What's The Fastest Growing Religion In America?

A new survey by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life reports that Americans are changing religious affiliations at a rising rate.

The report shows, for example, that every religion is losing and gaining members, but that the Roman Catholic Church "has experienced the greatest net losses as a result of affiliation changes." The survey also indicates that the group that had the greatest net gain was the unaffiliated. More than 16 percent of American adults say they are not part of any organized faith, which makes the unaffiliated the country's fourth largest "religious group."

....While the unaffiliated have been growing, Protestantism has been declining, the survey found. In the 1970s, Protestants accounted for about two-thirds of the population. The Pew survey found they now make up about 51 percent. Evangelical Christians account for a slim majority of Protestants, and those who leave one evangelical denomination usually move to another, rather than to mainline churches.

...."Religion is the single most important factor that drives American belief attitudes and behaviors," said [Michael] Lindsay [assistant director of the Center on Race, Religion and Urban Life at Rice University], who had read the Pew report. "It is a powerful indicator of where America will end up on politics, culture, family life. If you want to understand America, you have to understand religion in America."

Keep reading.

-Or-

Learn more about Protestantism here.

Read more about Evangelicism here.

Read more about Roman Catholicism here.

Are you surprised by this survey's findings? Do you agree that "religion is the single most important factor that drives American belief attitudes and behaviors"? Tell us below in comments.

Comments

[reekinghavoc]

05:03 PM on 03/01/2008

Has anyone noticed that Buddhism has grown almost as much as the Pentecostal denomination? The gain is small for each of these, but I predict that the growth of Buddhism will accelerate. It is interesting to note that Buddhists typically do not proselytize. Once you learn a few things and discard a few misconceptions, Buddhist practice starts to look startlingly sane, compassionate and wise...

[moderationsmuse]

07:08 PM on 02/28/2008

They forgot to question survey respondents about Hipsterism (the religion most represented here at Huff Po) otherwise known as the Church of What's Happening Now. It has a sister sect called Our Lady of Perpetual Hand Wringing and Whining.
It's experiencing growth of an exponential sort (along the lines of there being a "sucker born every minute," except that PT Barnum was too conservative regarding his mathematics).
The real question of affliation is not what people say to the Pew poll, but the census that God keeps. When the roll is called up yonder ....It's the only one that counts.

[desthmoneses]

12:00 AM on 02/29/2008

completely true except for the fact that theres no physical evidence indicating the existence of a god

[blueraven]

05:45 PM on 03/03/2008

And since being observed changes the observer's behavior, especially when the observed knows it's being watched, there never will be on a consistent basis. Would you obediently follow a set of tests you were forced to endure for no good reason? "Prove you exist" is rather rude, don't you think?

[Hirnlego]

12:04 AM on 02/29/2008

Hey, don't describe God's creatures as "sucker[s] born every minute," ;)

[NeverRepublican]

04:04 PM on 02/28/2008

Religion? I thought that's what all the wars have been about. Seems to me religion is nothing but bull-shit. Thanks for all the "greatness" you have brought to the humans...religion. Not.

[rachaelisacancer]

03:33 PM on 02/28/2008

I prefer my opiates in pill form.

[Izadora]

02:13 PM on 02/28/2008

Religion is a "VIRUS" that makes people mentally ill.

[Zanti]

01:13 AM on 02/29/2008

Since you put quotes around "virus," we can assume you meant it... ironically?

Please clarify. Thanks.

[singermuse]

11:25 AM on 02/28/2008

Thank GOD for the decline of "religious affiliation"!!
Maybe now that more people are deciding not to join a controling, oppressive, politically motivated and hypocritical ideology in favor of a more personal spiritual practice, we will see more positive changes in the world.

[BigBagel]

06:49 PM on 02/28/2008

Consumerism is the true American religion.

[Zanti]

01:12 AM on 02/29/2008

More specifically, rock 'n' roll and movies are our modern religions. We worship at the altar of entertainment.

If you don't believe me, dare to question Steven Spielberg's talent. Or dare to suggest John Lennon wasn't Bach. You'll be stoned. (Er, so to speak.)

Was it not JL who instructed us to find the "meaning of within" by turning off our minds and surrendering to the void? JL--a real champeen of reason!

[desthmoneses]

08:00 PM on 03/01/2008

I fail to see how religion isnt consumerism already, between the donations, and giant stained glass churches, private schools, public literature, and gift shop nick nacks religion puts out more product for consuming than most stores do.

