Religious "Nones" are now the largest Cohort in America

 Pew Research reported today that when Americans were about their religious affiliation the largest group of people said, "none." Compared to 23% who are Catholics and 24% Evangelistic Protestants.

A dramatic increase from 2007 when 16% of America's were nones.does  46% of the nones said they do not like religious organizations. 

Some of the other findings were,

Most “nones” believe in God or another higher power. But very few go to religious services regularly.

Most say religion does some harm, but many also think it does some good. They are not uniformly anti-religious.

Most “nones” reject the idea that science can explain everything. But they express more positive views of science than religiously affiliated Americans do.

Click to read,

Religious ‘Nones’ in America: Who They Are and What They Believe

Has the rise of religious ‘nones’ come to an end in the U.S.?

Majority of Americans Seek Spirituality in Nature

Earlier this month Pew Research did its first analysis of the incidence of people considering themselves as being spiritual.Previously Pew looked at the growth of people considering themselves to be spiritual versus being religious. It found that 7 out 10 Americans consider themselves to be spiritual.

What was particularly interesting about the report was that the majority of those people who sought to experience  spirituality went to Nature to do so. Fully 77% of Americans spent in Nature a few times a month. Versus 64% that looked inward and 38% that meditated.

Some of the other findings in the report were;

-83% of all U.S. adults believe people have a soul or spirit in addition to their physical body.

-81% say there is something spiritual beyond the natural world, even if we cannot see it.

-74% say there are some things that science cannot possibly explain.

-45% say they have had a sudden feeling of connection with something from beyond this world.

-38% say they have had a strong feeling that someone who has passed away was communicating with them from beyond this world.

-30% say they have personally encountered a spirit or unseen spiritual force.