Moderator: Peak Moderation
It's not all bad news then?BBC News - 05/02/08
The Vatican has reported a further dramatic fall in the number of Roman Catholic monks and nuns worldwide.
Newly published statistics showed that the number of men and women belonging to religious orders fell by 10% to just under a million between 2005 and 2006.
Article continues ...
Aurora wrote: It's not all bad news then?
I'd suggest it's the sun that we'll all start to worship again.mikepepler wrote:Although perhaps a time of economic and physical hardship to come will see an increase in people's interest in the spiritual, once the material is taken from them.
Awesome site! A couple of really stunning presentations. Enjoy:isenhand wrote:Perhaps the human race is maturing after all?
Congratulations for putting your cards on the table Goslow. The BBC article was talking about Roman Catholicism rather than Christianity though!goslow wrote:I am a committed Christian. I don't see any lessening of religion, only more and more around the world. The numbers of Christian believers are growing spectacularly especially in developing countries. In my opinion that is because Christianity is about a real experience of a real God who is in the business of changing lives and turning the world upside down.
Now you are welecome to criticise the Church when it mucks things up. Not all Christians are great people, some fail spectacularly and do bad things. But that is human nature, not because of their Christian faith.
If you believe that religion is on the wane, that's probably cos you probably don't know many religious people. Man is a religous creature and will always worship something. If its not God, then something else. Have you been to the footie lately?
To try and keep back on topic, my guess is that peak oil will remove most of the material wealth and leisure pursuits that some people rely on to fill their lives. With that crutch removed they might just find that there is a spiritual dimension to life and in that case I would thoroughly recommend checking out Christianity.
Waiting to duck the flames.....
Eternal Sunshine wrote: I wouldn't want to worry you with the truth.
Sort of opium for the people? To get them over the pain? Might be so but I hope not. If we are to emerge from anything like a TEC to a better world we would need a good grip on reality. Turing to delusions I don?t see as constructive.mikepepler wrote:Although perhaps a time of economic and physical hardship to come will see an increase in people's interest in the spiritual, once the material is taken from them. Then religion may see an increase.
Surely true spirituality is the pursuit of the truth?isenhand wrote:Sort of opium for the people? To get them over the pain? Might be so but I hope not. If we are to emerge from anything like a TEC to a better world we would need a good grip on reality. Turing to delusions I don?t see as constructive.mikepepler wrote:Although perhaps a time of economic and physical hardship to come will see an increase in people's interest in the spiritual, once the material is taken from them. Then religion may see an increase.
.ui
Eternal Sunshine wrote: I wouldn't want to worry you with the truth.
Nah, Christianity was welded together by Constantin in the 300's, and morphed a couple of times to suit new purposes. The main effect was probably to quench vendettas and local in-fighting in Europe. Christianity is just a residual joke today, completely lacking social impact. In order for a religion to work, it has to explain the world and be perceived as a completely natural and obvious part of life.goslow wrote:To try and keep back on topic, my guess is that peak oil will remove most of the material wealth and leisure pursuits that some people rely on to fill their lives. With that crutch removed they might just find that there is a spiritual dimension to life and in that case I would thoroughly recommend checking out Christianity.
It?s one based on statistics. There appears to be a rise in atheism, and therefore, a decline in religion throughout the twentieth century. Also their appears to a negative correlation between intelligence / education on the one hand and religious belief on the other.goslow wrote: If you believe that religion is on the wane, that's probably cos you probably don't know many religious people.
No, truth is a relative concept to start with and spirituality is about what ever feels good.Andy Hunt wrote:Surely true spirituality is the pursuit of the truth?isenhand wrote:Sort of opium for the people? To get them over the pain? Might be so but I hope not. If we are to emerge from anything like a TEC to a better world we would need a good grip on reality. Turing to delusions I don?t see as constructive.mikepepler wrote:Although perhaps a time of economic and physical hardship to come will see an increase in people's interest in the spiritual, once the material is taken from them. Then religion may see an increase.
.ui
