessary all) have their sacred texts or spoken traditions, holidays/festivals, morals, values, and mythologies.

Of all of them, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism are the largest, representing 77% of all religious followers. Broken down by the numbers, Christianity, which represents about 32% of the world’s population, has 2.2 billion adherents. Islam, which has 23% of the global population, has roughly 1.6 billion followers, and is the fastest growing organized religion in the world outside of the Middle East.

Hinduism has about 1 billion followers and makes up 15% of the world’s population. Buddhism has about 500 million followers although the number may be higher since adherents may follow Buddhist teaching as either a religion or as a philosophy.  Lastly, Judaism, which is the smallest of the so-called “Great Religions” and certainly one of the most influential, has about 14 million adherents although many consider themselves as “non-religious” or “not practicing”.  Just 0.2% of the world’s population are Jewish.

It bears mentioning that historically, more people have died in the name of religion than any other cause. So, how many people are we talking about? While there’s no way to provide an exact number of deaths, conservative estimates put the number of dead at over 195 billion in deciding who God loves the most. A few examples include the Crusades which killed an estimated 6 million Muslims and Jews. The Thirty Years War killed some 11 million men, women, and children.

The Congolese Genocide (led by King Leopold II of Belgium) resulted in the deaths of 13 million. The ongoing Islamic War has murdered (since 2000) approximately 150,000 and thousands condemned to slavery (mostly Shia’s, Kurds, Yazidis, and Coptic Christians). About 20 million Native Americans died as a result of continental expansion in the name of “Manifest Destiny” (and disease). The Muslim conquest of India took somewhere around 80 million lives. In Africa, due to Church prohibition of birth control (including condoms), some 30 million Africans died of AIDs.

Of course, about 6 million Jews died in the Holocaust.   The French War of Religion killed some 4 million French Protestants and led to exodus of tens of thousands so-called “Huguenots”. By comparison, 5000 Jews were killed during the Spanish Inquisition (although almost every Catholic country carried out its own inquisition), and these are but a few example.

It bears mentioning that there’s been other, more lethal, causes of human death down through history such as malaria (which is the single cause most responsible for human death), the Black Plague, starvation due to crop failure, drought, and other forms of natural disasters (earthquakes, volcanos, tornados, hurricanes, storms, etc.).  The Spanish Flu of 1918/19 killed over 500 million people worldwide. That’s roughly 1/3 of the global population at the time, making it the deadliest pandemic in recorded human history.

These, however, were largely outside of our control. At best, we could only take precautions. Economic wars, fought for the control of land or resources, are the ones we’re most familiar with (ie: Kuwait or Iraq were fought mainly over the control of oil production) and they often go hand in hand with religious war, which both go to control---political, economic, and social compliance.

According to a 2024 Pew report, religious freedom is in decline. 92% of the 190 countries looked at---183---restricted religious freedom in one way or another. In the 20 countries comprising the Middle East and Northern Africa, there was at least one instance each of religious harassment. The same was true for 43 of 45 European countries as well as 33 of the 35 nations in the Americas, 44 of 48 sub-Saharan African nations, and 43 of 50 Asian/Pacific countries.

The decline of religious freedom was, in fact, the lowest recorded since 2007, when Pew began tracking religious freedom. 55% (or 29% of the total) had “high” or “very high” levels of government imposed restrictions on religious freedom (most of these were in the Middle East and China).  

The countries with the highest rates of religious freedom included Australia, Canada, Japan, Finland, South Africa, and along the western coast of South America such as Peru, Chile, Columbia, Bolivia, Paraguay, and Ecuador and Honduras in Central America.  The United States was listed as being a “moderate” when it came restricting religious freedom.

43% (or 22% of the countries studied) had “high” or “very high” levels of social hostilities against minority religions. These “hostilities” included violence against private individuals and groups, religiously affiliated organizations including schools, as well as religious places of worship. The worst offenders were Egypt, Pakistan, Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan due to the very high level of religious persecution socially and governmentally imposed.  So, what religious groups were most affected?

According to the 2024 Pew survey, Christians were the most heavily persecuted religious group, despite being the world’s largest faith. Persecution was the worse in predominantly Muslim nations, and in areas where Muslims were in the majority , including in the UK and Europe, which have been historically Christian.

Muslims, the second largest religion in the world, were also the second most religiously harassed population. However, most of that harassment came from other Muslims (such as Sunni vs Shia) or more accurately, Muslims vs. Islamists.

Muslims tend to follow the Koran or teachings of Muhammad while Islamists tend to promote a radicalized political philosophy using the corrupted version of the Koran’s teachings. Islamists tend to not only oppose other Muslims, they oppose Christians, Hindus, Buddhists, and especially Jews. In fact, Islamists pretty much oppose anyone who isn’t them.

The third most harassed group, and the smallest of the “Great Religions”, was Judaism. Jews have long been one of the most hated religious groups in history, regardless of where they live or how much they’ve tried to integrate. Fourth were largely the much smaller religions such as Zoroastrianism (which is the common “grandparent” of most religions including the three Abrahamic religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam), the Sikhs, Baha’i, etc.  

They are closely followed the fifth most harassed group, the traditional Chinese and Japanese folk religions such as Confucianism, Shintoism, Taoism, Tengrism, Native American spiritualism,  Australian Aboriginal spiritualism, Wicca and paganism.

The last two most harassed religions were the Hindus and the Buddhists, which, despite their size (third and fourth largest religions respectively), tend to be relatively unbothered, but when they are, it’s mostly in countries with large Muslim populations. Finally, the least harassed group are the non-affiliated. While as a group they tend to be largely left alone, But when they are harassed, it has tended to be by those who are most strongly affiliated with a religion in general rather than any one specific religious group.

