Where will Religion be 50, 100, 250 and 500 years from now?

[The Fighting_Crusnik]

What will its impact be on society then and of what importance will it have in current matters?

My take is that 50 years from now, 60% of the worlds population will be non-religious and organizations like the Roman Catholic church will begin to crumble.

100 years from now, 75% of the world's population will be non-religious with the remaining 25% being people of two groups: the first being members of tribes that have limited contact with the surrounding world and the second being fundamentalists who are just flat out crazy...

250 years from now all of the "old" religions will be relegated to the same level for which we treat the ancient religions of the Norse, Romans, Greeks and Egyptians to philosophic mythology. However, I also suspect that some of the new religions of today like scientology and newer religions like Wicca could be major during this time period. I also suspect that new religions will probably form. All in all, the rate of religious people will probably begin to climb again.

500 years, the newer religions of today are bonified worldwide religions and many of the same struggles and fighting that we see today will repeat but for different reasons. A suspect that like now, the rate of religious people will drop again and the cycle will repeat.

So what do you think will happen in the future and do you think that there is any merit to my theory?

[Nolan]

What reasons do religions like Christianity and Islam have to go away? They're very well entrenched in their respective societies.

[FreeFocus]

I mean, this type of predicting is just pointless, aside from just having fun discussions. I think the current trend will continue in the West towards less theism. It's harder to predict how the Muslim world will come along: American imperialism and the chaos and destruction it brings to Muslim lands can either lead Muslims away from religion, or closer to it. The trend so far has been to become more religious in the face of attacks, and the institutional framework is already in place for that to continue.

I will go out and posit that Wicca and Scientology will never be major religions. I don't think there's any basis to claim that. There aren't any signs that they could be.

[The Fighting_Crusnik]

Well, I figure that they will go away or at least become humanistic because of all of the controversy that has been present and arising with extremism, the fact that science has proven many elements of religion in general to being false and the simple fact that people have begun to stop caring.

[ev]

Religions will be replaced by philosophies such as humanism and will be considered taboo in 100 years, by all means people should have the right to believe in such nonsense.. Although they shouldn't expect to be safe from ridicule, religious crackpots aren't safe from mine and yet they still have the audacity to knock on my door! - they aren't REAL people after all..

Now... In the future we'll look down on people practicing religion as crazies like we do on today's "psychics" who claim to be able to communicate with the dead (as well as the degenerates who go to see them and allow these charlatans to make a lucrative living as liars who simply prey on peoples ignorance and contribute nothing what-so-ever to society.

[ZeroNowhere]

Approximately somewhere.

[Rosa Lichtenstein]

I think this needs to be moved to 'Religion'.

[ev]

I think this needs to be moved to 'Religion'.

We should preemptively move this to chit-chat since it will only degenerate further..

Also, my guess before was conservative.. I doubt civilization will last another 50 years..

[The Fighting_Crusnik]

Yeah... this thread should be moved to chit chat. I started it with a mixture of humor and seriousness, and I see that the humor has taken over :p

[MarxSchmarx]

Moved to OI religion. Try to keep it on topic.

As regards the OP's question,my guess is that in 50 years time it would be dying and within 100 years it will be moribund (especially if the life expectancy rises substantially in the developed world) and has no chance of recovering after that. By then urbanization would be too ubiquitous as would modern communications and technology in general that religion would at best be a curiosity, something akin to palm-reading if not basically ignored. Sure there might be a few fanatics left but by and large it will remain a hobby.

[NGNM85]

Ideally, the dustbin of history. What will actually happen? Who knows?

[Amphictyonis]

The 'enlightenment' was the beginning of the end for western religion. Religion is still holding on in the west, particularly in the US and many South American nations so the end is not near but it has begun. The old side effect of colonialism is clinging. They use to burn down all non christian spiritual centers be it in South America, Europe Africa etc and build christian churches on the ruins. This obviously can't go on in the west anymore.

This sounds bad but one good side effect of the "westernization" of the middle east could perhaps be a sort of 'enlightenment' period for them (not in a cultural imperialism sort of way though) It may even be a good thing for the region to develop the means of production rather than depend so much on oil. I see Islam and Christianity as a problem for the prospect of future communism. All religion is hierarchical and archaic. If we could some how change not their beliefs but how their beliefs effect others it would be a good thing.

[Amphictyonis]

Moved to OI religion. Try to keep it on topic.

As regards the OP's question,my guess is that in 50 years time it would be dying and within 100 years it will be moribund (especially if the life expectancy rises substantially in the developed world) and has no chance of recovering after that. By then urbanization would be too ubiquitous as would modern communications and technology in general that religion would at best be a curiosity, something akin to palm-reading if not basically ignored. Sure there might be a few fanatics left but by and large it will remain a hobby.

