Free Republic

The data show the “Nones” walking away from organized religion. Is pop culture taking its place? With every passing year, traditional religious belief continues its trend of steady decline in the United States. According to the latest Gallup Values and Beliefs poll, a record low of 81 percent of American adults believe in God. That’s a slip of 6 percentage points since 2017, the last time Gallup conducted the poll, which found 87 percent of respondents affirming belief in God. As traditional beliefs wane and a new generation increasingly makes its way in the world without them, a new American...

The world has become increasingly more secular in the last few decades. However, as Visual Capitalist's Anshool Deshmukh details below, religion remains an integral part of many people’s lives, and 84% of the world’s population identifies with a religious group.The religious profile of the world is rapidly changing, driven primarily by differences in fertility rates and the size of youth populations among the world’s major religions, as well as by people switching faiths.With the help of data from Pew Research Center, we break down the religious composition of the major religions in countries worldwide.Religious Makeup of the World by Major...

In this toxic era of bitter cultural division, few things divide people as bitterly as Critical Race Theory (CRT), which isn’t a surprise, given that CRT divides. It divides people into groups pitted against one another, into categories of oppressed vs. oppressor. Your group defines you. It’s an ideology that stereotypes and separates based on race—ironically, in the name of opposing racism. In that regard, it smacks of so many bad ideas on the political Left, such as the “tolerance” movement and its rigid intolerance toward those who dare disagree, or the “diversity” movement and its lack of diversity toward...

(CNSNews.com) - Rep. Ilhan Omar (D.-Minn.) gave a speech on the House floor citing what she called the “hypocrisy” of “religious fundamentalists,” who are seeking to prohibit or restrict abortion. “Religious fundamentalists are currently trying to manipulate the State laws in order to impose their beliefs on an entire society, all with complete disregard for voices and the rights of American women,” she said in this speech that was delivered on May 22. “This isn't about religious morality or conviction,” she said, “because we have seen time and time again those who talk about their faith and want to push...

Way- back machine .. In a move with no precedent in New York City history Mayor Michael Bloomberg will shut down after today the worship services of scores of what he calls “these religious groups.” At least 55 churches and synagogues are affected. On his weekly radio program Bloomberg was adamant. ... Bloomberg also said he dismissed religious freedom concerns by legislators in Albany. "I don't know what's going to happen in Albany. I can just tell you what's happening here. This is the last Sunday that these religious organizations will be able to have worship services

“Name a Natural Explanation Later Replaced by a Supernatural Explanation” By Philip Cottraux I see this one pop up on Twitter from time to time, followed by atheists bragging that they’ve never met a theist who can answer it. Unfortunately, I’ve been unsuccessful tracking down its origin. In some tweets I’ve seen it connected with Sam Harris, but sifting through countless quotes as well as his book The End of Faith (this was a torturous experience) turned up nothing. Like most atheist “gotchas,” this one is riddled with false presumptions. I can already hear skeptics getting to the end of...

The new network premiered on Monday evening with four original programs and an hourlong launch special introduced by Church leader David Miscavige. Scientology TV, a network dedicated to the religion, officially launched Monday evening at 5 p.m. PT with a message from Church leader David Miscavige, making a rare on-camera appearance. "We're not here to preach to you, to convince you or to convert you," he said. "No, we simply want to show you, because after all, the first principle of Scientology is that it's only true if it is true to you. So, take a look and then decide...

The Muslim population in the US is growing at a rate of around 100,000 per year By the year 2040, Muslims will replace Jews as the second-largest religious group in the US after Christians, according to projections by a leading American think tank. Pew Research Center estimates there were some 3.45 million Muslims living in the US in 2017, accounting for around 1.1 percent of the country’s total population.

The American Muslim Community Centers in Longwood, FL put up a new billboard that is creating a lot of buzz in the area, according to a report by Fox 35 Orlando.

If tech futurists are to be believed, by the year 2050, robots will do many of our errands and drive our cars. If a new study on religious trends is to be believed, many of those robot-controlled cars will stop and park at mosques and churches. Yes, despite predictions that religion will go the way of dinosaurs, the size of almost every major faith -- sorry, Buddhists -- will increase in the next 40 years, according to a study released Thursday by the Pew Research Center. The biggest winners, Pew predicts, will be Islam and Christianity. Islam, the world's fastest-growing...

