http://au.news.yahoo.com/latest/a/-/late...countries/

A US study using census data shows that religion here and in eight other Western world countries is set for extinction.

Census data was taken from as far back as a century from countries in which the census queried religious affiliation: Australia, Austria, Canada, the Czech Republic, Finland, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand and Switzerland.

The result, reported at the American Physical Society meeting, indicates that religion will all but die out altogether in those countries.

In New Zealand, it's thought around half of all Kiwis claim no religious affiliation.

Massey University Associate Professor of History Peter Lineham says in the 1950s, around 10% of New Zealanders had no religious affiliation. He says that increased to 45% in the 2006 census.

"Hopefully the 2011 Census will take place at some point next year and we'll know the latest figures, but it surely will have gone up to over 50%," he told Newstalk ZB.

Professor Lineham says the study would have very different results if the study looked at other countries.

"If they took any countries beyond the western countries they've named, they would actually have the opposite phenomenon of religion getting larger."

Good. Imaginary friends are counter-productive.

Oooh Snap

Is this refering to active participation in organised religion or not beliving in god(s) at all?

What would this mean for charaties? So many of them are religiouse.

I'm skeptical that religion will ever completely die out. So many people have a deep emotional need for belief in a higher purpose or an afterlife and will happily reinvent new religions even if all existing ones were to be eliminated.
Religious influence on society and everyday life has been on the decrease though, and that can only be a good thing for general liberty.

According to Dr. Abraham Maslow, faith is a basic human need, especially the belief in the possibility of an afterlife. So I can't imagine that idea going away anytime soon.

Believing in things without evidence is a basic human need?

I can remember back in the late 1980's reading a newspaper article about what the 1980's were expected to be like back in the 1950's.  It was thought that by the 1980's religion would be a thing of the past because of scientific advances being able to eliminate basic evils plagueing mankind.  The cure for polio could be thought of as one good example.

"Humans need to feel a sense of belonging and acceptance, whether it comes from a large social group, such as clubs, office culture, religious groups, professional organizations, sports teams, gangs, or small social connections (family members, intimate partners, mentors, close colleagues, confidants)."

Hm. For some reason, I remember my psychology textbook emphasizing religion more in its discussion of Maslow's hierarchy of needs, but on its Wikipedia page, it gets only a passing mention. And in the same sentence as "gangs." Ouch. Still, there's no denying that religion helps some people and inspires them to perform beneficial, prosocial actions.

Hmmm . . . social acceptance; the sense of belonging; is something that Aspies have struggled with throughout the ages.  It is only in the modern age; with the internet; that this is finally slowly happening.  AFF is but one example of the sense of belonging that Aspies seek.

About Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs, I beleive that "social acceptance" is the second of the five pyramid levels going from the bottom to the top.  I am of the opinion that for the vast majority of Aspies; they seldom make it past the second level in Maslow's model.  Aspies tend to be stuck struggling to be; at a minimum; at this level.

No, it's a basic human weakness.
For some humans, the belief that there's some big plan set in place by a god or gods is a deep emotional need.

Perhaps another way of looking at this is that when human needs go unmet; or when problems can't be solved with the means at human disposal; there's the need for a promise that such problems will be eliminated in the future.  The beleive that a supernatural being will eventually fulfill such needs is the best way such needs can be met without actually fulfilling such needs.  I guess you'd call this HOPE.

doubt very seriously if even god could live up to god`s reputation and definition

This post was last modified: 03-23-2011 06:56 PM by skyblue1 .

Human need answer above all else. And most people dont really understand that because two event follow each other, it doesn't mean correlation.

Also there is the fact that religion brainwash people. Then the parent pass it to theyre childrens.

Some people are more agressive and ruthless than others for their own personal interests.  Certain kinds of religious leaders (cults) will use religion to manipulate others for their own personal ends (particularly wealth and prestige) by enticing and brainwashing the rank-and-file members to give up alot of their economic substance (i.e. money) in the name of satisfying a deity's demands.

Christopher Columbus and his crew were facing starvation at some point.  Christopher Columbus was smart and creative.  He knew about eclipses and when they would occur.  There was a lunar eclipse coming up.  When it occurred, the natives were terrified.  Columbus played right into their fears.  In order for their world not to end, the natives had to make sufficient food sacrifices to the gods.  So Columbus took all the food the natives had to offer as the eclipse was finishing it's course.  Now Columbus and his crew had food to eat.

Poor Columbus, made the mistake of writing in his journal that he had seen a UFO in the shape of a menorah. Ended up being grilled by the inquistion.

So religion was used against him also.