Breukelen advocaat
06-29-2008, 11:23 PM
The Chronicle Herald
At odds with their religions
Most Americans believe many faiths can lead to salvation, survey finds
By ERIC GORSKI The Associated Press
June 28, 2008
The United States remains a deeply religious place, but a new survey finds most Americans donâ??t believe their tradition is the only way to eternal life â?? even if the denominationâ??s teachings say otherwise.
The findings, revealed in a survey of 35,000 adults, can either be taken as a positive sign of growing religious tolerance, or disturbing evidence that Americans dismiss or donâ??t know fundamental teachings of their own faiths.
Among the more startling numbers in the survey, conducted last year by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life: 57 per cent of evangelical church attenders said they believe many religions can lead to eternal life, in conflict with traditional evangelical teaching.
In all, 70 per cent of Americans with a religious affiliation shared that view, and 68 per cent said there is more than one true way to interpret the teachings of their own religion.
"The survey shows religion in America is, indeed, 3,000 miles wide and only three inches deep," said D. Michael Lindsay, a Rice University sociologist of religion.
"Thereâ??s a growing pluralistic impulse toward tolerance and that is having theological consequences," he said.
Earlier data from the Pew Forumâ??s U.S. Religious Landscape Survey, released in February, highlighted how often Americans switch religious affiliation. The newly released material looks at religious belief and practice as well as the impact of religion on society, including how faith shapes political views.
The report argues that while relatively few people â?? 14 per cent â?? cite religious beliefs as the main influence on their political thinking, religion still plays a powerful indirect role.
The study confirmed some well-known political dynamics, including stark divisions over abortion and gay marriage, with the more religiously committed taking conservative views on the issues. Of Catholics, 58 per cent believe society should accept homosexuality, a view that is greatly at odds with U.S. Catholic bishops.
But it also showed support across religious lines for greater governmental aid for the poor, even if it means more debt and stricter environmental laws and regulations.
By many measures, Americans are strongly religious: 92 per cent believe in God, 74 per cent believe in life after death and 63 per cent say their respective scriptures are the word of God.
But deeper investigation found that more than one in four Roman Catholics, mainline Protestants and Orthodox Christians expressed doubts about Godâ??s existence, as did six in 10 Jews.
Another finding almost defies explanation: 21 per cent of self-identified atheists said they believe in God or a universal spirit, with eight per cent "absolutely certain" of it.
"Look, this shows the limits of a survey approach to religion," said Peter Berger, a theology and sociology professor at Boston University. "What do people really mean when they say that many religions lead to eternal life? It might mean they donâ??t believe their particular truth at all. Others might be saying, â??We believe a truth but respect other people, and they are not necessarily going to hell.â?? "
Nearly across the board, the majority of religious Americans believe many religions can lead to eternal life: mainline Protestants (83 per cent), members of historic black Protestant churches (59 per cent), Roman Catholics (79 per cent), Jews (82 per cent) and Muslims (56 per cent).
By similar margins, people in those faith groups believe in multiple interpretations of their own traditionsâ?? teachings. Yet 44 per cent of the religiously affiliated also said their religion should preserve its traditional beliefs and practices.
"What most people are saying is, â??Hey, we donâ??t have a hammer-lock on God or salvation, and Godâ??s bigger than us and we should respect that and respect other people,â?? " said the Rev. Tom Reese, a senior fellow at Georgetown University.
"Some people are like butterflies that go from flower to flower, going from religion to religion â?? and frankly they donâ??t get that deep into any of them."
Beliefs about eternal life vary greatly, even within a religious tradition.
Some Christians hold strongly to Jesusâ?? words as described in John 14:6: "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." Others emphasize the wideness of Godâ??s grace.
The Catholic church teaches that the "one church of Christ ... subsists in the Catholic Church" alone and that Protestant churches, while defective, can be "instruments of salvation."
More than most groups, Catholics break with their church, and not just on issues like abortion and homosexuality. Only six in 10 Catholics described God as "a person with whom people can have a relationship" â?? which the church teaches â?? while three in 10 described God as an "impersonal force."
"The statistics show, more than anything else, that many who describe themselves as Catholics do not know or understand the teachings of their church," said Denver Roman Catholic Archbishop Charles Chaput. "Being Catholic means believing what the Catholic church teaches. It is a communion of faith, not simply of ancestry and family tradition. It also means that the church ought to work harder at evangelizing its own members."
