Why Religion Is More Durable Than We Thought In Modern Society

[rug]

April 28, 20175:04 AM ET
Heard on Morning Edition
TOM GJELTEN

Here is a proposition that may seem self-evident to many people: As societies become more modern, religion loses its grip. Superstition inevitably gives way to rationality. A belief in magic is replaced by a belief in science.

Sociologists call it the "secularization thesis." In 1822, Thomas Jefferson suggested an early version of it, predicting that Unitarianism "will, ere long, be the religion of the majority from north to south."

Some data from modern countries support the thesis. Fifty years ago, about four of ten children in England attended Sunday school. Today, it's only about ten percent. In the United States, just five percent of the population in 1972 reported no religious affiliation. By 2016, one out of four said they were unaffiliated.

Recent research, however, has suggested that religion is more durable than was previously thought. While church attendance has declined sharply in western Europe, secularization has been less evident in the United States. The number of Americans who list their church affiliation as "none" has certainly increased, but more than 70 percent still identify generally as Christian.

http://www.npr.org/2017/04/28/525895389/why-religion-is-more-durable-than-we-thought-in-modern-society

3:48 audio at link.

[Bretton Garcia]

1. Typical religious fake news

Religious belief declines 25% say. And this is presented as proof of the durability of religion.

[Volstagg]

2. Odd. So it's going away but it's not?

And we are still impacted by our Puritan roots. Europe is more lax and progressive with their TV content, their drinking laws, their drug laws, etc. We got the religious crazies and that left a mark.