Protestants no longer the majority in U.S

[smndtupidisaftr]

I involve myself deeply in Church activities, i.e., Opus Dei, Latin Mass, Eucharistic Adoration, daily Rosary and Mass (whenever possible), regular Confession, and other Church-related activities. These combined experiences give me a very positive image of Catholicism. If I were to simply attend Sunday Mass every week, with nothing more, Catholicism would not have nearly the same appeal. I would be at a loss without my Catholic faith.

Just a note on this. At a parish I went to a few years ago, the priest would recommend confession at least once a month (which is great!). However, he was also a great enthusiast for contemporary music, Life Teen Masses, and that kind of “stuff”. In the end, I wonder how successful it was. I know I didn’t go to Confession any more frequently, and neither did my parents. In fact, this is where my distaste for “contemporary” liturgies came from. Still, he’s the only priest I’ve ever heard recommend frequent use of Confession. I guess that there are a lot of gray areas out there.

 

[Ophelia23]

Yeah 80% (4/5) prefer religion!!! Now we need to joyfully proclaim the word.:bounce:

Great point!

 

[Cider]

From the AP:

https://imgur.com/WDUKo

For the first time in its history, the United States does not have a Protestant majority, according to a new study. One reason: The number of Americans with no religious affiliation is on the rise.

The percentage of Protestant adults in the U.S. has reached a low of 48 percent, the first time that Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life has reported with certainty that the number has fallen below 50 percent. The drop has long been anticipated and comes at a time when no Protestants are on the U.S. Supreme Court and the Republicans have their first presidential ticket with no Protestant nominees.

Among the reasons for the change are the growth in nondenominational Christians who can no longer be categorized as Protestant, and a spike in the number of American adults who say they have no religion. The Pew study, released Tuesday, found that about 20 percent of Americans say they have no religious affiliation, an increase from 15 percent in the last five years.

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What is their point in the article. Even according to their numbers there are still more protestants ( 48%) than any other religious group in the US.

Who gave them the authority to decide that who and who isn’t protestant in the first place. I’m not sure that LDS consider themselves nondenominational Christians. In fact I don’t think they do consider themselves such.​

 

[katcecelia]

i think that the increase of the nation state reduces the Church and faith in general… The more one relies on the gov’t the less they do on their neighbor and God. Additionally our current culture is losing ground to the “tolerance” movement that is so intolerant of faith, God and religion, esp (or particularly) Chriatianity with emphasis on the Catholic Church, which refuses to relativise herself.
I think we are also not explaining the joy of suffering to new generations

 

[Dale_M]

Who gave them the authority to decide that who and who isn’t protestant in the first place. I’m not sure that LDS consider themselves nondenominational Christians. In fact I don’t think they do consider themselves such.

Each respondent in the survey is asked this question:

What is your present religion, if any? Are you Protestant, Roman Catholic, Mormon, Orthodox such as Greek or Russian Orthodox, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, atheist, agnostic, something else, or nothing in particular?

pewforum.org/uploadedFiles/Topics/Religious_Affiliation/Unaffiliated/NonesOnTheRise-full.pdf (see page 13)

If someone attends a non-denominational church (or anything else) and identifies as being Protestant, then they are recorded as Protestant. Mormons are not normally counted as Protestant, but are a separate category much like Orthodox, Jewish, Catholic etc.

BTW, the percent of the US population which is Mormon doesn’t seem to have changed during the past five years. It is right around 2%

 

[markomalley]

What is their point in the article. Even according to their numbers there are still more protestants ( 48%) than any other religious group in the US.

Who gave them the authority to decide that who and who isn’t protestant in the first place. I’m not sure that LDS consider themselves nondenominational Christians. In fact I don’t think they do consider themselves such.

I have met some Baptists who do not consider themselves Protestant.

 

[Dale_M]

It is probably the content in school and education of Catholic formation that makes a difference in staying Catholic or leaving

I suspect you are right. The quality and content of the teaching, as well as good guidance from adults, surely must make a difference.

 

[novusCatholic]

I have met some Baptists who do not consider themselves Protestant.

I suspect that most non-Catholic Christians do not really know much about Christian history beyond the New Testament. If they did, and realized what the early Church was, then there would only be two groups to identify with… Catholic or other.

 

[BroomWagon]

Yesterday wasn’t there a study or poll showing 1 in 6 people did not belong to a religion and now this study, seems like odd timing. It’s a bit suspect.

 

[7_Sorrows]

what would jehovah witnesses and 7th day adventists call themselves?

