We Americans love mixes. Mixed lattes, mix tapes, mixed families, Chex mix, buffets, grab bags, rainbows, M&Ms. So it should come as no surprise that we mix religions.

“Large numbers of Americans engage in multiple religious practices, mixing elements of diverse traditions,” according to a new poll from the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. The poll showed that 35% of Americans attend worship services from more than one type of denomination/religion. Plus there’s that whole cafeteria religion concept where we blend practices and beliefs from various religions and spiritualities (e.g., astrology and Christianity, ghosts and Islam).

Other interesting findings:

• 40% of those in interreligious marriages attend multiple types of services each year.
• 22% of Christians say they believe in reincarnation.
• 25% of Americans believe in astrology.
• 72% of Americans attend religious services at least a few times a year.
• 49% of Americans say they’ve had a religious/mystical moment of awakening

View the full survey results (with pretty graphs!) on the Pew Forum Web site.

Created by Religion Transcends, 2009

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The Pew Research Center published results of a prayer survey a few weeks ago. After talking to 35,000 Americans, they determined that the following percentages of members of various religions/denominations pray at least once a day:

OVERALL

60% of Americans say they pray daily

CHRISTIANS

Jehovah’s Witnesses: 89% pray at least once a day

Mormons: 82%

Evangelical Protestant Christians: 78%

Black Protestant Christians: 80%

Orthodox Christians: 60%

Mainline Protestant Christians (Methodists, Lutherans, etc.): 53%

Catholics: 58%

MUSLIMS: 71%

BUDDHISTS:  45%

HINDUS: 62%

JEWS: 26%

See the results in graphic form at the Pew site.

It appears women over the age of 65 are the most likely to pray. People with the least amount of income also seem to pray the most (for money, perhaps?).

Of course, the poll doesn’t explain Pew’s definition of “prayer.” And certain factors come into play (e.g., meditation may be more important than prayer for many Buddhists) that affect the results. So it should be kept in mind that prayer may reflect religiosity but is not an exclusive factor in determining religiosity. What do you think about the results?

Copyright 2009, Religion Transcends

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Religion is the biggest “headache” in Great Britain, according to a recent government-sponsored British poll.

As reported by Religion News Service and Hinduism Today, the survey showed that religious intolerance is worse than racial issues in Great Britain – and has not improved in the last ten years.

See information from the 2001 census about religion in Great Britain.

Copyright 2009 Religion Transcends.

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Hundreds of churches face foreclosure, according to the Ministry Today and the New York Times.

The crisis has arisen from mortages on churches, which increased by 50% from 2002-2005. And borrowing peaked in 2006 as more and more churches began new constructions. Facing insurmountable debt, many churches may now be forced to close their doors.

Church lender N. Michael Tangen told wsj.com that “there have been too many churches with a ‘build it and they will come’ attitude. They had glory in their eyes that wasn’t backed up with adequate business plans and cash flow.”

What do you think? Is new construction necessary to gain new church members? Is it the fault of the lenders? Do you attend a house of worship facing foreclosure?

Copyright 2009, Religion Transcends. 

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Views about Jews and Muslims are unfavorable in Europe, according to a recent survey from the Pew Research Center’s Pew Global Attitudes Project.

 The results showed that:

-46% of the Spanish rate Jews unfavorably, and 52% viewed Muslims unfavorably.

-34% of Russians rate Jews unfavorably.

-36% of Poles rate Jews unfavorably, and 46% rate Muslims unfavorably.

-25% of Germans rate Jews unfavorably, and 50% rate Muslims unfavorably.

-20% of French rate Jews unfavorably, and 38% rate Muslims unfavorably.

-9% of the British rate Jews unfavorably (Great Britain had the least anti-Semitic views), and 25% view Muslims unfavorably.

Researchers thus concluded there is some kind of relationship between anti-Jewish and anti-Muslim attitudes.

What about Christians?