I'm not so sure. I would wish to see organized religion dismantled but I think humans will always be asking "why". Some people may go mad without the thought of some sort of meaning or afterlife. After all this is the essence of religion. A security blanket in the face of meaninglessness. I think we shouldn't expect to eliminate humans need to have some sort of spirituality I think we should discourage organized religion. The church. The centralized church. People shouldnt be subordinate to some church and non spiritual people shouldnt be subordinate to spiritual peoples morals. Tricky stuff.

[Devrim]

It's harder to predict how the Muslim world will come along: American imperialism and the chaos and destruction it brings to Muslim lands can either lead Muslims away from religion, or closer to it.

Maybe we should start referring to the USA as 'Christian lands'.

Devrim

[Crimson Commissar]

If we're in a socialist society, then I hope that religion will be rapidly declining. Although if this pro-religion attitude that many modern communists seem to have becomes popular, then I honestly doubt that we'll even be in a secular society in 50 years. :/

[I.Drink.Your.Milkshake]

In 500 years it will be so diffuse, with so many different sects and so many new religions not even imagined yet, the term itself will be rendered entirely meaningless. More so than now. Or else nobody will have time for religion because there'll just be too much TV to watch.

[ÑóẊîöʼn]

Assuming that religion as a whole doesn't wither on the vine or transmogrify into something completely different along the way, I expect within about 500 years or so we'll have some new major religions, if not a complete re-write of the global religious composition.

What will those religions be? Who knows, but it's fun to speculate. I think it's possible that today's crackpot idea is tomorrow's world religion - UFOs could be the seed for a religion that worships aliens as gods, which could land us in several different types of hot water should any real aliens happen to come by. Maybe the religion of the future is the Temple of Perpetual Motion, with Thermodynamics being the manifestation of Ultimate Evil.

As for those positing the dominance of Abrahamism forevermore, I think their confidence is misplaced. There was once a time when nobody had heard of Abraham or his cosmic BDSM partner Yahweh, but knew of Zeus Pater and Amun-Ra (although not necessarily at the same time, mind), and before then, the countless faces of the gods of fertility, good fortune and the hunt.

Thankfully no, we have not always been tied by such a leash, and we will not always be. It is all any rational person can do to make such ideas go gentle into that good night.

[Sir Comradical]

Something like this.

http://www.wunderkabinett.co.uk/gallery/albums/userpics/10003/santa_cross.jpg

No seriously, religion will be much more fully integrated into the consumer culture, however I think the literal interpretations of most religions will be replaced with symbolic meaning. So for example Catholics no longer believe Genesis literally, but they do buy into the whole resurrection thing which they'll have to eventually abandon somewhere down the track until their religion is completely meaningless and lame.

[Raúl Duke]

There was an article published by EDGE a while back:

http://edge.org/documents/archive/edge209.html#gp

It states that we're living in a world (particularly the developed world, i.e. the "1st world") that is becoming increasingly secular, including in the US. If trends continue, there will be more non-religious and/or more "religious" people who barely practice religion (Easter Catholics, etc) outside of major holidays, etc. In other words, the future might look more and more secular.

[HammerAlias]

Religion will inevitably crumble. Spirituality, however, may exist indefinably.

[FreeFocus]

Maybe we should start referring to the USA as 'Christian lands'.

Devrim

You can. European settlement of the Americas, of which the US is an heir, was premised on the non-human status of non-Christians, rooted in papal decrees and Biblical interpretations. Moreover, the majority of the country is Christian. As we saw in 2004, there's a significant amount of Christian extremism right below the surface, dying to rise to the top to defend "Christendom."

[Dimentio]

I am thinking that traditional religious institutions will lose in importance, but hardly die out, while fundamentalist strains would be enstrengthened if the economy is worsening. Moreover, "scientific" religions like Oneness will start to grow.

-c_tJuqnp7U

[tradeunionsupporter]

I believe Religion will disappear one day.

[Lord Testicles]

I think religion is here to stay for as long as people need it.

"The abolition of religion as the illusory happiness of the people is the demand for their real happiness. To call on them to give up their illusions about their condition is to call on them to give up a condition that requires illusions." - Karl Marx

[Astarte]

The next religion will be something very much human focused - dealing with a person's own enlightenment or gnosis. I think a lot of elements of popular culture might be borrowed and co-opted by the founders to express metaphysical metaphors and illustrate esoteric allusions of "the Way". The worlds two largest religions currently, Christianity and Islam are both scions of Abrahamism ... so it will probably have some Abrahamic features, but will have to incorporate Eastern ideologies and ways of thinking such as Hinduism, Buddhism and Taoism... Christianity and Islam both arose as a result of mass movements, it is unclear as to whether future large religions will.