 

[psr13]

Since when are nondenominational Christians not considered Protestants? That’s a new one for me. I grew up nondenominational know a whole lot of them. They would all consider themselves to be Protestant.

 

[robwar]

Hmmm… I wonder… What if the t-shirt is already patented? Could I still print one myself?

I am not sure since it was a long time ago. Since you are just making one for yourself and not to sell it, you probably be ok. That would be similar to making a birthday cake that is in the shape of a popular cartoon figure like mickey mouse. You can make one for your own use at home but if you were to make a mickey mouse cake to sell then you would be in violation of copy right laws.

 

[Mike_from_NJ]

You can buy the shirts at various places online.

 

[Timothy_Garber]

You can buy the shirts at various places online.

Whoa! These are expensive! I was thinking like ten dollars, not thirty! Sorry for going so off topic, by the way.

 

[SuperLuigi]

This is happening in all Western nations. Why is the West so determined to erase it’s Christian heritage?

In short, because the devil has infiltrated the churches on so many levels.

 

[SuperLuigi]

What is their point in the article. Even according to their numbers there are still more protestants ( 48%) than any other religious group in the US.

Who gave them the authority to decide that who and who isn’t protestant in the first place. I’m not sure that LDS consider themselves nondenominational Christians. In fact I don’t think they do consider themselves such.

At this point in world history, it is possible to decrease as a % of a nation while actually gain in membership.

I still think that Protestants have a major problem and are on the decline.

The point of the article:

Sounds to me a celebration of this.

 

[estesbob]

From the AP:

https://imgur.com/WDUKo

For the first time in its history, the United States does not have a Protestant majority, according to a new study. One reason: The number of Americans with no religious affiliation is on the rise.

The percentage of Protestant adults in the U.S. has reached a low of 48 percent, the first time that Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life has reported with certainty that the number has fallen below 50 percent. The drop has long been anticipated and comes at a time when no Protestants are on the U.S. Supreme Court and the Republicans have their first presidential ticket with no Protestant nominees.

Among the reasons for the change are the growth in nondenominational Christians who can no longer be categorized as Protestant, and a spike in the number of American adults who say they have no religion. The Pew study, released Tuesday, found that about 20 percent of Americans say they have no religious affiliation, an increase from 15 percent in the last five years.

Scholars have long debated whether people who say they no longer belong to a religious group should be considered secular. While the category as defined by Pew researchers includes atheists, it also encompasses majorities of people who say they believe in God, and a notable minority who pray daily or consider themselves “spiritual” but not “religious.” Still, Pew found overall that most of the unaffiliated aren’t actively seeking another religious home, indicating that their ties with organized religion are permanently broken.
NOTE: The point of posting this article is not to debate the validity or non-validity of various religious beliefs…had that been the purpose, I would have posted it in “non-Catholic religions”.

COMMENT: I think that this is a troubling trend…although the headline is “Protestants no longer the majority” – please note the trend line on Catholics as well…it’s no better.

The trend toward secularization, I think, will have major impacts on the US political landscape.

I am not sure how meaningful this poll was being they seem to have changed the definition of 'Protestant". Someone who considers themselves a non-denominationaL Christian is not considered a " Protestant." perhaps a more accurate headline would be" mainline Protestants no longer majority in us".

 

[Tampa_Dave]

I suspect you are right. The quality and content of the teaching, as well as good guidance from adults, surely must make a difference.

Your reference was to the merits of Catholic eduction. Let me add:

And a few swats from kindly nuns (speaking from my own experience).

 

[markomalley]

I am not sure how meaningful this poll was being they seem to have changed the definition of 'Protestant". Someone who considers themselves a non-denominationaL Christian is not considered a " Protestant." perhaps a more accurate headline would be" mainline Protestants no longer majority in us".

This is the data from the Pew report itself. In response to the question, What is your present religion, if any? Are you Protestant, Roman Catholic, Mormon, Orthodox such as Greek or Russian Orthodox, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, atheist, agnostic, something else, or nothing in particular?



I hope that helps.

 

[boldlygo]

I am a younger Catholic and l like the more traditional masses I see on EWTN however my priest who I think the world of is not as inclined to do a traditional mass. My poor mom asked on Sunday if she could start a rosary group before mass but he asked if she could do it after mass because people like to talk to one another before mass and he thinks that is nice for people to greet one another before mass. However some of us don’t like it because we are supposed to be preparing for Jesus and it is distracting and annoying to listen to people talk. He also omits the Apostles Creed for some reason which is wrong in my opinion. Any suggestions?

“Mass” is a proper noun!!! Start by showing proper respect.