Religion, especially organized or “dogmatic” religion, is a fickle thing.  Historically, it has usually sought to justify its existence by claiming or doing one thing while seeking another. I cannot imagine a benevolent deity sanctioning intolerance, hatred, or the horrific acts mentioned above to be committed in their name, nor can I imagine such an entity even creating a species with those attributes. 

Mankind has changed little over time, and like little children, we tend to blame someone else (“I don’t know” did it) rather than except responsibility for our actions. In this case, we blame some invisible entity who we know won’t contradict us, especially if we’ve imbued it with inordinate power. All we have to do is shift the blame when things go bad or take the credit when things work out.

Then again, what if all these wars and atrocities were indeed the wish of some deity? What if Humanity was convinced to play “Risk”  while this entity or entities play a cosmic game of chess and Humanity is their pawn?  What, when the game is over and we exist no more, the deity (or deities) simply moves on to the naïve species somewhere in the galaxy to start a new game? Either way, I don’t care much for either scenario. For some reason, I think it’s time we should light a candle for Mankind.

 

Thank you for reading "Another Opinion", the Op/Ed blog page for the "militant middle".  Here at "A/O" we truly value our readers. At A/O we seek the facts as they exist, not partisan talking points.  We hope you find our articles informative and engaging. Comments are welcome, provided they are not vulgar, insulting or demeaning.  Another Opinion is offered without charge and is directed toward all independent and free-thinking individuals. We ask, however, that you "like" us on whatever platform you found us on in order to keep our articles available for free to others. Lastly, in order to keep costs down, we depend on passive marketing, and therefore, depend on our readers to please forward our posts along. Below you will find links to the sources we used in writing this article. Thank you. 

 

Religious Hostilities Hit Six-Year High

Religion

The East-West Schism

Schism

How Many People Have Been Killed in the Name of Religion

Spanish Flu

Muslims vs Islamists

Pew Global Survey Shows Rising Religious Restrictions

Religious Restrictions Around the World

The Global Religious Landscape

A Look at the Early Origins of Anti-Semitism and Its Effects Today

 

Anti-Semitism is perhaps the oldest forms of prejudice in the world.  At its heart is  the hatred of Jews and Judaism. Anti-Semitism includes a general belief that Jews are no long the "chosen people" as stated in the Bible due to their rejection of Jesus as the new "Messiah who would usher in a "Kingdom of God" on Earth. 

This role as "chosen" was annexed by a new sect known as "Christians" (from the Greek "Christos" for "anointed" similarly as a king or prophet who using olive oil). Based on their belief that Jesus was the anticipated messiah of prophecy, and through him, all believers were now the "chosen" or "elect" of God. They also believe that since Jews rejected Jesus as the messiah, they also have forfeited their divine "blessings" or "birthrights" including their right to the Holy Land.  That now belongs to Christians.

The Catholic Church, since the Council of Nicaea in the 4th Century, considers itself the sole legitimate arbiter of Christianity, has, historically, been at the core, of anti-Semitism down through the centuries. some even consider it the originator of anti-Semitism.  The Eastern Orthodox Church broke off in 1054 over a number of technical and doctrinal issues, but most notably the infallibility of the Bishop of Rome, now known as the "Holy Father" or Pope and head of the "catholic" or universal church in what became known as "The Great Schism".   

It was here, starting in the 4th Century, the Vatican begins issuing official edicts or "Bulls" to enforced Church orthodoxy. In 1095, Pope Urban II called for the liberation of Jerusalem from the Muslims in what was  the first of eight major church sponsored crusades (in realty, there were dozens of crusades, though without the direct support of the Vatican).

 Pope Urban, in his directive, openly referred to Jews as "Christ killers" and "devils", and urged the crusaders to convert or murder any Jews they encountered along the way (the same applied to Muslims or non-conforming Christian sect which didn't recognize the sole authority of the Vatican as well). 

It's worth noting that even before reaching the Holy Land, those of the First Crusade (aka the "People's Crusade"), in keeping with the Pope's instructions, attacked Jewish communities in Germany in what became known as the "Rhineland Massacres of 1096". As many as 2000 Jewish men, women, and children were murdered; some were burned while others were hanged or simply run through by a pike, sword, or whatever was handy in the name of God.  

Throughout history, Jews were forced to move from one town to another, or from one country to the next; whoever would let them settle, at least for a little while. Special taxes were almost common place and restrictions were routinely placed on them. Most notably where they could live. In the east, most were limited to the "Pale of Settlement" which encompassed parts of modern Lithuania, Belarus, Poland, Russia, and Ukraine. It was extremely poor and diseases were commonplace.

 In other places, be it in Poland, Germany, France, Spain, or England, they were herded into small, cramp sections of cities known as "ghettos". These areas were often known to be largely run down, rat infested, with little in the way of sanitation or access to fresh water. Residents had strict curfews. Failure to comply meant beatings caught by authorities. It was often much worse, especially if you were female.

Permission had to be requested to live outside of the ghetto (which could just as often be revoked). It often involved paying another tax or fee (bribe). Jews were often prohibited from owning land (though they may work for someone else who owned the land) just as some occupations were closed to them.

Have you ever wondered why Jews are associated to certain types of jobs such as pawn shops, rag collectors, "patchers" (individuals who patched or repaired pots and pans), or tailors?  That's because in most countries Jews weren't allowed to own property, particularly farmland. They could work on farms or even manage large estates, but never own them.

As a result, many moved into towns and cities where they could find other lines of work. Many would become tailors, and since they were often prohibited from joining trade guilds, were only permitted to fix broken items such as pans, pots, or furniture. In time, some became plumbers, roofers, painters, glaziers, and so forth. Ragmen collected bits of cloth and made them into towels for instance.