[Comrade Wolfie's Very Nearly Banned Adventures]

I for one, hope Jedi becomes the major religion.

In all serious: We are increasingly seeing a decline in organized religion in the western world, while people may hold personal belifes about the 'afterlife' and other such matters, I think the age of mass religion is at an end, as south america and the ME becomes richer religion will most likely begin to decline too.

[Widerstand]

50: Still going strong, still protesting homosexuality, abortions, transsexuality and women rights.
100: Still going strong, still protesting homosexuality, abortions, transsexuality, women rights and cyborg rights.
250: Still going strong, still protesting homosexuality, abortions, transsexuality, women rights, cyborg rights and alien rights.

500: http://americandigest.org/absolute-jonestown-pitcher-of-flavor-aid.jpg

[Rafiq]

Religion is becoming less and less important though. Islam is growing very fast though. But if you analyze Muslims, in places around the world, a lot of them, a good number at least, are not very religious at all. A lot of what they do has to do with culture. And with modernization, reactionary culture will go away. So religion over time will just kind of slowly die down.

[Sinister Cultural Marxist]

Every religion is different, every culture is different. I wouldn't be making sweeping generalizations because Western Europe is more secular these days.

Religion won't go away, but atheism and agnosticism will increase at least a little everywhere, and people in general will become less militant and dogmatic about their faith. I remember in Delhi it was common for many liberal Muslims and Hindus to participate in each other's feasts or go to temples of the other religion. This will start to be more common over time. Hierarchical religions will become less so over time, as people become increasingly critical of the institutionalism of the system. But there is no one predictable way global culture will develop, and I don't think there's one idealized "form" of the "enlightened Humanist man" which will exist everywhere, in every country, in the same way, in all people. Many good, rational people will still be spiritually inclined.

[Sosa]

Unless something drastic happens, religion will soon die out and will transform into something more personal/inward instead of institutional. I don't think that people will ever stop considering questions about spirituality, but I see dogmatic religions dying out and the more philosophical eastern religions like Buddhism and Taoism becoming more and more popular to replace the spiritual void that abrahamic religions try to fill. Not without a fight though, I doubt the Catholic church is going down without protecting its billions in wealth and property.

Does anyone have any stats on whether fundamentalist christianity in the US is declining or rising?

[Viet Minh]

I mean, this type of predicting is just pointless, aside from just having fun discussions. I think the current trend will continue in the West towards less theism. It's harder to predict how the Muslim world will come along: American imperialism and the chaos and destruction it brings to Muslim lands can either lead Muslims away from religion, or closer to it. The trend so far has been to become more religious in the face of attacks, and the institutional framework is already in place for that to continue.

I will go out and posit that Wicca and Scientology will never be major religions. I don't think there's any basis to claim that. There aren't any signs that they could be.

The 5th World War will be between Scitentology and Jedis. FACT! :D
Also, Jedis will win, but then will start an even bigger civil war between Yoda'ists and the Skywalker Sect

[Aurorus Ruber]

I suppose one should distinguish the cultural aspects of religion and the metaphysical claims it makes. Science has demolished or challenged much of the latter, although I don't think it can definitely refute it entirely. No scientific test, to my knowledge, can truly rule out the existence of gods or souls or similar concepts, merely push them further into the gaps of our knowledge. Still it has made them increasingly untenable and sustained more and more by counter-scientific ideologies like creationism. I think the cultural side of religion, the sense of cultural identity and shared values and so forth, will take much longer to dissipate.

[Viet Minh]

You can. European settlement of the Americas, of which the US is an heir, was premised on the non-human status of non-Christians, rooted in papal decrees and Biblical interpretations. Moreover, the majority of the country is Christian. As we saw in 2004, there's a significant amount of Christian extremism right below the surface, dying to rise to the top to defend "Christendom."

I believe religion is the key to the NWO. The Cold War was step one, The War on Islam Terror is just part two.

http://i54.tinypic.com/2rdvi44.jpg

[Red Bayonet]

People cling to religion out of fear of death. They cannot accept that 'Life tis but a few goode fuckes. And then you die'. When medical science enables humans to live as long as they like, watch religions become as extinct as the Dodo bird.

[hatzel]

People cling to religion out of fear of death.

Oh? I thought that was why people cling to the Leviathan...:confused: