More Christian Americans are choosing to be unaffiliated with any particular religious group.
The percentage of “nones” in this country has absolutely skyrocketed over the past decade. Not all religions, in fact, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism and various other New Age organizations have all experienced excellent growth in recent years. Oddly enough, almost all of the growth for the “nones” has come at the expense of Christianity. Many of our churches are less than half full on Sunday mornings.
Pew Research Center recent study entitled “Why America’s ‘nones’ left religion behind,“ states one thing that particularly stood out to me was the fact that most “nones” were once affiliated with a particular religion but have now discarded that label
78% Say they were raised with religion before shedding it in adulthood. Back in 2007, “nones” made up 16 %of the population, but now that number has risen to 23 %. The following is from a different Pew Research Center report that was published last year…Religious “nones” – a shorthand we use to refer to people who self-identify as atheists or agnostics, as well as those who say their religion is “nothing in particular” – now make up roughly 23% of the U.S. adult population. This is a stark increase from 2007, the last time a similar Pew Research study was conducted, when 16% of Americans were “nones.” (During this same time period, Christians have fallen from 78% to 71%.)
The 7% increase in the percentage of “nones” were matched exactly by a 7%t decrease in the percentage of Christians. It is time to face a very hard truth – Christianity is in rapid decline in America.
Pew Research Center, while conducting their new survey…49% indicate that a lack of belief led them to move away from religion. They cited science, common sense, logic or a lack of evidence – or simply say they do not believe in God.
In America today, 35 % of all millennials are “nones” and prefer the word spiritual. They express more of an open mind to possibilities and when referencing the term god, they prefer the word universe or source and not to be equated with the bible. While the Pew Center sees this as a tragic unfolding and in need of attention, they fail to see how religion often brings limited thinking.
Sources
Image 1 - Google image- Labeled for reuse - Saint Thomas Evangelical Lutheran Church in Freedom Township, Michigan
Image 1 - Google image- Labeled for reuse - Toronto Falun Gong Exercises 12
References
Pew Research Center- http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/08/24/why-americas-nones-left-religion-behind/