A few became loan brokers or ran pawnshops. Some became accountants and managed the money of wealthy...Christian...families, especially among the aristocrats. This is how the famous (or infamous) Rothschild financial house got their start. In a very few countries, some managed to become advisers of members of the elite, particularly in politics, and fewer yet ran for office (such as England's Benjamin Disraeli) and even became titled themselves. It wasn't uncommon, however, they had to leave their Jewish heritage behind in order to do so.

However, these were very few and far between. In fact, you could say they were rare to the point of hardly being believable even at the time itself. For the overwhelming majority, stories of the Rothschilds or Disraeli were the stuff of legends . For the rest, there was the constant and ever present danger of eviction on a moment's notice; forced to leave with just a few hours advance warning.

That meant leaving pretty much everything behind or selling (if you could) whatever you didn't need to virtually nothing since the only ones remaining were your Christian "neighbors". For those who were even only slightly better off, there was always the jealousy and rumors. Most just scavenged whatever remained of your existence.   However, perhaps what was worse were the pogroms.

Pogroms were little more than orchestrated violent riots directed at the closest Jewish settlement (commonly referred to as a "shtetl" in Eastern Europe). Generally these protests were result of some trumped up claim that a Jew from the shtetl stole of goose or seen after curfew. In reality, pogroms were just an excuse to intimidate Jews (such were the way Jews were thought of).

Worse is when a local child went missing or was found dead (usually accidently drowning, etc). Jews were often seen as the culprit. In the case of missing children, they were accused of "blood libel", which was perhaps one of the most heinous of charges which could be brought against a Jew. Essentially, it accused the individual of murdering the child and then using their blood (sometimes their bones) in the making of matzo or unleavened bread, to been eaten of the Jewish Sabbath (or especially on one of the special Holy days like Passover).   

Homes and businesses were burnt down, and if caught out, Jews were often beaten, robbed, raped, or in worse cases, murdered.  There was little that the local could do about it. Reporting the crime to authorities was useless. The pogroms were often ordered by the local lord who also happened employed some of the Jews since they couldn't own land. 

Thus they risked losing their income, home, a small tract to grow their own meger crops, all of which they desperately needed by reporting the crime! Church authorities were also often involved with these pogroms and it was frowned on to even speak with the priests and forbidden to enter a church. Then there were the inquisitions.  

Beginning in 1194, the Dicastery for the Doctrine of Faith was founded for the sole purpose of flushing out what the Church defined as "heretics" through investigations and trials. In reality, they sought out and eliminated those perceived to be enemies or threats to the Church. Like the Mafia of old, they were the "enforcers". They inspired terror wherever they went. They relied on rumors, lies, circumstantial evidence, hearsay, and even considered moles and birthmarks to be direct evidence!

They were often summoned at the request of a monarch or powerful lord who used the act of calling for an inquisition as their own personal "proof" of devotion to the God and the Church. Many used the inquisition as a means to rid themselves of potential threats to their authority, thus preventing or reducing the chances of being assassinated, a coup, and ensuring loyal.

They were also handy for getting rid of troubling groups ranging from gypsies, various religious sects such as the Cathars and Waldensians, Hussites, or emerging Protestants following the Reformation. During the subjugation of South America by the Conquistadors in the 1500's, the Church used inquisitions against the native populations (which later expanded into what's now southwest United States).

Punishment by the Church appointed court could consist of anything from simple confession of your "guilt" and the utterances of a few prayers ("donating" a few coins didn't hurt either) all the way up to being burned at the stake (the Church often took possession of whatever you owned to boot).

Beatings and other tortures such as waterboarding or the rack were commonly employed as was "dunking" in vats of boiling or freezing water to force your confession (interspersed with prayers and promises of "divine forgiveness"). Individuals could be stripped naked and intimately "inspected" for signs of demonic or Satanic possession (including females and children) by these allegedly chaste priests. Conviction was often viewed as random, but assuredly, the "guilty" would be found out.

Technically, the torture couldn't endanger the life of the accused. It could not result in the permanent injury or loss of one's arms or legs (including hands, feet, nose, eyes, ears, or tongue) although nothing were off limits when it came the application of torture itself. In addition, once used the torture may not be reapplied, therefore you got one trip to the torture...err...I mean confession chamber. But, how does this apply to Jews and Anti-Semitism?

While officially the Inquisition could not be applied to Jews or Muslims based on previously issued edicts, the use of pogroms were seen as a way to circumvent the edicts. Violent attacks were often conducted against Jewish and Moorish (Muslim) communities. However, since Christians were prohibited from attacking other Christians, if these individuals would convert, they could be spared the beatings, lootings, pogroms, and special taxes. They could be welcomed into the trade guilds and into society in general. The incentives were enormous. All you had to sacrifice was your identity. 

As a result, thousands of Jews and Moors converted and became known as "Conversos" or "Marranos". However, many would later convert back to their original faith. This is where the Inquisition came in. One of the goals of the Holy Office of the Inquisitor was to ensure to loyalty of the masses to the Church and the "sincerity of their faith". 

Thus, a Converso who reverted to their prior faith was seen as "endangering their soul" which, of course, was of primary concern of the Vatican. Therefore, the Inquisitor would round up all the lapsed Catholics they could find and remind them of their commitment. Think of it as a revival with whips and thumbscrews!

In 1478, King Ferdinand II of Aragon and the Castilian Queen Isabella of Christopher Columbus fame ordered up one of these "revivals" in what became known as the Spanish Inquisition (as an aside, Columbus is believed to have been a Converso). What was different from other Inquisitions was that the royal couple were deemed "most Catholic" enough by the Holy See to oversee the Inquisition independently of Vatican, although it's general operation was still staffed by appointed clergy. 

