The belief system that's conquering the world

[SeattleUte]

Until the eighteenth century, virtually everyone believed in God espoused by religions. Spinoza was a freak. How the world has changed. In its review of Hitchins' book the New Yorker says this about the world's fastest growing belief system, unbelief:

"After making allowances for countries that have, or recently have had, an officially imposed atheist ideology, in which there might be some social pressure to deny belief in God, one can venture conservative estimates of the number of unbelievers in the world today. Reviewing a large number of studies among some fifty countries, Phil Zuckerman, a sociologist at Pitzer College, in Claremont, California, puts the figure at between five hundred million and seven hundred and fifty million. This excludes such highly populated places as Brazil, Iran, Indonesia, and Nigeria, for which information is lacking or patchy. Even the low estimate of five hundred million would make unbelief the fourth-largest persuasion in the world, after Christianity, Islam, and Hinduism. It is also by far the youngest, with no significant presence in the West before the eighteenth century. Who can say what the landscape will look like once unbelief has enjoyed a past as long as Islam’s—let alone as long as Christianity’s? God is assuredly not on the side of the unbelievers, but history may yet be."

http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critic...books_gottlieb

Meanwhile, in a slightly longer span of time Mormonism has grown to a paltry 12 million. And how many of those 12 million really secretly follow the gospel of unbelief?

The linked article is pretty good. I especially liked the last three pages that give a succinct history of unbelief, including summarizing the views of David Hume, a father of the Anglo Enlightenment that spawned America.

[Archaea]

Of course, disbelief will rise, it's an easy way out.

[il Padrino Ute]

Originally Posted by SeattleUte

Until the eighteenth century, virtually everyone believed in God espoused by religions. Spinoza was a freak. How the world has changed. In its review of Hitchins' book the New Yorker says this about the world's fastest growing belief system, unbelief:

"After making allowances for countries that have, or recently have had, an officially imposed atheist ideology, in which there might be some social pressure to deny belief in God, one can venture conservative estimates of the number of unbelievers in the world today. Reviewing a large number of studies among some fifty countries, Phil Zuckerman, a sociologist at Pitzer College, in Claremont, California, puts the figure at between five hundred million and seven hundred and fifty million. This excludes such highly populated places as Brazil, Iran, Indonesia, and Nigeria, for which information is lacking or patchy. Even the low estimate of five hundred million would make unbelief the fourth-largest persuasion in the world, after Christianity, Islam, and Hinduism. It is also by far the youngest, with no significant presence in the West before the eighteenth century. Who can say what the landscape will look like once unbelief has enjoyed a past as long as Islam’s—let alone as long as Christianity’s? God is assuredly not on the side of the unbelievers, but history may yet be."

http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critic...books_gottlieb

Meanwhile, in a slightly longer span of time Mormonism has grown to a paltry 12 million. And how many of those 12 million really secretly follow the gospel of unbelief?

The linked article is pretty good. I especially liked the last three pages that give a succinct history of unbelief, including summarizing the views of David Hume, a father of the Anglo Enlightenment that spawned America.

*yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaawwwwwwwwwwwwwwww wwwwwnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn*

[MikeWaters]

What do the polls from 1400 say?

[il Padrino Ute]

Originally Posted by MikeWaters

What do the polls from 1400 say?

.

[BarbaraGordon]

Originally Posted by SeattleUte

Until the eighteenth century, virtually everyone believed in God espoused by religions. Spinoza was a freak. How the world has changed. In its review of Hitchins' book the New Yorker says this about the world's fastest growing belief system, unbelief:
...

The linked article is pretty good. I especially liked the last three pages that give a succinct history of unbelief, including summarizing the views of David Hume, a father of the Anglo Enlightenment that spawned America.

I read the review. I've read several of the books listed, but I've yet to read Hitchens.

The paragraph preceding the one you quoted begins with the line "Since all the arguments against belief have been widely publicized for a long time, today’s militant atheists must sometimes wonder why religion persists."

In the last few hundred years, atheism and humanism have become accepted belief systems. Yet in spite of great evil in the world, in spite of scientific discoveries, the overwhelming majority of mankind clings to faith of some kind. The evangelical atheists like to argue that this is the result of fear or indoctrination or physiology. But they seem to look past the possibility that for many of us, spiritual experience is real, and because of that we choose to believe.

[SeattleUte]

Originally Posted by Archaea

Of course, disbelief will rise, it's an easy way out.

Not true because religious people persecute unbelievers.

[MikeWaters]

The idea that everyone believed in God before modern science is ridiculous.

Shame on you SU.

[Archaea]

Originally Posted by SeattleUte

Not true because religious people persecute unbelievers.

And disbelievers never persecute believers?

See Stalin and Soviet Union.

See Rome and Christians.

Hmm.

It's a mental copout for most to disbelieve, because you don't have to think to doubt.

[SeattleUte]

Originally Posted by Archaea

It's a mental copout for most to disbelieve, because you don't have to think to doubt.

Boy that's a new one. Belief is thinking and criticism is not thinking.