Anti-Christian views are on the rise in Spain, but otherwise sentiments remain the same with little negativity toward Christians.

The survey also displays differences in religiosity among age groups as well as feelings toward terrorist activities. See the full survey results on the Pew Forum site. 

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The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life has released the results of two of its recent surveys.

Do you believe in hell?

According to this survey, only 59% of 35,000 respondents said they believe in the type of hell “where people who have led bad lives, and die without being sorry, are eternally punished.”

That number is down, says Religion News Service.  In a 2001 Gallup survey, 71% said they believe in hell as a physical place.

Do you think churches should be involved in politics?

According to the Pew Forum’s (based on their recent survey):

A slim majority of the public (52%) says that churches and other houses of worship should keep out of politics, an eight point increase compared with 2004. Fewer (45%) take the view that churches should express their views on day-to-day social and political questions. This marks the first time since the Pew Research Center began asking the question in 1996 that those who say churches should keep out of politics outnumber those who say churches should express their political views.

Perhaps more surprising, 50% of conservatives say churches should stay out of politics — up from 30% in 2004.

Find more survey data about churches and politics on the Pew Forum Web site. 

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Cancer patients are using complementary methods like prayer and massage to supplement traditional treatments, say researchers from the American Cancer Society.

Which methods are they using?

Among the methods used most often, the following spiritual methods were reported:

-Prayer/spiritual practice (61.4%)

-Relaxation (44.3%)

-Faith/spiritual healing (42.4%)

-Meditation (15%)

-Religious counseling (11.3%)

Apparently, nearly half of cancer survivors are using several complementary methods.

Who are these survivors?

Results confirmed that methods are most often used by women, whites, young survivors, those with higher income and more education, and breast and ovarian cancer survivors. The complementary methods are also used more often when cancer is advanced or has spread.

How did they get these results?

Researchers used data from 4,000 participants in the American Cancer Society’s Study of Cancer Survivors-I.  Participants were surveyed 10-24 months after they were diagnosed with cancer. Results of the study will be published in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal from the American Cancer Society.

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Every so often, the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life conducts surveys to gather data about the religious practices and beliefs of Americans. Recently, they released part II of their 2008 survey, which included a sampling of 35,000 Americans.

Part II found that both politics and religion are important to most Americans: About 75% of Americans associate themselves with Christian churches, with evangelical Protestant churches representing over 26% of Americans. Only 16% of Americans do not affiliate with a religious tradition. The survey also revealed that political beliefs are often linked to religious beliefs and practices.

Other interesting facts:

·         It seems our religious traditions are divided as to whether the United States should involve itself in the affairs of other countries.

·         A majority of people responded that “many religions can lead to eternal life,” not just the one they follow. (Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses were the only faith groups to respond that their religion is the only religion to lead to eternal life.)

·         A majority of people from all faiths (with the exception of Jews and Buddhists) claimed to pray daily. Even 22% of non-affiliated Americans claimed to pray daily.

·         Religion seems to play a greater role in the lives of Christians and Muslims than Jews and Buddhists.

·         95% of Americans are at least somewhat certain there is a God.

To draw more conclusions and see more data, visit the survey page on the Pew Forum’s Web site. The page offers visuals in the form of maps and charts and a stunning array of data collected from survey participants.

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Religion book sales are down, according to a Christian Retailing report of Association of American Publishers (AAP) figures. AAP saw religion book sales decline by 25.5% in March – that’s a $47.6 million decrease. That’s just one month, but the year-long prospect isn’t so sunny either: so far religion book sales are down 12.1% for the year.

An initial reaction may be to attribute the decline to a general decrease in the purchasing of entertainment, as a result of a groaning economy. But don’t be so quick to judge. AAP reports a 23.1% sales increase for the year in adult paperback sales and a 58.9% increase for the month in e-book sales.

Perhaps religion book publishers just need to start putting their books online? After all, you’re getting your religion news here.

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