All Jews who had not converted by 1492 were ordered out of the country (Columbus went a step further, he left the continent). All Moors were ordered out by 1501. Anyone who remained would be subject to continued used of the Inquisition. All possessions were to remain.  Not to be outdone, King Philip of Spain applied the same standards to his possessions in the New World starting in 1569.

Portugal got into the act in 1520 with the appointment of a "Grand Inquisitor" by Pope Paul III. Not only were and Moors, it extended to "witchcraft" or form divination (including playing cards) and bigamy. The purpose was to exert political, social, economic, and religious control over the population.

One of the most notorious Inquisitions was requested by the Jesuit priest Francis Xavier in 1540 which became known as the "Goa Inquisition", which was applied almost exclusively on "New Christians" (Jews who had been forcibly converted) reverted back to Judaism, however, it also included Muslims and even Hindus!

There's no existing data telling us how many individuals died during the pogroms or Inquisitions nor the financial loss which resulted. No doubt the loss of lives must have been in the tens of thousands at the very least. We have a general idea that when it came to the various Gnostic Christian sects or other that the Church referred to as "heretical" (such as the Cathars, Arianians, Merovingians, Pelagianism, or orders like the Knights Templars) suffered in the millions.

In terms of financial loss, one can only guess but it was likely in the billions by today's standards, not mentioning the historical artifacts which have been destroyed or hidden away in the caverns of the Vatican's archives. However, to the Holy Office of the Inquisition, no price was too high to maintain Catholic orthodoxy.

Fascist Spain, Italy, and Argentina, with its close Catholic traditions, continued to tie itself to this absolutist orthodoxy while they reigned. Nazi Germany tried to replace it with more vulgar version harkening back to a mix of mythical past and pseudoscience with Hitler as the "New Martin Luther". Communism equally sought to replace organized religion with a purely secular faith where ideology of Marxism, the party and the state served as the three prong godhead. Politicalized Christianly and Critical Race Theory each offer the same possibility today as does radical Islam does.   

Faith, in the form of spiritualism, has been with this from the beginning whereas religion with its dogma, pageantry, and sacrifices sprung in unison with government as means of awe and control. One temporal and the other eternal. We must be aware of all things created by Man for no matter how noble their intent, they inherently contain at least a kernel of vanity and greed, which given time, will block out all light of freedom and poison the soil of enlightenment.

 

   If you enjoyed the article, please consider passing it along to others and don't forget to subscribe. It's free! Lastly please be sure to "like" us on whatever platform you use to read anotheropinionblog.com. It helps beat the algorithms and keeps our articles in circulation. Thank you!

 Anti-Semitism in America is Nothing New. Don't Deny Jewish Culture or Culture by Calling Us "White"

Anti-Semitism

Why Jews Don't Believe in Jesus

 

List of Crusades

Inquisition

Religion in Nazi Germany

Communism and Religion

Marxism and Religion

 

 

 

 

 

Where Did Christmas Come From? Constantine and the Origins of Christmas

 December 25th...Christmas! The day boys and girls the world over most look forward to. It's a time of celebration, of gatherings, of specially prepared foods, decorated trees, and, of course, of presents! There are often special events like parades, the occasional carolers, theme related plays, movies, and television programs (and let's not forget football games too!). 

Of course, it's also the day when Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus, the centerpiece of their religion and immovable cornerstone of their faith. But did you know that December 25th was more or less randomly chosen?

Although its core was centered in Roman occupied Judea and the Galilee (today's Israel), it's primary areas of growth were the far reaches of the Roman Empire, thanks primarily to the missionary efforts of Paul of Tarsus, along with others, who operated principally in Greece, Western Turkey, Syria, and, of course, Rome itself.

The early Christian movement was essentially a messianic Jewish sect, one of many at the time, and came about during a particularly tremulous period of simmering political and social tension as conquered peoples throughout the empire struggled under the yoke of Roman occupation.

Christianity, thus, incorporated fragments of other religions and philosophies; most notably Greco-Roman, which was dominate at the time, as were the teachings of the Jewish sage, Hillel. As such, it shares similarities with other sects like the cult of the Egyptian goddess Isis and the cult of Mithras, which was especially popular among the military class, as was the cult of the sun --- Sol Invictus, also associated with Mithras (collectively these were known as "mystery cults).

Not long after the execution of Jesus in around the Year 33, Judaism in all its forms underwent a profound change when Rome, tired of constant revolts and rebellion, sacked Jerusalem and leveled the Temple complex, and in doing so, destroyed the priestly caste.

This new messianic sect, however, survived thanks in part to their wide dispersal around the empire. However, their survival was a mixed blessing. While they avoided the fate of Sadducees and Pharisees (and perhaps the Essenes), their refusal to acknowledge the divine sovereignty of the emperor, made them a "enemy of the state" for which they would pay a very high price.

They were often harassed or persecuted. They paid additional taxes, they constantly faced possible arrest and imprisonment, or were sold as slaves. Some emperors went so far as to include them as part of the "entertainment" for the Coliseum games, which literally included "feeding them to the lions" (and the tigers and bears...oh my!).

Emperor Nero was known to have them tied to poles, doused with oil and lit them on fire, thus serving as human candles during his nightly parties. Nevertheless, the sect continued to grow, albeit in secret. Meetings were held in secret in people's homes, forests, or in caves and catacombs among the dead.

Finally, in 312 AD, there came Constantine (later known as "Constantine the Great)  and everything changed. Around October 28, 312, then General Constantine was engaged in a battle with Maxentius, the son of the dead Emperor Maximinus and heir apparent, over the control of the empire. It was another of Rome's infamous civil wars signifying a dying empire.  The battle was at the Milvian Bridge (now Ponte Milvio), which spanned the Tiber River, and it would decide the fate of Rome. 

