I ran into an article the other day titled It Turns Out Colleges Aren’t Actually Atheist Factories. The article basically says that a long time ago, if you went to college, there was a greater likelihood that you would “disaffiliate” with whatever religious institution with which you participated. It appears that is no longer true. The quote I liked the best in the article was from the last paragraph:
There are a lot of sociological factors at work here, but all of them puncture the stereotype of perniciously secular higher education. Clearly, those God-defying philosophy professors need to work a little harder if they want to build their armies of atheist young people.
It is implied that while fewer people are going to church, that does not mean they do not, at least nominally, believe in God. This is not one of those articles that talks about increased spirituality. This article is about the more specific and much more hopeful subject of the belief in God. There is a good argument to be made for the idea that the mainline denominations have turned into pop-culture clubs that are more interested in “spirituality” than the more specific and hopeful idea that there is a God and he is worthy of worship. I am not a big fan of the organized church or mushy, new-age spirituality so this is quite a positive development.
Betty Blonde #169 – 03/10/2009
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