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Author | Topic: The Decline of Christianity | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tangle Member Posts: 9489 From: UK Joined: Member Rating: 4.9
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There's a headline news article today here in the UK announcing that the UK is no longer a majority Christian country.
Less than half of England and Wales population Christian, Census 2021 shows - BBC News Some part of this is due to a growth in other religions caused by immigration and their differential birth rates but the real cause is Christians no longer believing in Christianity. This is mirrored across the Western world:
quote: Decline of Christianity in the Western world - Wikipedia As an atheist, I think that this is excellent news, the fewer people wasting their time and resources worshipping non-existent gods the better. (And btw, as criminality is also declining, there is no associated decline in moral values; who knew!) But do we have anything to lose? Edited by Tangle, . Je suis Charlie. Je suis Ahmed. Je suis Juif. Je suis Parisien. I am Mancunian. I am Brum. I am London. Olen Suomi Soy Barcelona. I am Ukraine. "Science adjusts it's views based on what's observed.
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Adminnemooseus Administrator Posts: 3974 Joined: |
Thread copied here from the The Deline of Christianity thread in the Proposed New Topics forum.
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Theodoric Member Posts: 9076 From: Northwest, WI, USA Joined: Member Rating: 3.7 |
Fix spelling error in title
What can be asserted without evidence can also be dismissed without evidence. -Christopher Hitchens Facts don't lie or have an agenda. Facts are just facts "God did it" is not an argument. It is an excuse for intellectual laziness. If your viewpoint has merits and facts to back it up why would you have to lie?
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Theodoric Member Posts: 9076 From: Northwest, WI, USA Joined: Member Rating: 3.7 |
The cases of pedophilia and sexual abuse should drop precipitously. So criminal defense lawyers might lose some business.
Edited by Theodoric, : Spelling What can be asserted without evidence can also be dismissed without evidence. -Christopher Hitchens Facts don't lie or have an agenda. Facts are just facts "God did it" is not an argument. It is an excuse for intellectual laziness. If your viewpoint has merits and facts to back it up why would you have to lie?
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Stile Member Posts: 4295 From: Ontario, Canada Joined:
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Tangle writes: While Christianity is currently the predominant religion in Latin America,[1] Europe,[2] Canada[3][4] and the United States,[5] the religion is declining in many of these areas Confirming from Canada.
More Canadians than ever have no religious affiliation quote: Seems to be pretty much an age-thing for Canada:
quote: And same with some of the non-Christian religions reporting slight increases in population:
quote: I'm pretty sure all religions will eventually stabilize into fringe-numbers. Less than 10%, but maybe even < 5%.Just like Flat Earth and other non-evidence-based-ideas... there will always be those who cling to the feeling of "having the knowledge no one else does!" regardless of it's veracity... and they will always convince themselves of their own righteousness. Also pretty sure the main powerhouse behind this movement is the internet - freedom of information.The truth is out there, and more seek honesty rather than feeling safety in agreement and group reinforcement of illusions. Kids will always have questions.And they'll always ask the adults around them first. This used to be family/teachers/religious-leaders... who used to be predominantly Christian. And the answers they get are the same we got - unsatisfying. Especially when they push and get the final answer of "go read your Bible and pray about this." When we got those answers, though, it was difficult to search for alternative answers. Information was constrained without the reach of the internet.But now? Those same kids getting those same unsatisfying answers simply pop the question into Google or Reddit. And they instantly get satisfying answers... real answers based in real facts about reality that are supported by evidence that they can also look up and see the real data behind it all. And they love the final, honest answer of "...and that's all we know, for now... but we're still searching, still using these same techniques that come up with such satisfying answers... and we'll make more progress and make that information available as soon as possible." They see that morality does have a natural explanation, and it's not based on a "well, this is the only way it makes sense to me..." claim from authority. It's based on real facts and data. Facts they can look up themselves and delve into and see just how deep they go. They see the same satisfaction with answers for love and kindness and hatred and evil and lying and telling the truth and trust and anger. Kids know when they're being bamboozled. They may not have a word for it. They may not be able to describe it. They may not feel comfortable standing up to it against adults in charge of them, especially if they also sense that those adults may be bamboozled themselves.They do, however, get a feeling. Just as we did with those same unsatisfying answers. And that feeling sticks in them, and the only thing that releases it is the honest truth. Of course, high levels of brain-washing due to information limitations has a way of "dealing with" unsatisfying answers too... but that's kind of dark. When they find that honest truth on the internet... from people who are not the adults around them...This leads them on the path of recognizing honesty and integrity much, much earlier than most of us older folks are used to (because of the limitations we had on accessing information.) It's going to serve them very, very well. And it's a part of why I have great hopes for the future. But do we have anything to lose? Possibly, yes. But there are other things moving into the vacancies that are opening up.