While the troop strength was roughly equal, the odds seemed to favor Maxentius as some of the leading generals, such as Severus, the co-ruler of the empire, defected to Maxentius. Maxentius also had the support of the Rome's senate However, Constantine had the support of Galerius, the emperor of the eastern portion of the empire. So, what happened?

The story that's come down from history is almost assuredly exaggerated, if not just a myth. It says that on the evening before the decisive battle, Constantine, turned his attention to the heavens and begged for divine support (or at least a sign). Accordingly, it was said that he saw a celestial cross in the sky and heard a voice whisper to him "in this sign you shall conquer".

Other stories have this as a dream and still others say that he was looking at the setting sun the day before the battle and saw a cross (this is often called a "sun halo" or a "sun dog"). Also, instead of hearing a voice saying "in this sign....", the voice said "through this sign you shall conquer". Did any of it really happen? Maybe. He did, no doubt, know that many of his officers and soldiers were secretly Christian and he desperately needed their support. Thus, it was said that he ordered a cross to be painted on all the shields, and if he won, he would convert to this new religion.

It's worth noting too that the cross was not then commonly associated with Jesus or Christianity, nor was it a particularly good omen since crucifixion  was still in use.  The more commonly accepted symbol for Christians was the fish (or ichthus). It should be mentioned that at this time Constantine wasn't a Christian. He was a follower of the Sol Invictus---the Invincible Sun.

But regardless of what Constantine saw or heard, he was victorious. Most of Maxentius' men fled. Maxentius drowned in the Tiber River, brought down by his heavy armor as he fell off his horse and into the swift river trying to flee with his troops.  Assuming the sign as being responsible for his victory, all persecution of Christians stopped. Christianity now became the defacto official religion of Rome, which he made official with the signing of the Edict of Milan in 313, just one year after his victory.

The new emperor immediately set about instituting massive reforms throughout the empire. Everything was reorganizing the government, fiscal and other economic reforms, and changes in the military.  However, Constantine is perhaps best known for his organization and consolation of Christianity. 

In 314, Emperor Constantine summoned a council of key Christian leaders or "bishops" to Arles in Gaul (modern southern France). Technically, the meeting was to address the Donatists, a growing Christian sect based in Carthage (Rome's old enemy) and largely outside the control of Constantine. Their intent was to basically destroy this so-called "splinter" group before a irreparable schism could divide the emerging faith. However, the meeting was also to test Constantine's control over the bishops as well as establish precedent in dealing with other "heretical" sects (most notably the Arian and Gnostics).

A few years later, in 325, came the best known and most significant of the meetings, the Council of Nicaea.  This meeting set about formally hammering out Christian doctrine, the organization of the church (which was loosely modeled on the Roman military), deciding on which biblical texts were "canon" and which weren't (and what parts of various texts were to be deleted or changed).

As an aside, Constantine declared the Sabbath would no longer be Friday/Saturday. The Sabbath would now be Sunday in honor of Sol Invictus and would applied to all religions per his decree on March 7, 321.As Christianity grew in popularity, it eventually replaced the other religions and Sunday became its own.  

The Council of Nicaea also sought to clarify the nature of Jesus and establish whether he was divine, semi-divine, or simply an enlightened moral. They also dealt with other issues such as his birth (and thus Mary and her relationship vis-a-vis Jesus), his siblings, Joseph, God, and, of course, the various apostles, the role of women, the nature of sin, and so forth. The human Jesus was to be replaced by the immortal Christ as one of the delegates (an Arian) stated.

Needless to say, those present were not just the best and brightest in Christendom present, but the best and brightest throughout the empire. There was a great deal of disagreement among these distinguished individuals (okay, even some heated yelling matches, shoving, and even a fistfight between St. Nicholas--aka "Santa Claus"--and St. Arius). In the end, the Council of Nicaea laid the foundation for Christianity as an institution and created the core statement of faith known as the "Nicene Creed" (the "Apostle's Creed" would later evolve out of it).

So what does all this have to do with Christmas? Just this. The Council of Nicaea, under the direction of Emperor Constantine, set forth the two central events for all Christians---Easter and Christmas. Easter, which symbolizes the belief in the resurrection of Jesus following his execution, as well as the nature and date of his birth. So, if you ever wanted to know when Christmas (or "Christ Mass") first started, this is it!  

At the time of Nicaea, there were several differing Christian sects. Each had its own religious texts and traditions, which could vary widely. Some had certain books or texts than others didn't which included various stories about Jesus. For instance, some included stories of his birth. Some didn't. A few, but not all, mentioned his brothers and sisters.  Some detailed more of his teachings. Others didn't, and so forth.

 As an aside, the teaching of many of these "non-canonical" or unapproved texts would later be ordered to be discontinued while others were edited or considered as "apocryphal" and "pseudo-apocryphal" books. And yet other texts would be seized and destroyed. In fact, many of the smaller Gnostic sects would be burned as "heretics" along with their books. As a result, many of these sects hide or buried their sacred texts until, hopefully, safer times arrived.

Many of these early Christian sects which had a birth narrative that assumed Jesus was born in the Spring based on lines  like "tending flocks in the field". Thus, March 28th was generally accepted as his birthday or at least, nativity. However, if Christianity was to be the "official" state religion, Constantine would still need to contend with the very popular pagan cults of Isis, Mithras, and Sol Invictus.

The three pagan cults held that the winter and spring solstices were the most sacred (in fact, most pagan religions in general still hold these as sacred). Therefore, Constantine decided these should be merged and celebrated as a way to bring the four religions together (besides, as a follower of Sol Invictus, Constantine, was well aware that the "birthday" of Sol (the sun) was December 25th, the Winter Solstice).

