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I'd be curious to see how atheism fits in, if for this purpose it was counted as a religion.

eevilspock 12y ago
Not what you after, but the best countries to be atheist in: http://www.salon.com/2012/08/29/eight_of_the_best_countries_to_be_an_atheist/ http://www.salon.com/2012/08/29/eight_of_the_best_countries_... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irreligion_in_the_Czech_Republic https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irreligion_in_the_Czech_Republ... [corrected per namenotrequired's comment]
- namenotrequired 12y ago
  Small correction, it's "eight of the best countries to be atheist in", not "the most atheist countries".
- cristianpascu 12y ago
  "Slowly but surely, religion’s historical monopoly on the human mind is breaking apart." I'm currently reading a book[1] by theologian/philosopher David Bentley Hart that shames to ground sentences like this. Also the idea that modernity is somehow superior to previous ages in regard to tolerance and reason. Nothing further from the truth. [1] http://www.amazon.com/Atheist-Delusions-Christian-Revolution-Fashionable/dp/0300164297/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1402003935&sr=8-1&keywords=atheist+delusions http://www.amazon.com/Atheist-Delusions-Christian-Revolution...
  - scotty79 12y ago
    "Hart closes the book in the present, delineating the ominous consequences of the decline of Christendom in a culture that is built upon its moral and spiritual values." It seems that he doesn't claim in this book that religions monopoly isn't diminishing but rather reaffirms this fact at the same time expressing his opinion that it's bad.
    - cristianpascu 12y ago
      You're correct. I chose to wrong quote to point out that in fact reason is not gaining any ground as religious authority fades away.
  - john_b 12y ago
    Instead of merely citing the author as an authority and stating your interpretation of his thesis, please offer some details from the source to back up your claim. Especially when asserting something that goes against prevailing wisdom, such as your statement that previous ages displayed equal or superior tolerance and reason. Dropping a link to a book doesn't make your points any more credible unless the book is free to read.
    - cristianpascu 12y ago
      Some people buys books, you know. Unless you think that interwebz is for smart people that don't need to read books, or form comments are enough to build the 'prevailing wisdom'.
danielparks 12y ago
I'm curious, too, since it seems to be completely unmentioned. Did they take atheists and agnostics into account at all? I can't tell. It doesn't answer the question, but Wikipedia has some interesting information on "irreligion" in the US. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irreligion_in_the_United_States http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irreligion_in_the_United_States
- bunderbunder 12y ago
  I'm going to guess they didn't. Most nationwide surveys generally indicate that "no religion" outnumbers all the other minority religions combined, so if they had the maps would presumably have been a lot more boring.
chestnut-tree 12y ago
"I'd be curious to see how atheism fits in" In the UK, we have a census every 10 years that tries to collect detailed information about the population. The last census was in 2011 and contained an optional question: what is your religion? The number who said they had no religion was 14.1 million which equals 25% of the population of England and Wales. This is a rise from the 2001 census where 15% of the population (of England and Wales) said they had no religion. There was a decline in the number of people who called themselves Christian and a rise in all other minority religions. Here's a very informative short video (4 mins) from the Office of National Statistics in the UK examining religion in England and Wales from the 2011 census. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tXdZJoXuxC8 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tXdZJoXuxC8
- baddox 12y ago
  I wonder if people who identify as following no religion are more likely to answer the UK census question than people who follow a religion.
  - chestnut-tree 12y ago
    Perhaps. The video states that 7% (of the population of England and Wales) did not answer the question about religion. Also, these stats don't tell us anything about the practice of belief i.e. how religious people are. For example, are they nominally religious or actively practicing?
- polemic 12y ago
  In New Zealand the 2013 census had 40% declared No Religion. Just under 50% are Christian, a full 12% were undeclared.
- pionar 12y ago
  But, there's a difference between not having a religion and atheism. Atheism is the belief that there is no God. Just because one does not have a religion does not make them atheist. I have no religion and yet I am not an atheist.
glaugh 12y ago
So, this dataset isn't broken down by state (just region), but it looks at what religion Americans say they have (including "None"), how that has changed over time since 1972, and how that differs by region: https://www.statwing.com/open/datasets/09f43e516bb656df54c5421481f7e78297fdc07d#workspaces/14537 https://www.statwing.com/open/datasets/09f43e516bb656df54c54... Pulled from the General Social Survey, which is an absolute goldmine of interesting stuff like this.
dfc 12y ago
The Pew Center has some interesting research about "religious unaffiliation."[1] Unaffiliated is the second largest religious identification by a large margin at 16%, Judaism is the third largest group at 1.8%.[2] The Global Religious Landscape Report has some interesting figures for the world population. Religiously unaffiliated was the third largest reported/identified group in the survey at 16.3% just barely nudging out Hinduism at 15%.[3] [1] http://www.pewresearch.org/topics/religiously-unaffiliated/ http://www.pewresearch.org/topics/religiously-unaffiliated/ Growth in US Specifically http://www.pewforum.org/2012/10/09/nones-on-the-rise/ http://www.pewforum.org/2012/10/09/nones-on-the-rise/ and http://www.pewforum.org/2013/07/02/growth-of-the-nonreligious-many-say-trend-is-bad-for-american-society/ http://www.pewforum.org/2013/07/02/growth-of-the-nonreligiou... [2] Page 50 http://www.pewforum.org/files/2014/01/global-religion-full.pdf http://www.pewforum.org/files/2014/01/global-religion-full.p... [3] http://www.pewforum.org/2012/12/18/global-religious-landscape-exec/ http://www.pewforum.org/2012/12/18/global-religious-landscap...
graylights 12y ago
I'd be curious too but there is a big gap between no religious beliefs and Atheist. Many people just don't care about religion at all, some have mild beliefs, and some are devout, it's a broad spectrum. To some, their religious identification is more a statement of their lifestyle then their actual belief. For example my dad labels himself a Christian, despite admittedly having no actual belief because he adheres to Christian morality and it gives him a group to belong to. I've also known people identify as Buddhist because it fits closest to their lifestyle. Unfortunately the label Atheist, has some pretty negative connotations to some people in the US. The questions I'd really like to see: "Do your religious beliefs have an impact on your decision making" "Do you have full confidence in the core tenets of your religion" "How important is it to you to observe Religious rules?" PS. Interesting stat, 40% of Americans claim to attend church regularly. But only 20% of Americans actually attend regularly. People often respond to polls with a more ideal version of reality. http://www.religioustolerance.org/rel_rate.htm http://www.religioustolerance.org/rel_rate.htm
- Zirro 12y ago
  "Unfortunately the label Atheist, has some pretty negative connotations to some people in the US." I live in a secularized country, where identifying as an Atheist is fairly common. I am curious regarding the "negative connotations" you mentioned. Which are they, and should I avoid revealing that I identify as Atheist when I travel to the US?
  - graylights 12y ago
    It's not an encompassing stereotype but US does have some evangelists and devout Christians that believe that the US is a "Christian Nation". To them Atheists are the ones that took prayer out of school and that want to take the 10 commandments monuments off court steps. So some people view Atheists as troublemakers. It's mostly a political issue. Realize I'm talking about a small minority, but they're also vocal. I doubt you will encounter them in tourist areas. In tourist areas people are more interested in your money then your religion, it just won't come up. But in casual conversation with strangers, I personally identify as "Not Religious" instead of "Atheist". For some reason the term Atheist carries extra baggage in US.

