X-Message-Number: 31463
From: Mark Plus <>
Subject: Re: religion declining
Date: Tue, 10 Mar 2009 07:58:55 -0700

Mr. Ettinger in Cryonet #31457 writes:


>A new religion survey says that respondents in the USA reporting no religion 
has grown from 8.2% in 1990 to 15% now (2008?).  66% say they do  not expect to 
have a religious funeral.


Specifically, you can download the American Religious Identification Survey 
(ARIS 2008) here:



http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/metro/documents/aris030609.pdf?sid=ST2009030900856


Gregory S. Paul also writes about the causes of the collapse of religious belief
in most developed democratic countries in a recent article in "Free Inquiry" 
magazine, which I've scanned and posted here:

The Big Religion Questions Finally Solved
http://www.box.net/shared/static/92sgtakzv2.pdf


Paul also discussed his article in a recent broadcast of the Humanist talkshow 
"Equal Time for Freethought." You can download an mp3 of the show from this 
webpage:



http://www.equaltimeforfreethought.org/2009/01/18/show-291-the-big-religion-problemssolved/


Of course, some social scientists make the counterargument that because 
secularized populations stop pumping out kids as haphazardly as religious 
populations, their demographic decline creates opportunities for more fecund 
religious groups to dominate the society in a few generations. The Audacious 
Epigone blogger writes about this scenario frequently: 
http://anepigone.blogspot.com/


In fact, I've wondered if we could find ourselves resuscitated in a much more 
religious and conservative Future World than we expect. As the price of 
surviving cryotransport in rejuvenated good health, I wouldn't complain if I had
to "convert" to, say, Mormonism, in Future World as part of the de-alienation 
process that so many people currently bring up as an objection to cryonics.


"Around 2010 the world will be at a new orbit in history. . .  Life expectancy 
will be indefinite. Disease and disability will nonexist. Death will be rare and
accidental -- but not permanent. We will continuously jettison our obsolescence
and grow younger." F.M. Esfandiary, "Up-Wing Priorities" (1981).
http://www.box.net/shared/static/ay9lub60ha.pdf
http://www.scribd.com/doc/10948503/Up-Wing-Priorities


Mark Plus



_________________________________________________________________
Windows Live  Contacts: Organize your contact list. 


http://windowslive.com/connect/post/marcusatmicrosoft.spaces.live.com-Blog-cns!503D1D86EBB2B53C!2285.entry?ocid=TXT_TAGLM_WL_UGC_Contacts_032009

Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=31463