The Spring Solstice, which was celebrated a symbol of the nature's rebirth and fertility, fell conveniently in line to be the date of the resurrection. It was also close to the Jewish day of Passover, which was mentioned in the majority of various Christian texts pertaining to the crucifixion. Other events could (and eventually were) incorporated around these two central pillars of Christianity.  Thus, Constantine brought the four main religions of the Rome Empire together, which he hoped would ease some of the mistrust and competition between them.

Note too that "Christmas" was, strictly speaking, a solemn day of worship. It simply meant "Christ Mass" or Mass of/for Christ". There was no tree or gift giving. The evergreen tree was incorporated from ancient Germanic pagan practices and first introduced in the 1500's. Legend holds that religious reformer (and one of my ancestors), Martin Luther, first placed candles on the trees after a walk in the forest where he saw stars peering through the limbs of snow covered evergreen trees.

The notion of gift giving dates back to ancient Celtic, Germanic, and Roman practices during the winter solstice celebrations. Typically these were inexpensive items such as combs, yarn, and flint. Expensive objects were actually frowned upon. It was believed that simple and practical were in keeping with the spirit of the season. By the late 300s, converted Christians had carried over the practice into their new found faith, which was supported by the gifts brought from the east by the three Magi.

As for Constantine himself and whether he kept his promise to convert to the new religion of Christianity which had secured his victory, that's a matter of debate. Some historians and theologians say that he did immediately after his victory. Others say it was while he was on his deathbed that he fulfilled his promise, and then there are those who say that his "conversion" occurred  shortly after his passing since apparently the bishops attending him could do such things. Regardless, Christmas...and Christianity...all began with Emperor Constantine.  

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Christmas

Sol Invictus

Mithraism

Paul And The Greco-Roman Mystery Cults

The Jewish--Roman War

Constantine the Great and Christianity

The First Council of Nicaea

Apocrypha

 

New Testament Apocrypha

History of Christianity

Origins of Christianity

History of Christmas Trees

Why do we give gifts at Christmas?

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Religion In A Post-Republic America: The Decline of Christianity?

 

When the populace begins to distrust the institutions upon which society is built, the time is not long off when there will be some sort of change, possible violent or not, but there's little doubt that significant change is on the way. According to several recent polls, trust in our key institutions are at record lows with little data to indicate any significant improvement.

The most fundamental institution affecting Americans is religion. In the preceding generations, one could argue the society, and especially the family unit, revolved around organized religion. According to a Gallup poll, just 32% of Americans said they had a great deal or a lot of trust in religion. 36% said that had "some" confidence while 33% had little or none.

According to the Billy Graham Center at Wheaton College, some 70% to 84% of all churches are seeking a decline in membership. A Pew survey conducted two years ago indicated that the fastest growing religious category in the U.S. was "none". The report also said that if "unaffiliated" was a religion, it would be the largest in the United States.  If the present trend continues, it will reach a de facto majority status by 2070.

However, among those who hold to some sort of faith, non-dogmatic "spiritualism" comprises the largest chunk of the unaffiliated. Of those who adhere to dogmatic Christian religious institution, the Church of Latter Day Saints or Mormons are the fasting growing. The largest growing non-Christian religious institution in the United States is Islam. By 2040, Islam is expected to be the second largest religious institution in America.

As an aside, Mormonism is on track to become the largest Christian religion, the Churches of Christ, Assemblies of God, and the Catholic Church are the runners up. It's worth noting that all three of the Protestant churches and the Catholic churches are considered socially conservative although most are registered Democrat, leaving about one third registered Republican.

Liberal churches on the other hand are showing the fastest decline in membership. Churches regarded as being "liberal" or "progressive", some of which include the United Churches of Christ, Lutheran, Presbyterian, Episcopal, and the Methodists. This is most notably due to their stance on issues like gay marriage and LGBQT rights, abortion, and women in the pulpit. 

The massive increase in immigrants from Latin America as well as Africa and Asia will spur the growth for the Catholic Church in the United States. Whether they will continue to register Democrat while remaining socially conservative remains to be seen. 56% are registered Democrat while 28% are Independent and 14% are Republican, although many are switching to Independent. 

Incidentally, the majority of immigrants---61%---are settling in just five states, Texas, Florida, California, New York and New Jersey. It's worth noting that four of these, New York, Texas, Florida, and California, also have the highest number of Electoral College votes which, in our antiquated "winner-take-all" electoral system, determines the winner of the Presidency and not the popular vote. 

Globally, by 2050 there will be approximately the same number of Muslims as there are Christians. In India, which now has the largest population of any nation, Hinduism will remain the majority religion but not by much. Islam will make up a large minority. In fact, because of the large Indian population, by 2050, there will be more Muslims just in India than in all of Indonesia. In Europe, Muslims will comprise at least 10% of the total population with the majority living in Western Europe.

Buddhism will hold its hold globally and remain about the same size, although its number will grow in the United States. The majority of Buddhists in America are converts, with the majority being white and former Protestant. By 2050, Buddhism will be the 10th largest population group by religion. Buddhism tend to lean Democrat in significant numbers.  

While Judaism, which is predominantly Left leaning in the U.S., will likely grow worldwide, it will no longer be the largest non-Christian religion in the United States. That honor, as stated above, will go to Islam. Politically, however, it will make little difference since they both tend to vote Democrat  with 68% of Muslims and 64% of Jews being registered Democrat. 

It's worth mentioning that while agnostics, atheists, and Humanist currently make up a significant segment of the "unaffiliated" in the United States (as well as in France and Germany), their numbers are projected to decline globally. Folk religion and neo-paganism (such as native African, Nordic and Wiccan)  will also continue to enjoy a resurgence globally, especially in the United States, although their numbers will not keep pace with the growing world population and thus their overall percentages will decline.

