Posted on 05/16/2015 6:43:47 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Last month, New Atheist God-hater Daniel Dennett wrote an op-ed column in The Wall Street Journal that used a Pew poll to argue that the future of religion is bleak. I responded with a column of my own in which I mocked this claim, since the poll Dennett relied on actually made mixed predictions about the future of religion in the United States and painted a fairly rosy picture of its next few decades around the globe.
Now Pew has released another major poll focused in much greater depth on the United States, and it's being widely interpreted as providing evidence that religion (or at least Christianity) is indeed on the decline in the United States.
So was Dennett right, at least about America? Is the future of Christianity in the United States bleak after all?
Short answer: Not necessarily.
A nearly 8-percentage point drop in those calling themselves Christian (from 78.4 percent to 70.6 percent) in just seven years is a big deal. If those numbers are accurate, Christianity is certainly shrinking in America at a rate that, if it continues over the coming years and decades, will produce profound cultural changes.
But we're not there yet.
At the moment, what we seem to be seeing is a dramatic retreat of Catholicism, which may be following mainline Protestantism into demographic decline. But the same cannot be said of evangelical Protestantism (which is growing in absolute numbers and down less than 1 percent — from 26.3 percent to 25.4 percent — in its share of the population as a whole).
(Excerpt) Read more at theweek.com ...
But how do you reconcile what you said with the fact that the mainstream denominations went liberal and apostate?
I heard it said that the majority of earthquake activity in HISTORY has occurred since the 1950’s
Yes,.I think that may well qualify for “earthquakes in diverse places”..and the “Beginning of Sorrows”
It sorta depends on what you mean by “evangelical”.
At base, Christianity is very simple, and requires little in the way of reasoned theology to receive salvation.
Not that reasoned apologetics are to be despised.
God hater? How can you hate something that doesn’t exist? If you don’t believe in something why even mention it?
A person who hates rules..thinks rules should not exist..thinks there are no rules that restricting him..an anarchist
God hater? How can you hate something that doesn’t exist? If you don’t believe in something why even mention it?
A person who hates rules..thinks rules should not exist..thinks there are no rules that restrict him..an anarchist...self god
The problem with mainstream denominations is for the most part they arose and formed their core structures in the face of societal issues centuries ago. During the intervening period, many have theologically painting themselves into corners.
“Is Christianity in America doomed?”... I would ‘spose that depends on Christians.
A simple argument of which is better: a smaller congregation of people who truly believe their faith; or a larger congregation many of which just go through the motions?
Many Americans have been nominal or social Christians, staying such out of inertia or not really embracing the beliefs and ideas of Christianity; or the worst, imagining it as a democratic thing, subject to change at whim. Fortunately only a minority try to blend it with secular ideas, forming heterodoxical and even heretical beliefs.
“I’m a Christian, but I’m also a Wiccan and a Jedi Knight who believes in astrology.”
No. Just no.
Christianity will survive until He returns - we will just have to rely on our own witnessing of the Word in the final interim.
Religions may come and go or "evolve", He remains constant and with Him in our hearts, we will stand fast until He sets thing right.
L A Marzulli makes the point that people in Jerusalem could not know immediately of an earthquake in Japan or Indonesia until our day. And the Bible Revelation of John says the whole world will see the two killed and in the street for three days then be given life again and ascend to heaven. Only in our day is it possible for the ‘whole world’ to witness live events like this.
Yes Indeed!
On some level, yes. But God will ultimately decide America's "fate" (will she stand or fall).
We should not forget that the path to righteousness is narrow, and the road to destruction is broad.
And perhaps most chilling of all is the declaration that there will be many who say "Lord, Lord, did we not [...] do many mighty works in your name?", only to be met with Christ's response: "I never knew you; depart from me".
Matt. 7:23
Another round of “God is dead” from the liberals? Good luck with that.
It’s inevitable....
the cyclical nature of stupidity is astonishing
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