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I think the decline of religion that we see is due to decline of power of single authorities over large majority of population. With competing authorities (diff

by js8 9y ago

I think the decline of religion that we see is due to decline of power of single authorities over large majority of population. With competing authorities (different religions), it's harder to sustain an unwarranted belief. However, it's not clear whether this trend will continue, if there will always be multiple different authorities from this point on, or if humanity will largely again unify under a single overarching authority. Also I believe that many people have inborn tendency to value authority (we typically call this conservative beliefs), and it's not clear if this tendency is going away or staying.

humanrebar 9y ago
American Christianity is thoroughly diffuse with few leaders with any literal authority. You get pastors of megachurches, but their following often wanes as they age, retire, or pass away. Perhaps it's the decentralized organizational structure that has allowed American Christianity to fare better than its European counterparts.
- js8 9y ago
  Yes, but in the past, it was often difficult for people to get information or support outside their respective communities. Internet (and other media before that, to a smaller extent) changed all that. I distinctly remember Laci Green's Youtube channel when she was 17 or so, and a closet atheist from a Mormon community. She talked exactly about this and how Internet let her to get to information that she otherwise wouldn't get to. There are many cases like that.
  - humanrebar 9y ago
    Sure, but there were always places people gravitated to when they wanted to get the hell out of the Bible belt. They had to wait until they were old enough and ready enough to pack up and move, though.
speedplane 9y ago
> With competing authorities (different religions), it's harder to sustain an unwarranted belief. True, but it's also difficult to even sustain warranted beliefs. I would not say that science is the new religion, but I don't deny it has a lot of power. And there are plenty of people out there who are more than happy to twist truths and break down the foundations of science to accrue some of that very warranted power.

by js8 9y ago

humanrebar 9y ago

American Christianity is thoroughly diffuse with few leaders with any literal authority. You get pastors of megachurches, but their following often wanes as they age, retire, or pass away. Perhaps it's the decentralized organizational structure that has allowed American Christianity to fare better than its European counterparts.

js8 9y ago
Yes, but in the past, it was often difficult for people to get information or support outside their respective communities. Internet (and other media before that, to a smaller extent) changed all that. I distinctly remember Laci Green's Youtube channel when she was 17 or so, and a closet atheist from a Mormon community. She talked exactly about this and how Internet let her to get to information that she otherwise wouldn't get to. There are many cases like that.
- humanrebar 9y ago
  Sure, but there were always places people gravitated to when they wanted to get the hell out of the Bible belt. They had to wait until they were old enough and ready enough to pack up and move, though.

speedplane 9y ago

> With competing authorities (different religions), it's harder to sustain an unwarranted belief. True, but it's also difficult to even sustain warranted beliefs. I would not say that science is the new religion, but I don't deny it has a lot of power. And there are plenty of people out there who are more than happy to twist truths and break down the foundations of science to accrue some of that very warranted power.