In our increasingly technological and sterile world, you would think that religion everywhere would be in decline. Various polls, however, show that the majority of Americans side with religion over science. In fact, just 29% of those polled by Pew in a 2019 study said they would always or most always trust science over religion. 40% of Americans believe solely in Creationism while 33% believe in evolution under the direction of a divine influence or plan. Note too that this percentage is fairly consistent globally among Christians and non-Christians religions that follow some form of established dogma.

So, what's the future of religion, particularly Christianity, in the United States? In 1990, 90% of all Americans identified as Christian. By 2050, that number is expected to be 54%, and within 50 years, it's expected to be just 46% while those who identify as secular will rise from around 30% now to 52% by then. Liberal leaning churches will decline, with many closing their doors for good.

The largest non-Christian religion will be Islam, replacing Judaism for the first time, and smaller size congregations will gradually replace the mega-church (which are often half jokingly referred to as "Six Flags over Jesus" or "Churchmarts"). Many services in the future will take place in private residences, harkening back to early Christianity when services were often led by women who were in charge of the home. 

Christianity will also likely be more racially and ethnically diverse than at any time in American history. Services conducted in multiple languages along with a sharing of cultures.  They will also likely be conservative, creating possibly a new schism in the form and function of Christianity itself. 

If you enjoyed the article, please consider passing it along to others and don't forget to subscribe. It's free! Lastly please be sure to "like" us on whatever platform you use to read anotheropinionblog.com. It helps with the algorithms and keeps our articles in circulation. Thank you!

The fasting growing US religious affiliation? 'None', poll says

The Future of World Religions: Population Growth Projections2010 - 2050

Modeling the Future of Religion in America

U.S. Religious Groups and their political leanings

What is the Future of Religion in America?

The Future of Liberal Christianity

Is There a Future For Progressive Christianity in America?

 

 

 

 

Religion, Freedom, and Americans

According to a Gallup Poll from December 2021, 75% of Americans identify with some form of religion. Of that, 69% named Christianity as their religion of choice.  When asked for specifics, 35% said Protestantism while 22% said they were Catholic. However, 12% said declined to say.

 Meanwhile, 7% of those surveyed said they weren't Christian. Of those, 2% professed to being Jewish, while 1% each identified as Muslim or Buddhist. 3% declined to answer. But it's worth noting that 22% of those interviewed said they had no religious preference.

The significance of this survey comes into focus when you look at a similar survey conducted in 1971 when 90% of those interviewed identified as Christian, a 15% drop over 50 years, or about two generations. Further highlighting the shift was that in 1971, just 6% said they weren't Christian and a mere 4% had no religious preference.

The 2021 Gallup Poll said that 49% of those who adhere to a religion felt said that it was important to them.  Another 27% said it was "fair" important, while 25% felt it was of little or no particular importance.  But back in 1965, it was quite different. Then 70% of those survey said religion was "very important" to them. That dropped to 52% in 1978 before rising to 60% in 1990 where it remained consistent until 1996 before dropping to its present level of below 50%.

Church membership and attendance are two other key factors affecting religion in America. In 2000, Gallup asked participants if they attended a religious service in person or online, 44% said they did. Compare that to 49% in 1958 who attended services. By 2021, that number had dropped to just 29%.

When it came to membership, the numbers are just as bad. When Gallup first asked respondents if they formally belonged to a church back in 1937, 73% said yes. In 1999, that number was still pretty high with 70% saying they were. However, in 2021, that figure had dropped off to 47%.

The decline was primarily among those under 30 years of age, while it remained fairly stable among seniors.  For those born before 1946, those belonging to a organized religion dropped from 77% to 66%. From Babyboomers (1946 - 1964), that number went from 67% to 59%. Gen X (1965 - 1980), the figure declined by 12%, 62% to 50%. Finally, Millennials (1981 - 1996). Just 36% are belong to some religious denomination. As for Gen Z, 34% were unaffiliated with any religion.

When we break those numbers down further in order to get a clearer picture things get really interesting. First, the largest drop in membership was among Catholics who've dropped from 73% in 1998 to 58% as of 2020. For Protestants, it went from 73% to 64%, with mainstream churches (Lutheran, Baptist, Methodists, Presbyterian, United Church of Christ, etc) being hit the hardest. Even Evangelical churches, which had the largest growth just a few years ago, are seeing record number declines.

Women, once the staple of church membership, has dropped by 20% over the last 20 years, down to 53%. 18% for men or 46%. Among whites, 59% attend, a decline of 16%. For blacks it's was slightly worse--- a 19% decline to 59%. For Hispanics, however, the numbers were worse. Since 2011, church membership among Hispanics has dropped off to just 37%.

As an aside, a 2018 Pew study showed that for the first time ever, the majority of Hispanics in America are no longer Catholic (something I'm sure certain Catholic service organizations were expecting when encouraging Latinos to illegally enter America). In 2009, the number of Hispanics who considered themselves Catholic was 57%. By 2019, that number had dropped to 47%.

Hispanics who considered themselves Protestant rose from 23% to 26%. Of those, the majority self-identified as Evangelical. 3% said they were no longer Christian, while an impressive 23% said they were agnostic, atheist, or nothing in particular.

There's a great line from the novel "Dune", written by Frank Herbert that says "When religion and politics ride in the same cart a whirlwind follows". Although there's nothing in the Constitution about separation of church and state, America has done a great deal to keep religion and politics as separated as possible. It's not that the Founding Fathers disapproved of religion, far from it.  They were just fearful of a state created religion like what had forced others from Europe.

