Is The Younger Generation Less Religious ?

According to a new study by the Pew Forum, it looks like the younger generation is less religious than older generations. In answering the question "What is your religious preference (protestant, catholic, jewish, other religion or no religion)", a full 26% of those born in 1981 or later chose "no religion" as their answer. In fact, as the above graph shows, a higher percentage of each generation chose "no religion" than the generation that preceded it. Here are the percentages:

born 1981 and after..........26%

born 1965 to 1980..........20%

born 1946 to 1964..........13%

born 1928 to 1945..........8%

born before 1928..........5%

Church attendence seems to bear out the above percentages, showing the youngest generation attends church less often than their elders. Once again, it shows each generation attends church less than the preceding generation. Here are the percentages of those who said they attended church weekly or nearly every week:

born 1981 and after..........18%

born 1965 to 1980..........27%

born 1946 to 1964..........32%

born 1928 to 1945..........44%

born before 1928..........56%

Just looking at the above percentages for religious affiliation and church attendence, one could make the assumption that the younger generation has a higher percentage of atheists, and that could be true. After all, each generation has shown a growth in atheism by a small percentage.

However, there were some other questions in the survey that may show that percentage may not be as great as the religious affiliation and church attendence makes it seem. The survey then zeroed in on those with no religious affiliation and asked them some more questions. The answers show that these youngsters with no religious affiliation may still have some of the mythical beliefs of their parents. Consider the following. Some of those saying they have "no religion" still believe in:

god..........34%

life after death..........54%

heaven..........46%

hell..........34%

Obviously, not all of those who said they have "no religion" are atheists, and some of these unaffiliated youth may well find a church to affiliate themselves with later in life. I still believe this generation will show a decrease in theistic beliefs, but it will probably be by a smaller percentage than many of us had hoped. Mythical beliefs, especially christian, still have a strong hold on all generations in America.