Not what you after, but the best countries to be atheist in: http://www.salon.com/2012/08/29/eight_of_the_best_countries_to_be_an_atheist/ http://www.salon.com/2012/08/29/eight_of_the_best_countries_... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irreligion_in_the_Czech_Republic https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irreligion_in_the_Czech_Republ... [corrected per namenotrequired's comment]

namenotrequired 12y ago
Small correction, it's "eight of the best countries to be atheist in", not "the most atheist countries".
cristianpascu 12y ago
"Slowly but surely, religion’s historical monopoly on the human mind is breaking apart." I'm currently reading a book[1] by theologian/philosopher David Bentley Hart that shames to ground sentences like this. Also the idea that modernity is somehow superior to previous ages in regard to tolerance and reason. Nothing further from the truth. [1] http://www.amazon.com/Atheist-Delusions-Christian-Revolution-Fashionable/dp/0300164297/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1402003935&sr=8-1&keywords=atheist+delusions http://www.amazon.com/Atheist-Delusions-Christian-Revolution...
- scotty79 12y ago
  "Hart closes the book in the present, delineating the ominous consequences of the decline of Christendom in a culture that is built upon its moral and spiritual values." It seems that he doesn't claim in this book that religions monopoly isn't diminishing but rather reaffirms this fact at the same time expressing his opinion that it's bad.
  - cristianpascu 12y ago
    You're correct. I chose to wrong quote to point out that in fact reason is not gaining any ground as religious authority fades away.
- john_b 12y ago
  Instead of merely citing the author as an authority and stating your interpretation of his thesis, please offer some details from the source to back up your claim. Especially when asserting something that goes against prevailing wisdom, such as your statement that previous ages displayed equal or superior tolerance and reason. Dropping a link to a book doesn't make your points any more credible unless the book is free to read.
  - cristianpascu 12y ago
    Some people buys books, you know. Unless you think that interwebz is for smart people that don't need to read books, or form comments are enough to build the 'prevailing wisdom'.

danielparks 12y ago

I'm curious, too, since it seems to be completely unmentioned. Did they take atheists and agnostics into account at all? I can't tell. It doesn't answer the question, but Wikipedia has some interesting information on "irreligion" in the US. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irreligion_in_the_United_States http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irreligion_in_the_United_States

bunderbunder 12y ago
I'm going to guess they didn't. Most nationwide surveys generally indicate that "no religion" outnumbers all the other minority religions combined, so if they had the maps would presumably have been a lot more boring.