Under a state religion, others exist at the discretion and magnanimity of those in power; to be granted or withdrawn at a whim. In addition, the state church imposed a tax on the citizens as well as on the non-state churches. In addition, the members of these non-approved churches were required to support their minister and church which represented another tax burden many couldn't afford.

The decline of religious membership and participation among Liberals went from 56% to 35% over the last 20 years, a 21% drop. Among moderates, they experienced a 21% as well, going from 66% to 45%. Perhaps not unexpectedly, Conservatives fared the best, falling 14% from 78% to 64%, which still represents a majority.

When we break it down along partisan lines, Independents, who are the nation's largest political demographic, fell from 59% to 41%; a 18% drop.  Democrats saw the largest drop, going from 71% down to 46%, which represents a falloff of 25%.   Again, as expected, Republicans had the least drop. Over the last 20 years, they've gone from 77% to 65%, which once again still leaves them with a majority of participants.

It's ironic that the Left it portrayed by the media as being morally superior, while accusing Conservatives and Republicans of corrupting Christianity; of advocating a form of "neo-fascism" Christian Theocracy the way the Taliban has corrupted Islam. After all, wasn't it said that if fascism ever came to America it would be wrapped in the flag and carrying a bible?

 They cite the Right's push for mandatory prayer in school while ignoring other faiths and the non-religious, while also encouraging pray at social functions, not to mention limiting or prohibiting diversity and cultural inclusivity (aka "multiculturalism").

The Right, on the other hand, cite the need to recreate a "melting pot" where no one group is better than the other. At the same time, for a society to prosper, they argue that a society must share a set of common values and a common language. "You have to stand for something or you'll fall for anything", isn't that the promise of a "anything goes" society? 

They also point out that the religious Right was behind the move by the Supreme Court to reverse Roe v. Wade, and thus making abortion illegal. The Left sees abortion as a "pro-choice" issue, whether anyone else agrees with it or not. It's their position that a woman has the right to do with her body as she pleases while the religious oriented Right hold that that option ended the moment she became pregnant. 

Even what constitutes a "unborn child" is disputed! The Right says that at the moment of conception, life has begun and all future decisions must be based on that. Meanwhile, the Left believes the process of life (cell division) may technically begin at conception, but you don't have a "life" until there's a heartbeat and brain activity (the absence of which is near uniformly acknowledged as death by the medical community). 

There are some on the Right who believe that the pregnancy must come to term no matter the circumstances of the pregnancy (ie: rape or accidental) or possible medical disabilities that might bring up to and including those affecting the mother's wellbeing, and will cite cherry picked passages from the scripture of their choice to support their claims. But what if the individual isn't of their faith or culture? What then? 

Other issues which separate the Left and Right along religious lines include the acceptance of homosexuality, the admission of female clergy (or gay clergy), the role of women in church and at home just to name a few. None of these even touch on groups like the Amish, Mennonites, Quakers, Mormons, and other non-traditional religions which have either in part or in totality rejected aspects of modern society.

As an aside, the Mormons are one of the few Christian sects which has actually maintained their numbers. While the Utah based church hasn't grown, it's numbers haven't dropped off like other Protestant denominations have (in 2020, the growth rate was 0.6%. In 2021 it was 0.85%). It's primary areas of growth has been in Africa despite a significant drop in missionaries (thanks mainly to Covid-19).

So, what religious based groups are doing well?  In the U.S., the fastest growing organized religion is Islam, albeit the numbers themselves are extremely small. Islam makes up less than 1% in the U.S. and it's growth rate has been 0.6% to 1.5% over the past few years. Nothing to write Mecca about! However, Islam is expected to surpass Judaism in the very near future with Islam reaching eventually about 2.8% of the population compared to 1.8% for Jews. Non-organized religions such as pantheism, paganism, Wiccan, Native American, and African faith systems are also growing rapidly as is the more secular Humanism.  

It's also worth noting that since the collapse in the 1980's of Communism in Eastern Europe, churches have made a comeback in a big way. Under Communism, atheism was the defacto "state religion". Nevertheless, efforts to suppress or even outlaw religion under Communism was largely unsuccessful. Growth mainly among Eastern Orthodox, Catholicism, and Lutheranism has rapid and sustained.

Even in the former center of Communism, Moscow, President Vladimir Putin is a semi-regular attendee at religious services where 71% openly identify as Orthodox, 10% Muslims and 15% who remain "unaffiliated".  87% of Poland are Catholic. 95% of Romania and Moldavia adhere to some religion. 84% for Croatia, and so the story goes.

Religious freedom was denied the people of Eastern Europe for nearly 50 years. Now it's back with a vengeance. Perhaps you have to lose something to realize its value, which for the people under Communism not only included freedom of religion, but by extension, freedom of expression and speech, association, movement, ownership of property, equality of justice, and control over our own persons.

Religion is not mandatory in the West. Those days of autocracy and official religions have thankfully long passed. Today we have the option to accept or reject it. In other parts of the world the people don't have that choice. The state has made the decision for them as to what's acceptable or not, and the penalty for rejecting that decision can be brutal, if not fatal. Migrants to Europe, who claim to be seeking economic and social freedom, are trying to impose their repressive religious and social values on the very citizens whose nations accepted them.

The Founding Fathers intended to create a new society where we had the freedom of religion (which by definition also includes freedom from religion). This freedom meant you could freely practice your religion but you couldn't impose it on others. It also meant the state was prohibited adopting any religion or from imposing any religious beliefs or penalties in its citizens. For its time, this was huge.

Our Founders bequeath to us a freedom of choice, which implied, among other things, the right to believe as we were so inclined too, as well as freedom of speech and expression, association, the right to a fair trial, and the right to defend ourselves from those who would seek to deprive us of these and other rights, which goes to the Founder's belief in the natural and preeminent rights of the individual.

 

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