[hip dibler]

08:57 AM on 02/28/2008

ME-ism

[LorettaSingbiel]

08:41 AM on 02/28/2008

"Religion is the single most important factor that drives American belief attitudes and behaviors"

They are in dire need of an attitude adjustment of their dire need to be in CONTROL...

of Native Americans’ LAND

of African Americans’ CIVIL RIGHTS

of Gay Americans’ EQUAL RIGHTS

of Female Americans’ WOMBS

of our CONSTITUTION!!!

of Iraqis' OIL

Recent scandals have surfaced, to PROVE that they SHOULD HAVE been in CONTROL of THEMSELVES!

Stay safe, healthy and happy,
Love, Loretta

[gopindrag]

11:54 AM on 02/28/2008

I just got the newest in the series, Wombs Gone Wild. Off the hook, outta control.

[Hirnlego]

08:34 AM on 02/28/2008

In the beginning there was the Flying Spaghetti Monster

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/09/11/wfsm11.xml&sSheet=/portal/2005/09/11/ixportal.html

[Zanti]

03:10 PM on 02/28/2008

The Flying Spaghetti Monster concept is hilarious. Really. A real knee-slapper, a gem of pure wit, utterly brilliant satire. Ha. Ha. Ha. Chortle. Guffaw, even.

HOWEVER, the question we need to ask ourselves is this: Assuming the gag was amusing to begin with, does it retain its humor after fifty thousand reiterations?

There must be other rip-roaring, knee-slapping, pee-your-pants-funny bits besides that one. Challenge yourselves. Hold a contest. We're counting on you.

[Hirnlego]

12:02 AM on 02/29/2008

Well, I hope it will always remain a joke (I hope it doesn't become a real religion, which just might hapen) that almost everyone recognizes . Whenever someone really claims to know (for instance what the afterlife really is) they oughta be reminded of the FSM.

[desthmoneses]

12:05 AM on 02/29/2008

OH OH OH I've got a hilarious one, your gonna love it for its pure ingenuity and obvious falsehood

"and in the begining their was only god"

HAH now wasn't that funny, I'm sure glad that hasn't been said fifty thousand times

[Puskara]

08:19 AM on 02/28/2008

So non-religious is fastest growing, two or three years in a row now. Well I see that an nothing but a good thing. Unfortunately you only provided links to learn more about those religions that are declining. But none to learn about the non-religious.

http://richarddawkins.net/
http://www.ffrf.org/
http://www.centerforinquiry.net/
http://www.secularhumanism.org/
http://www.the-brights.net/

Visit some of these sites and educate yourselves before you lament the decline of religion in America.

Puskara

[Jonahson]

07:06 AM on 02/28/2008

Blame it on Bush and people like Huckabee, McCain. They do a disfavour to their religion.

[Puskara]

07:51 AM on 02/28/2008

Blame for what? The decline of religion? In that case thanks might be in order.

[jubo]

06:11 AM on 02/28/2008

Capitalism.

[caracas]

02:19 AM on 02/28/2008

George Washington -

The United States is in no sense founded upon the Christian doctrine.

Thomas Jefferson* -

I do not find in orthodox Christianity
one redeeming feature. The day will come when the mystical generation of Jesus, by the Supreme Being as his Father, in the womb of a virgin will be classified with the fable of the generation of Minerva in the brain of Jupiter.

Abraham Lincoln -

The Bible is not my book, and Christianity is not my religion. I could never give assent to the long, complicated statements of Christian dogma.

John Adams -

The divinity of Jesus is made a convenient cover for absurdity. Nowhere in the Gospels do we find a precept for Creeds, Confessions, Oaths, Doctrines, and... foolish trumpery that we find in Christianity.

>>>James Madison (considered the author of the U.S. Constitution)-

During almost fifteen centuries has the legal establishment of Christianity been on trial. What has been its fruits? More or less, in all places, pride and indolence in the Clergy, ignorance and severity in the laity; in both superstition, bigotry, and persecution.

[desthmoneses]

12:07 AM on 02/29/2008

and to think some people claim these mens accomplishments are owed to their religion.

[ReasonIsMyReligion]

12:38 AM on 02/28/2008

Now if only SCIENCE would make a comeback.

Can I get an A-MEN?

[hellinabucket]

11:31 AM on 02/28/2008

A-MEN! Can I get a Hellalooyah? We could call the new religion "Scienceology"

[bamboozled]

06:57 PM on 02/27/2008

Of course, religion isn't the biggest factor in attitudes and behaviours. Humanity is the biggest factor.

The powers that be would love everyone to buy into the myth that religion and politics are inseparable, because it's easier for them to control minds and separate humans from each other.

So long as people are divided, they can be manipulated to work against their common interests for the interests of the powerful.

In countries where the education systems are heavily invested in, people are more intelligent and there are far fewer people who consider themselves religious. And the people wield much more power. And you see societies which are much more egalitarian, generous, tolerant and humanitarian.

It's an absolute myth that those values come from religion. I'd argue the exact opposite is true.