Where are we going?

[Snoopy]

The 2005 United States Census Bureau gave the following figures: The 5,208,000,000 people of Planet Earth followed the world's five largest “religions” (inc. “non religious”) as follows:

Christianity - 2,155 million
Islam - 1,313 million
Atheist / Non Religious - 939 million
Hinduism - 870 million
Buddhism - 384 million

Of course the picture is never static and there are several different claims as to which religion is the “fastest growing religion”. Claims using absolute numbers favour the larger religions while those counting percentage growth, the smaller ones. The American Religious Identification Survey gave non-religious groups the largest gain in terms of absolute numbers - 14,300,000 (8.4% of the population) to 29,400,000 (14.1% of the population) for the period 1990 to 2001 in the USA.

Aside from atheism, here are some other (worldwide) “fast growing groups”:

Animal rights activists
Assemblies of God
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Environmentalism
Evangelicals
Hinduism
International Church of Christ
Islam
Jehovah's Witnesses
Lubavitcher Hasidic Jews
Non-denominational community churches
Pentecostalism
Primal-indigenous religion/revitalized tribal and "first peoples" organizations
Seventh-day Adventists
Soka Gakkai
Sufism
Unitarian Universalists/Unitarians
Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches
Wicca
Zen Buddhism

So, trends, analysis, comment?

s.

- World Religions Religion Statistics Geography Church Statistics

-Claims to be the fastest growing religion - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[samabudhi]

Where's Oprahism?

[Snoopy]

bubbling under...

s.

[wil]

In regards to the fastest growing you are exactly right everyone likes to claim the rate of growth when they are small...as it appears bigger than it is...and then if they are large...numbers because their numbers outnumber the little guys. Nevada's claim to fame for years was fastest growing state...well when you have counties the size of the state of Maryland yet a state population the size of some counties...tis quite easy to prove that percentage.

Anywho...If in where are we going you are asking where is religous belief headed it all depends on where you are in the world and what your economic and educational status is.

In almost every level of inquiry the ideas, thoughts, understanding and books change as new information comes to light. This applies to math, history, archeology, science, language, and on and on. One group largely refuses to change...religions.

Sure the folks claim scripture is alive, and are digging into learning the aspects that created the impetus to put those words in writing...and while in some circles information moves forward as to the authorship, editing, social implications and political needs which were behind the original works...the orginal works are still taken as 'gospel' this applies not only to the Abrahamic but most others.

Could we imagine using a History book from 1400 as our basis? Maybe we'll update the language, but leave all the particulars as written, and then add another 50-100 books of inquiry for you to decipher to try to update to today... We'll do the same for a science book from 1500... And a 1600 anthropology book...and how about if your main computer book was from 1980? Or your book on webpage building was from 1998?

Once there was a new book written a true update of concepts and ideas how many times do you think one would refer back to and quote regularly from the original which is completely outdated and full of erroneous information which every time it said needs to contain some caveat?

Unless religions decide to update and upgrade, they may well be relegated to history books...

[Snoopy]

Come on now, are you suggesting I stop making sacrifices to Zeus?

s.

[Ciel]

Originally Posted by Snoopy

Come on now, are you suggesting I stop making sacrifices to Zeus?

s.

So it was you who carried me to the mountain.

- c -

[Snoopy]

Hi,

I didn't hear you objecting.

s.

[Dor]

Originally Posted by wil

Unless religions decide to update and upgrade, they may well be relegated to history books...

God does not change and you are well aware of that Wil.
Thats why everyone has been trying to change or claim his throne as theirs.

[InLove]

Originally Posted by Snoopy

Come on now, are you suggesting I stop making sacrifices to Zeus?

Originally Posted by Ciel

So it was you who carried me to the mountain.

Originally Posted by Snoopy

I didn't hear you objecting.

You guys...

I hear that the fastest growing job market is for U.S. census takers...where do I sign up?

InPeace,
InLove

[Snoopy]

Originally Posted by InLove

I hear that the fastest growing job market is for U.S. census takers...where do I sign up?

InPeace,
InLove

Hi InLove,

Why, what's the appeal??

s.

[wil]

Originally Posted by Dor

God does not change and you are well aware of that Wil.
Thats why everyone has been trying to change or claim his throne as theirs.

I think I am aware of that. But also aware that we change and develop a better understanding over time. Many are stuck in the past, freeze time based on some scripture...and many others look down on them for that.

But it appears typical to freeze thought.

[Ciel]

Does God change?

If we aquire the perception to see God in a new way, where did the origin of insight form if not from a spark of divine intention and interaction.

The singer or the song?

Or .........?

- c -

[flowperson]

Originally Posted by Ciel

Does God change?

If we aquire the perception to see God in a new way, where did the origin of insight form if not from a spark of divine intention and interaction.

The singer or the song?

Or .........?

- c -

The egg or the chicken ?

flow....

[Snoopy]

Originally Posted by flowperson

The egg or the chicken ?

flow....

Hi,

In all seriousness, some clever clogs have apparently determined that it was the egg.

CNN.com - Chicken and egg debate unscrambled - May 26, 2006



s.

[wil]

Originally Posted by Ciel

Does God change?

If we aquire the perception to see God in a new way, where did the origin of insight form if not from a spark of divine intention and interaction.

The singer or the song?

Namaste Ciel,

I agree their was a divine encounter that initiated the writings. But these thoughts and writings were limited by not only the knowledge and expereince of the writer/orator in that era, but also the reader/listener, if the vision wasn't acceptable it wouldn't be passed on. I think they not only did their utmost best to convey the thought, but also their was some divine guidance to plant information in the words to be gleaned out later.

A cell phone, television, or helicopter does not at all compare to the wonders of G-d...but say someone 2-3000 years ago encountered one....what would they write, what would they say, what would people believe of what this 'prophet' told them? So if inventions like this are unbelievable enough...and would get distorted, misconstrued, misunderstood, and their language and knowledge would not suffice to explain....what makes us think they'd do any better with all the knowledge that the almighty imparted on them?