Nova Scotia News - TheChronicleHerald.ca (http://thechronicleherald.ca/Religion/1064577.html)
At odds with their religions
Most Americans believe many faiths can lead to salvation, survey finds
By ERIC GORSKI The Associated Press
June 28, 2008
The United States remains a deeply religious place, but a new survey finds most Americans donâ??t believe their tradition is the only way to eternal life â?? even if the denominationâ??s teachings say otherwise.
The findings, revealed in a survey of 35,000 adults, can either be taken as a positive sign of growing religious tolerance, or disturbing evidence that Americans dismiss or donâ??t know fundamental teachings of their own faiths.
Among the more startling numbers in the survey, conducted last year by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life: 57 per cent of evangelical church attenders said they believe many religions can lead to eternal life, in conflict with traditional evangelical teaching.
In all, 70 per cent of Americans with a religious affiliation shared that view, and 68 per cent said there is more than one true way to interpret the teachings of their own religion.
"The survey shows religion in America is, indeed, 3,000 miles wide and only three inches deep," said D. Michael Lindsay, a Rice University sociologist of religion.
"Thereâ??s a growing pluralistic impulse toward tolerance and that is having theological consequences," he said.
Earlier data from the Pew Forumâ??s U.S. Religious Landscape Survey, released in February, highlighted how often Americans switch religious affiliation. The newly released material looks at religious belief and practice as well as the impact of religion on society, including how faith shapes political views.
The report argues that while relatively few people â?? 14 per cent â?? cite religious beliefs as the main influence on their political thinking, religion still plays a powerful indirect role.
The study confirmed some well-known political dynamics, including stark divisions over abortion and gay marriage, with the more religiously committed taking conservative views on the issues. Of Catholics, 58 per cent believe society should accept homosexuality, a view that is greatly at odds with U.S. Catholic bishops.
But it also showed support across religious lines for greater governmental aid for the poor, even if it means more debt and stricter environmental laws and regulations.
By many measures, Americans are strongly religious: 92 per cent believe in God, 74 per cent believe in life after death and 63 per cent say their respective scriptures are the word of God.
But deeper investigation found that more than one in four Roman Catholics, mainline Protestants and Orthodox Christians expressed doubts about Godâ??s existence, as did six in 10 Jews.
Another finding almost defies explanation: 21 per cent of self-identified atheists said they believe in God or a universal spirit, with eight per cent "absolutely certain" of it.
"Look, this shows the limits of a survey approach to religion," said Peter Berger, a theology and sociology professor at Boston University. "What do people really mean when they say that many religions lead to eternal life? It might mean they donâ??t believe their particular truth at all. Others might be saying, â??We believe a truth but respect other people, and they are not necessarily going to hell.â?? "
Nearly across the board, the majority of religious Americans believe many religions can lead to eternal life: mainline Protestants (83 per cent), members of historic black Protestant churches (59 per cent), Roman Catholics (79 per cent), Jews (82 per cent) and Muslims (56 per cent).
By similar margins, people in those faith groups believe in multiple interpretations of their own traditionsâ?? teachings. Yet 44 per cent of the religiously affiliated also said their religion should preserve its traditional beliefs and practices.
"What most people are saying is, â??Hey, we donâ??t have a hammer-lock on God or salvation, and Godâ??s bigger than us and we should respect that and respect other people,â?? " said the Rev. Tom Reese, a senior fellow at Georgetown University.
"Some people are like butterflies that go from flower to flower, going from religion to religion â?? and frankly they donâ??t get that deep into any of them."
Beliefs about eternal life vary greatly, even within a religious tradition.
Some Christians hold strongly to Jesusâ?? words as described in John 14:6: "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." Others emphasize the wideness of Godâ??s grace.
The Catholic church teaches that the "one church of Christ ... subsists in the Catholic Church" alone and that Protestant churches, while defective, can be "instruments of salvation."
More than most groups, Catholics break with their church, and not just on issues like abortion and homosexuality. Only six in 10 Catholics described God as "a person with whom people can have a relationship" â?? which the church teaches â?? while three in 10 described God as an "impersonal force."
"The statistics show, more than anything else, that many who describe themselves as Catholics do not know or understand the teachings of their church," said Denver Roman Catholic Archbishop Charles Chaput. "Being Catholic means believing what the Catholic church teaches. It is a communion of faith, not simply of ancestry and family tradition. It also means that the church ought to work harder at evangelizing its own members."
Nova Scotia News - TheChronicleHerald.ca (http://thechronicleherald.ca/Religion/1064577.html)