Americans Change Faiths at Rising Rate...
More than a quarter of adult Americans have left the faith of their childhood to join another religion or no religion,
....
If shifts among Protestant denominations are included, then it appears that 44 percent of Americans have switched religious affiliations. For at least a generation, scholars have noted that more Americans are moving among faiths, as denominational loyalty erodes. But the survey, based on interviews with more than 35,000 Americans, offers one of the clearest views yet of that trend, scholars said.
The report shows, for example, that every religion is losing and gaining members, but that the Roman Catholic Church “has experienced the greatest net losses as a result of affiliation changes.”
The survey also indicates that the group that had the greatest net gain was the unaffiliated. More than 16 percent of American adults say they are not part of any organized faith, which makes the unaffiliated the country’s fourth largest “religious group.”
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Immigration continues to influence American religion greatly, the survey found. The majority of immigrants are Christian, and almost half are Catholic. Muslims rival Mormons for having the largest families. And Hindus are the best-educated and among the richest religious groups, the survey found.
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Experts said the wide-ranging variety of religious affiliation could set the stage for further conflicts over morality or politics, or new alliances on certain issues, as religious people have done on climate change or Jews and Hindus have done over relations between the United States, Israel and India.
Full report here>>>>
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/25/us/25cnd-religion.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin
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I'm presently unaffiliated... perhaps I should try out the Hindu faith!;-)
This shifting trend is probably not just representative of the US; I would think it is world-wide. Just tried to check it out I came upon this article where an Egyptian judge rules out changing from Islam to Christianity!! Are they worried they could lose too many Muslims??8O
http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=59985
More than a quarter of adult Americans have left the faith of their childhood to join another religion or no religion,
....
If shifts among Protestant denominations are included, then it appears that 44 percent of Americans have switched religious affiliations. For at least a generation, scholars have noted that more Americans are moving among faiths, as denominational loyalty erodes. But the survey, based on interviews with more than 35,000 Americans, offers one of the clearest views yet of that trend, scholars said.
The report shows, for example, that every religion is losing and gaining members, but that the Roman Catholic Church “has experienced the greatest net losses as a result of affiliation changes.”
The survey also indicates that the group that had the greatest net gain was the unaffiliated. More than 16 percent of American adults say they are not part of any organized faith, which makes the unaffiliated the country’s fourth largest “religious group.”
.....
Immigration continues to influence American religion greatly, the survey found. The majority of immigrants are Christian, and almost half are Catholic. Muslims rival Mormons for having the largest families. And Hindus are the best-educated and among the richest religious groups, the survey found.
........
Experts said the wide-ranging variety of religious affiliation could set the stage for further conflicts over morality or politics, or new alliances on certain issues, as religious people have done on climate change or Jews and Hindus have done over relations between the United States, Israel and India.
Full report here>>>>
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/25/us/25cnd-religion.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin
--------------------------------------------------------------------
I'm presently unaffiliated... perhaps I should try out the Hindu faith!;-)
This shifting trend is probably not just representative of the US; I would think it is world-wide. Just tried to check it out I came upon this article where an Egyptian judge rules out changing from Islam to Christianity!! Are they worried they could lose too many Muslims??8O
http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=59985
