Americans becoming less Christian

[SERay]

The number of Americans who don't affiliate with a particular religion has grown to 56 million in recent years, making the faith group researchers call "nones" the second-largest in total numbers behind evangelicals, according to a Pew Research Center study released 5/13/2015.

Between 2007 and 2014, when Pew conducted two major surveys of U.S. religious life, Americans who described themselves as atheist, agnostic or of no particular faith grew from 16 percent to nearly 23 percent. At the same time, Christians dropped from about 78 percent to just under 71 percent of the population. Protestants now comprise 46.5 percent of what was once a predominantly Protestant country.

Last year, 31 percent of "nones" said they were atheist or agnostic, compared to 25 percent in 2007, and the percentage who said religion was important to them dropped. The growth of "nones" has political significance as well. People with no religion tend to vote Democratic, just as white evangelicals tend to vote Republican.

Pew researchers said Christian losses were driven by decreases among mainline, or liberal, Protestants and Roman Catholics. Mainline Protestants declined by about 5 million to 36 million between 2007 and 2014. Pew found 13 percent of U.S. adults are former Catholics. The study put the number of Catholic adults at 51 million, or just over one-fifth of the U.S. population, a drop of about 3 percent over seven years. In 2007, Catholics made up about one-quarter of Americans.

The survey of 35,000 people, titled "America's Changing Religious Landscape," was conducted in English and Spanish from June 4 through Sept. 30 of last year and has a margin of error of plus or minus 0.6 percentage points.

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This report took the internet by storm after the news release, blogs were focused on this topic the next morning. Although it is not a new or unexpected phenomenon in Christendom. A very similar report was released in 2009: http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=7041036 Quote "According to the poll, which came out today [2009], the percentage of Americans who define themselves as Christian has dropped from 86 percent in 1990 to 76 percent in 2008. In one of the most dramatic shifts, 15 percent of Americans now say they have no religion -- a figure that's almost doubled in 18 years." What we have is an exponential process of declining numbers, a dramatic slide when the studies are combined chronologically.

I had mentioned in a previous post that I work with a James A. Gray professor that processes the transitional rates, where I read 100's of emails a month from Christians who have abandoned the faith. Many are pastors who now are avid agnostics, atheists and mythicist. A great number of those who now deny the faith still will claim they know God, but do not commit to the mannerisms or activities of the faith.

I think immediately of Titus 1:15b-16, "but to those who are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure, but both their mind and their conscience are defiled. They profess to know God, but by their deeds they deny Him, being detestable and disobedient and worthless for any good deed." This word coincides with Hebrews 3:12, "Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God."

There is in every man, whether a profane sinner, or a hypocritical professor, an evil and unbelieving heart. There is unbelief resident in regenerate persons as we read about Peter and the fleeing disciples before the cross, which when cherished and encouraged by vain philosophies and base thoughts can grow like a great vine as to choke out the faith. Preoccupation with sin can aggravate the faith, casting it to the ground in preference of the spoils of this world. Instead, Paul wrote a pertinent exhortation in the first letter to the Corinthians, "Remain alert. Keep standing firm in your faith. Keep on being courageous and strong."

Paul exhorts them to watchfulness over themselves, over their hearts, thoughts, affections, words, actions, and their whole conversations including over one another. That they not allow bad principles, evil practices and any appearance and motion of sin in general, particularly unbelief. We are to remain alert about Satan and his temptations, who is an indefatigable enemy. Whose wiles, devices, and stratagems are many with great cunning. We too are to be alert about the world, its charms and snares; and likewise against false teachers, who lie in wait to deceive, and therefore to be guarded against; many of which were among these Corinthians. Such an exhortation is very necessary today.

Regarding the faith of the generation that will ultimately experience His return: “But, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” (Luke 18:8) I have time and again fixed my mind on these words because of how rapidly social and cultural trends hostile to Christ and His Church have proliferated and accelerated.

[Roger]

This is not very surprising. There has been a full court press against, the Faith once delivered, by media and humanistic education. Let's face it, people are selfish and because of their greed and lusts they do not want to transform from selfish sinner to being a saved and sanctified saint. They find worshiping themselves superior to worshiping their Creator. Sadly, the shocking reality of truth, of their self delusions, will come too late for most of them to be redeemed. We will all have to stand and give an account for our lives and bow before Jesus, with some to reward while others to eternal destruction. I personally am thankful, for the illuminated life I have in the Holy Spirit, assuring me that all my memories and decisions have a purpose. I can't accept they atheistic view that this is all there is and it is an accident that we are here. I can't imagine never seeing loved ones again, rejoicing, reminiscing with them while praising the King of Kings. Praying for the lost in the hills of Kentucky.

[Johanna]

Hebrews 3:12, "Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God." There is in every man, whether a profane sinner, or a hypocritical professor, an evil and unbelieving heart. There is unbelief resident in regenerate persons as we read about Peter and the fleeing disciples before the cross, which when cherished and encouraged by vain philosophies and base thoughts can grow like a great vine as to choke out the faith. Preoccupation with sin can aggravate the faith, casting it to the ground in preference of the spoils of this world. Instead, Paul wrote a pertinent exhortation in the first letter to the Corinthians, "Remain alert. Keep standing firm in your faith. Keep on being courageous and strong."

Paul exhorts them to watchfulness over themselves, over their hearts, thoughts, affections, words, actions, and their whole conversations including over one another. That they not allow bad principles, evil practices and any appearance and motion of sin in general, particularly unbelief. We are to remain alert about Satan and his temptations, who is an indefatigable enemy. Whose wiles, devices, and stratagems are many with great cunning. We too are to be alert about the world, its charms and snares; and likewise against false teachers, who lie in wait to deceive, and therefore to be guarded against; many of which were among these Corinthians. Such an exhortation is very necessary today.

This reminds me of several paragraphs of the book "Respectable Sins" by Jerry Bridges, where we are reminded that the gospel is not only for sinners in need of salvation but also for us as believers as our sinful nature needs to be dealt with permanently. He says that some believers do not consider the gospel applicable to them after they are saved. But just as you mention above, we are not above reproach and we need to pay attention to ourselves. Sadly, it is in our nature to doubt God, to give in to our nature, etc. but thankfully we find in the gospel the source of our hope for now and for the future. May we always strive to keep our eyes on our Lord as we fight against the world, the devil and our flesh.