Christianity has been the dominant religion in the United States since its separation from Britain. In a 1937 Gallup poll, seventy-three percent of Americans identified themselves as Christian. The number remained virtually the same through the turn of the century. By 2007, church membership has fallen to between sixty-three and sixty-five percent across the United States. However, simply being a “member” of a church is very different from actually attending church. Of the two-thirds who claim church membership, only one-third said they attended once per week; twelve percent attend “almost every week.” Only one-half of those claiming church membership actually attend church once per week.
One question on the 2007 poll read, “Did you, yourself, happen to attend church or synagogue in the last seven days?” Americans have consistently answered “yes” to this question forty to forty-five percent of the time over the past several decades. Surveyors also asked, “At the present time, do you think religion as a whole is increasing its influence on American life or losing its influence?” Just after the 9/11 attacks in 2001, seventy-one percent said religion was increasing its influence on life. That number more than halved by December of last year, when only thirty-two percent said religion was increasing its influence, sixty-one, losing its influence, with the rest volunteering that it was staying the same or not giving an answer.
New-age religions are capturing the eyes of many people who might otherwise join conventional religious groups. Some religions created since the twentieth century include: The Church of Bible Understanding, Aum Shinrikyo, Raëlism, Jedi, Scientology, The Order of the Solar Temple, and The Unification Church. Despite all the enthusiasm towards many of these modern day organizations, many are radical and destructive. Members of the Aum Shinrikyo group attacked Japanese subways with sarin gas in an attempt to start a world war. Scientology is one of the most widely criticized groups, and thus labeled a religious “cult.” Journalists, courts, and governmental bodies of several countries have made reports and allegations that the Church of Scientology is an unscrupulous commercial enterprise that harasses its critics and brutally exploits its members. A group known only as Anonymous launched a series of Internet-based attacks in order to “destroy” The Church of Scientology, entitled Project Chanology, under the maxim, “We are Anonymous. / We are Legion. / We do not forgive. / We do not forget. / Expect us.” A popular slogan used to identify the nature of cults is the acronym “BITE,” which stands for: Behavior control, Information control, Thought control, Emotional control.
As these trends continue, many Americans are turning towards non-religious alternatives, agnosticism and atheism being the most popular. Many self-described atheists are skeptical of all supernatural beings and cite a lack of empirical evidence for the existence of deities. Others argue for atheism on philosophical, social or historical grounds. Non-religious groups, including atheism and agnosticism, make up twelve to fifteen percent of world population. In China, non-religious groups make up forty-nine percent of the religious distribution. France, the world’s most non-religious country, is thirty-two percent atheist, thirty-two percent agnostic, resulting in a vast majority of non-religious citizens.
What is the cause of the fall of mainstream religion? People used to live in and strongly identify with their local community. Gradually, as society became more dynamic and communication technology ubiquitous, people placed less reliance on their faith. The reason behind a lack of consistent church attendees is, according to many, boredom. During a Sunday sermon, some would rather sleep in for a few extra hours or throw an in-home football party. Many have re¬searched other religions across the world and picked one they find better suited to themselves. Some argue that this is a wonderful occurrence in world culture. However, some say that the situation of the world losing its theological roots is far from a desirable situation. Regardless of the point of view, everyone can agree on one thing: the world is changing.
