Hi, Dog.

http://www.ucanews.com/2011/03/23/religion-on-way-to-extinction-study-finds/ Well, commentators having been postulating as much for years. However, whilst the census data of the nine countries listed may indicate that formal religious identification/affililiation is on the wane, my own study of the census data for Australia indicates that, (1) informal religious identification hasn't changed markedly over the past 50 years, and (2) formal religious identification/affiliation among the young (i.e. 30<) is actually on the rise. Perhaps more telling, however, is that while formal religious identification may be dying slowly in the 1st world, the growth in the Judeo-Christian religions is literally 'explosive' in the much more numerous 2/3 world! In point of fact, there were more Christians (for example) as a per capita percentage of world population in 2005 than there was in 1905!

As Disraeli so famously quipped: 'Lies, damn lies and statsitics'.

Blessings,

Ian

Ian, so you must have pre-release access to the book of life, I guess!

Yeah I know, statistics can say all sorts of stuff that ain't necessarily so.

But on the topic, really, religion is sure to become redundant some day.  We are promised 'peace on earth'.  That is hardly gonna happen with everyone having different versions of the one God. 


Dog.

Sshhhh! That's sure to get lots of people upset, who have been wastin their time for the past couple of millenia!  And so many of em waged wars and did all sorts of stuff to defend their favourite brand, too!

Good morning, Dog.

Ian, so you must have pre-release access to the book of life, I guess! Why? I thought we were discussing the supposed decline in Western formal religious affiliation, a point I went to some pains to make. Consequently, I used the term 'Christian' in its 'popular' sense, that is, to describe those who 'follow Jesus'. My use of the title made no claims whatsoever to individual eternal outcomes. Yeah I know, statistics can say all sorts of stuff that ain't necessarily so. Indeed they can, yet understanding this fact didn't seem to temper your apparent enthusiasm for the information contained in the rather questionable claim. But on the topic, really, religion is sure to become redundant some day. We are promised 'peace on earth'. That is hardly gonna happen with everyone having different versions of the one God. I'm sure that you remember, from your Bible reading days, that the promised 'peace on Earth' is contingent upon Christ's inevitable Parousia. Ergo, he and he alone remains the 'Peace Maker' between creation and Creator. This being the case, it might be apropos for people to 'choose sides' with a little more care and forethought regarding the eventual consequences of said choices, eh?

Alex Hamilton is credited with a rather shrewd and incisive comment: "those who stand for nothing will fall for anything".

Blessings,

Ian

Dog, once more.

(Eric) Religion became redundant at the cross !!

Sshhhh! That's sure to get lots of people upset, who have been wastin their time for the past couple of millenia!  And so many of em waged wars and did all sorts of stuff to defend their favourite brand, too! I have a little challenge that I'd like for you to consider. Please list for me all of those wars that you believe were done to "defend one particular 'brand' of religion over another". I reckon it would be quite an interesting exercise to analyse the underlying social, geographic, economic, political and religious precursors to such events, wouldn't you agree?

Blessings,

Ian