chestnut-tree 12y ago

"I'd be curious to see how atheism fits in" In the UK, we have a census every 10 years that tries to collect detailed information about the population. The last census was in 2011 and contained an optional question: what is your religion? The number who said they had no religion was 14.1 million which equals 25% of the population of England and Wales. This is a rise from the 2001 census where 15% of the population (of England and Wales) said they had no religion. There was a decline in the number of people who called themselves Christian and a rise in all other minority religions. Here's a very informative short video (4 mins) from the Office of National Statistics in the UK examining religion in England and Wales from the 2011 census. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tXdZJoXuxC8 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tXdZJoXuxC8

baddox 12y ago
I wonder if people who identify as following no religion are more likely to answer the UK census question than people who follow a religion.
- chestnut-tree 12y ago
  Perhaps. The video states that 7% (of the population of England and Wales) did not answer the question about religion. Also, these stats don't tell us anything about the practice of belief i.e. how religious people are. For example, are they nominally religious or actively practicing?
polemic 12y ago
In New Zealand the 2013 census had 40% declared No Religion. Just under 50% are Christian, a full 12% were undeclared.
pionar 12y ago
But, there's a difference between not having a religion and atheism. Atheism is the belief that there is no God. Just because one does not have a religion does not make them atheist. I have no religion and yet I am not an atheist.

glaugh 12y ago

So, this dataset isn't broken down by state (just region), but it looks at what religion Americans say they have (including "None"), how that has changed over time since 1972, and how that differs by region: https://www.statwing.com/open/datasets/09f43e516bb656df54c5421481f7e78297fdc07d#workspaces/14537 https://www.statwing.com/open/datasets/09f43e516bb656df54c54... Pulled from the General Social Survey, which is an absolute goldmine of interesting stuff like this.

dfc 12y ago

The Pew Center has some interesting research about "religious unaffiliation."[1] Unaffiliated is the second largest religious identification by a large margin at 16%, Judaism is the third largest group at 1.8%.[2] The Global Religious Landscape Report has some interesting figures for the world population. Religiously unaffiliated was the third largest reported/identified group in the survey at 16.3% just barely nudging out Hinduism at 15%.[3] [1] http://www.pewresearch.org/topics/religiously-unaffiliated/ http://www.pewresearch.org/topics/religiously-unaffiliated/ Growth in US Specifically http://www.pewforum.org/2012/10/09/nones-on-the-rise/ http://www.pewforum.org/2012/10/09/nones-on-the-rise/ and http://www.pewforum.org/2013/07/02/growth-of-the-nonreligious-many-say-trend-is-bad-for-american-society/ http://www.pewforum.org/2013/07/02/growth-of-the-nonreligiou... [2] Page 50 http://www.pewforum.org/files/2014/01/global-religion-full.pdf http://www.pewforum.org/files/2014/01/global-religion-full.p... [3] http://www.pewforum.org/2012/12/18/global-religious-landscape-exec/ http://www.pewforum.org/2012/12/18/global-religious-landscap...

graylights 12y ago

I'd be curious too but there is a big gap between no religious beliefs and Atheist. Many people just don't care about religion at all, some have mild beliefs, and some are devout, it's a broad spectrum. To some, their religious identification is more a statement of their lifestyle then their actual belief. For example my dad labels himself a Christian, despite admittedly having no actual belief because he adheres to Christian morality and it gives him a group to belong to. I've also known people identify as Buddhist because it fits closest to their lifestyle. Unfortunately the label Atheist, has some pretty negative connotations to some people in the US. The questions I'd really like to see: "Do your religious beliefs have an impact on your decision making" "Do you have full confidence in the core tenets of your religion" "How important is it to you to observe Religious rules?" PS. Interesting stat, 40% of Americans claim to attend church regularly. But only 20% of Americans actually attend regularly. People often respond to polls with a more ideal version of reality. http://www.religioustolerance.org/rel_rate.htm http://www.religioustolerance.org/rel_rate.htm

Zirro 12y ago
"Unfortunately the label Atheist, has some pretty negative connotations to some people in the US." I live in a secularized country, where identifying as an Atheist is fairly common. I am curious regarding the "negative connotations" you mentioned. Which are they, and should I avoid revealing that I identify as Atheist when I travel to the US?
- graylights 12y ago
  It's not an encompassing stereotype but US does have some evangelists and devout Christians that believe that the US is a "Christian Nation". To them Atheists are the ones that took prayer out of school and that want to take the 10 commandments monuments off court steps. So some people view Atheists as troublemakers. It's mostly a political issue. Realize I'm talking about a small minority, but they're also vocal. I doubt you will encounter them in tourist areas. In tourist areas people are more interested in your money then your religion, it just won't come up. But in casual conversation with strangers, I personally identify as "Not Religious" instead of "Atheist". For some reason the term Atheist carries extra baggage in US.