Religion In American Life :: essays research papers

Religion In American LifeReligion used to be a very important comp wholenessnt in an Americans life.Protestantism was as American as Mom and orchard apple tree pie. Families would don their"Sunday best" and go to church early on Sunday mornings. However, thissituation has changed quite a bit. aft(prenominal) reviewing the 1994 statistics Iga thered from the Micase governing body and comparing them to the statistics received inclass, I discovered a vogue away from traditional unearthly beliefs andpractices, and one toward ungodliness or alternative religious beliefs. After aresurgence in the 1970s and early 1980s, the Roman Catholic church beganexperiencing a slow, yet steady, decline in membership. As membership in themore orthodox Roman Catholic church decreased, membership in Protestant churchesincreased. In recent years, the Catholic perform has become politically dynamicaland more vociferous concerning its views on moral issues such as war, abortion,and euthanasia. It is my feeling that many Catholics are searching for sectsthat will book them to retain their faith in Christ without a central body(i.e., the Vatican) speaking on behalf of them on issues that they are capableof rationalizing for themselves. Among Catholics and Protestants, there is atrend toward less rigid attending of religious services. If we examine thefigures from Stark and Glocks 1968 survey, 54% of Americans surveyed at thetime attended church more often than once a month. This figure shrank to 40.7%in the 1994 survey. though the Catholic church insists on weekly attendance ofchurch, weekly attendance dropped from 52% in 1978 to 49% in 1986. Then,attendance plummeted, with only 28.3% of Catholics surveyed in 1994 claiming to make attended church in the last seven days. Even among those who remain withthe traditional Christian sects, attendance is diminishing. Christianity used tobe an integral part of almost family and community customs and traditions inAmerica. It see ms that as Americans lives become more complex, less time isavailable for formal religious commitments. Also, one may theorize that theexponential function growth of technology and education has rendered traditionalreligious teachings, such as creationism, obsolete and people are leaving theChristian churches because their teachings do not arrest with their personalbeliefs. However, not everyone is leaving the Catholic church for Protestantdenominations. In the last thirty years, the number of people claiming to hastenno religious necktie have increased almost five-fold, with 2% of the peoplesurveyed claiming no affiliation in 1967, and 9.2% claiming the same in 1994.Since the early 1980s, there has also been an increase in the number of peopleclaiming "other" religious beliefs.Religion In American Life essays research papers Religion In American LifeReligion used to be a very important component in an Americans life.Protestantism was as American as Mom and apple pie. Families would don their"Sunday best" and go to church early on Sunday mornings. However, thissituation has changed quite a bit. After reviewing the 1994 statistics Igathered from the Micase system and comparing them to the statistics received inclass, I discovered a trend away from traditional religious beliefs andpractices, and one toward atheism or alternative religious beliefs. After aresurgence in the 1970s and early 1980s, the Roman Catholic church beganexperiencing a slow, yet steady, decline in membership. As membership in themore orthodox Roman Catholic church decreased, membership in Protestant churchesincreased. In recent years, the Catholic Church has become politically activeand more vociferous concerning its views on moral issues such as war, abortion,and euthanasia. It is my feeling that many Catholics are searching for sectsthat will allow them to retain their faith in Christ without a central body(i.e., the Vatican) speaking on behalf of them on issues that they are capableof rationalizing for themselves. Among Catholics and Protestants, there is atrend toward less rigid attendance of religious services. If we examine thefigures from Stark and Glocks 1968 survey, 54% of Americans surveyed at thetime attended church more often than once a month. This figure shrank to 40.7%in the 1994 survey. Though the Catholic church insists on weekly attendance ofchurch, weekly attendance dropped from 52% in 1978 to 49% in 1986. Then,attendance plummeted, with only 28.3% of Catholics surveyed in 1994 claiming tohave attended church in the last seven days. Even among those who remain withthe traditional Christian sects, attendance is diminishing. Christianity used tobe an integral part of most family and community customs and traditions inAmerica. It seems that as Americans lives become more complex, less time isavailable for formal religious commitments. Also, one may theorize that theexponential growth of technology and education has rendered traditi onalreligious teachings, such as creationism, obsolete and people are leaving theChristian churches because their teachings do not agree with their personalbeliefs. However, not everyone is leaving the Catholic church for Protestantdenominations. In the last thirty years, the number of people claiming to haveno religious affiliation have increased almost five-fold, with 2% of the peoplesurveyed claiming no affiliation in 1967, and 9.2% claiming the same in 1994.Since the early 1980s, there has also been an increase in the number of peopleclaiming "other" religious beliefs.