Religions have surprisingly diverse approaches to the issue of possible extraterrestrial life, David Weintraub found. Below, a quick survey adapted from his book "Religions and Extraterrestrial Life: How Will We Deal With It?" and interviews with the author.

The U.S. is a nation of religious drifters, with about half of adults restlessly switching faith affiliation at least once during their lives, a new survey has found. And the reasons behind all the swapping depend greatly on whether one grows up kneeling at Roman Catholic Mass, praying in a Protestant pew or occupied with nonreligious pursuits, according to a report issued Monday by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life. While Catholics are more likely to leave the church because they stopped believing its teachings, many Protestants are driven to trade one Protestant denomination or affiliation for another...

When the 111th Congress convenes on Jan. 6, Buddhists, Muslims and Hindus will be underrepresented in its membership. No shocker there perhaps. But a new analysis of incoming members' religious affiliations by the Pew Forum indicates there's no small measure of change in Congress' religious ties: It's much more diverse than just half a century ago.

DEBATES about Islam and the West can throw up unexpected tensions. Take the American and the Brit, successful young professionals who met recently at a seaside resort in Egypt. As it happens, both were devout Muslims who pray five times a day. But as they discovered, manifest piety, of the sort ubiquitous in poorer bits of Egypt, arouses instant suspicion in parts of the country where rich tourists and important Westerners need cocooning—even when those Westerners have come to attend the august deliberations on “Islam and the West” taking place nearby with the blessing of Egypt's government. The young men's...

The usually elegant Ms Owl looked at bit shopworn when she visited today: she had a bad weekend in church ! Who knew OWLS were so devout ?

Osman Maquati is a 22-year-old Pakistani who was raised in upper-class London. He speaks with a British accent. His articulate speech defies his outward appearance; a long beard and the clothing of an Afghan peasant. At the age of 17, Osman, along with dozens of other "good Muslim boys",was recruited by Sheikh Omar Bakri Mohammed, London's most outspoken radical Islamic leader. Mohammed fronts the organization ww.SAKINA.org., using "peace" to camouflage their purpose, and freely claims to have recruited and sent into training over 2,000 terrorists...

THE LIST - World Religions (Top 10) June 15, 2007 These are the 10 largest religions in the world, by the estimated number of followers: 1. Christianity 2.1 billion 2. Islam 1.3 billion 3. Hinduism 851 million 4. Buddhism 375 million 5. Sikhism 25 million 6. Judaism 15 million 7. Baha'ism 7.5 million 8. Confucianism 6.4 million 9. Jainism 4.5 million 10. Shintoism 2.8 million SOURCE: ENCYCLOPEDIA BRITANNICA

At a meeting of the House Democrats' Faith Working Group, a perplexed congressman turned to his colleagues for pastoral guidance. How could he counter a local preacher who argued that all of Jesus's moral teachings were about the world to come, not the here and now? Rep. David E. Price (D-N.C.) stood amid the sympathetic sighs and "you can't convert everyone" comments to offer a new spin on an old parable. The Good Samaritan is walking down the road and cares for a stranger who has been beaten and robbed, Price said. The next day, on the same road, another...

Roman Catholic leaders and evangelical Protestants, joined by other religious groups, are pushing to amend the U.S. Constitution to ban same-sex marriage. As a kickoff, the group signed a petition in support of an amendment, The New York Times reported. Those who added their names included seven Catholic cardinals, a number of archbishops, some Orthodox Jewish rabbis and at least one official of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. One Catholic group -- the Knights of Columbus -- plans to distribute 10 million postcards at Catholic churches for congregants to send to their congressional representatives. "The personal involvement...

Reformist Writer Dr. Kamel Al-Najjar: "If the Muslims are Serious About Presenting the Radiant Face of Islam… They Must… Acknowledge Their Dark Past" In January 2006, the Austrian-Iraqi Association for Development held its first conference on extremism and terrorism around the world, in Vienna. The conference was attended by Arab, Muslim and European researchers, intellectuals and diplomats. In the closing statement, the participants made the following recommendations: to present the humane and rational side of Islam which calls for co-existence and acceptance of the other; to condemn all forms of violence and terrorism; to promote dialogue and cooperation among all...