TL/DR ConclusionIn general, my thoughts are that we will lose "something" but that something is unimportant and easily/better replaced with a non-Christian alternative. Think of horses being replaced with cars for day-to-day travel:-"something" is lost (the relationship between rider and horse.) -this "something" can be easily/better replaced with other relationships for the rider (humans, pet, a horse that isn't ridden for day-to-day travel but only ridden for joy-rides.) -the main alternative (cars for day-to-day travel) is much easier/better than horses for the purposes of day-to-day travel That's how I see religion/Christianity getting replaced.-"something" specific to religion/Christianity will be lost -this "something" can be easily/better replaced with other things for the person, even if it's that same religious/Christianity thing... just not for the same purpose -the main non-religious/non-Christian alternative will be much easier/better for the main purpose And, as we are want to do, humans in general will be better for it and make even greater progress building on this more stable foundation. Edited by Stile, .
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Taq Member Posts: 9973 Joined: Member Rating: 5.7
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Tangle writes: As an atheist, I think that this is excellent news, the fewer people wasting their time and resources worshipping non-existent gods the better. As an atheist, I am of two minds. On the one had I have the same human bias everyone else has, so I feel "good" when there are more people who agree with my views. I also know that this doesn't make me right, but I'm human so I carry around the same illogical emotional fallacies as other humans. I am also glad that the church still exists for those who find purpose and meaning in religion. I am also glad that western democracies have been steadfast in their support of religious rights. I have relatives who I love very much, and they derive a lot of meaning from their religious beliefs, and I it makes me happy that they have found this purpose in their life, even if I don't share their beliefs. As to wasting time, the best parts of life are filled with pursuits that waste time. Painting, learning a musical instrument, playing a game of chess with a friend, and drinking a pint with a buddy at the pub are all wasting time, but what would life be without them? We only get one trip through this life, so do what you find enjoyable without ruining the ability for others to do the same.
Some part of this is due to a growth in other religions caused by immigration and their differential birth rates but the real cause is Christians no longer believing in Christianity. I have long thought that a big part of religiosity in culture is historical momentum and the psychology of the masses. Mobs act very differently than individuals do, and authority also has a strong sway on us. It isn't surprising that as church membership declines that it will do so precipitously. The US may not be far behind. I can't help but think that the internet age has only hastened this process because people have much easier access to ideas that challenge their beliefs, and access to a community of non-believers who just so happen to be regular people.
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Tangle Member Posts: 9489 From: UK Joined: Member Rating: 4.9
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The census results are about people self-identifying as Christian rather than practicing as Christian. I know a lot of people that would call themselves Christians but never attend church. In fact, in the UK church attendance is a very minority activity and is still in decline.
quote: Je suis Charlie. Je suis Ahmed. Je suis Juif. Je suis Parisien. I am Mancunian. I am Brum. I am London. Olen Suomi Soy Barcelona. I am Ukraine. "Science adjusts it's views based on what's observed. |
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Tangle Member Posts: 9489 From: UK Joined: Member Rating: 4.9 |
While we're on geewiz data it seems that there are now more atheists in the UK the church attenders.
quote: Irreligion in the United Kingdom - WikipediaJe suis Charlie. Je suis Ahmed. Je suis Juif. Je suis Parisien. I am Mancunian. I am Brum. I am London. Olen Suomi Soy Barcelona. I am Ukraine. "Science adjusts it's views based on what's observed. |
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