The Future of Religion

1
The Future of Religion
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Discussion Questions

• How do you think religion will change during your
  lifetime?
• What forms of religion will be most compelling
  and successful?
• How do you think this might impact the
  sociological study of religion?

3
Revisiting the Church You Created

• If your goal is to maximize membership,
  commitment, and sense of we-ness, considering
  what you have learned, reevaluate your religion.
• How would you change the core beliefs and rules
  of your group and your basic worldview/ideology?
  What thou shalts and thou shalt nots would you
  add/take away?
• What would you change about how you will get your
  members to comply with group rules?
• How would you change the organization of your
  group? How would you choose leaders? Paid or
  volunteer clergy? Small or large
  congregation-size?
• How would you fund your group? Member donations?
  Government subsidies? Etc.?

4
The Electronic Church

• Television ministries such as Billy Graham, Pat
  Robertson, Oral Roberts, Robert Schuller, and
  Jimmy Baker.
• Internet Religious Sites generally created by
  various religious denominations. For example, the
  LDS, Baptist and Methodist websites.

5
Television Ministries

• 5 of the national television audience regularly
  view religious programming (10 million people).
• 20 of the national television audience view some
  religious program every week (40 million people).
  NORC 2001

6
Religious Activities on the Internet

• 25 of internet users have searched for religious
  or spiritual information (20 million people).
• Each day, more than three million people look for
  religious or spiritual information on the
  internet.
• More people have gotten religious information
  than have gambled online, used web auction sites,
  traded stocks online, done online banking or used
  an internet dating service.

7
The Church of Fools
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Final Thoughts

• We have focused on the human side of religion
• Religious people are not crazy, indeed they are
  as normal as everyone else
• I hope you have gained a better understand of
  what drives religious behavior