'No Religion' Is World's Third-Largest Religious Group After Christians, Muslims

[Richard Amiel McGough]

Just as the printing press destroyed the domination of the Roman Catholic Church so the internet is destroying the domination of all dogmatic religions.

Here is the report from the Huffpo:

'No Religion' Is World's Third-Largest Religious Group After Christians, Muslims According To Pew Study
(http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/18/unaffiliated-third-largest-religious-group-after-christians-muslims_n_2323664.html)


REUTERS - People with no religious affiliation make up the third-largest global group in a new study of the size of the world's faiths, placing after Christians and Muslims and just before Hindus.

The study, based on extensive data for the year 2010, also showed Islam and Hinduism are the faiths mostly likely to expand in the future while Jews have the weakest growth prospects.

It showed Christianity is the most evenly spread religion, present in all regions of the world, while Hinduism is the least global with 94 percent of its population in one country, India.

Overall, 84 percent of the world's inhabitants, which it estimated at 6.9 billion, identify with a religion, according to the study entitled "The Global Religious Landscape" issued by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life on Tuesday.

The "unaffiliated" category covers all those who profess no religion, from atheists and agnostics to people with spiritual beliefs but no link to any established faith.

"Many of the religiously unaffiliated do hold religious or spiritual beliefs," the study stressed.

"Belief in God or a higher power is shared by 7 percent of unaffiliated Chinese adults, 30 percent of unaffiliated French adults and 68 percent of unaffiliated U.S. adults," it said.

[CWH]

Just as the printing press destroyed the domination of the Roman Catholic Church so the internet is destroying the domination of all dogmatic religions.

Here is the report from the Huffpo:

'No Religion' Is World's Third-Largest Religious Group After Christians, Muslims According To Pew Study
(http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/18/unaffiliated-third-largest-religious-group-after-christians-muslims_n_2323664.html)

On the other hand, internet is also helping to spread the Gospel and other religion further and wider.

It is not the numbers that count but the quality. Even if the world have 2 billion Christians and 1 billion Muslim, how many are true Christians and Muslims? It is true Christians that do the will of the Father in heaven, loving God with all their heart, soul and might and loving thy neighbor as thyself. These are the Christians God is looking for as Jesus said that not everyone that calls Him Lord, Lord will enter the kingdom of heaven except those who did the will of His Father who is in heaven. How many are wheats and how many are tares? It's like there are 1.3 billion Chinese citizens but how many are truly communist party members?

May God Bless all true believers.:pray:

[Richard Amiel McGough]

On the other hand, internet is also helping to spread the Gospel and other religion further and wider.

It is not the numbers that count but the quality.

You got that right! It's not the quantity but the quality - and that's why the internet will help free people from dogmatic religions that are not based on truth and reality. All a believer (or someone who might become a believer) needs to do is check the facts on the internet and they will be confronted with evidence that exposes the falsehoods. They can easily find the best arguments put forth by both sides and so make an informed judgement. For example, suppose a Scientologist was trying to convert you. All you need to do is Google for a few minutes and you would find that they teach that the galactic overlord Xenu (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xenu) flew all our souls (thetans) to this planet in a spacecraft that looked "exactly like a DC8" and trapped us in our bodies by putting us in a volcano and blowing it up with H-bombs. You would then have enough information to avoid getting trapped in that ridiculous religion. Likewise, suppose some Young Earth Creationist was teaching that the earth is less than 10,000 years old and that evolution was false. A few minutes on Google and you would have all the information you need to keep you safe from that error.

That's the power of the internet - anyone actually interested in the truth can quickly find the best arguments for or against any position so the weak arguments will fall. Of course, not everyone is actually interested in truth, so many people will continue to believe falsehood despite the evidence. And that's where the numbers come in to play. Most people do not want to be deluded, so they will use the internet to find freedom and truth, and that means they will reject things like the "Gospel" that are based on falsehood.

And this brings up a very strange question. From everything you have written over the years, it seems like your idea of the Gospel has many elements that are totally unique to you. As far as I can tell, you hold many beliefs that are contrary to every form of Christian I've ever read about. So when you say "spread the Gospel" it doesn't really have any meaning as far as I can tell. It seems to be nothing but empty words that mean one thing to you and something different to everyone else.

[CWH]

You got that right! It's not the quantity but the quality - and that's why the internet will help free people from dogmatic religions that are not based on truth and reality. All a believer (or someone who might become a believer) needs to do is check the facts on the internet and they will be confronted with evidence that exposes the falsehoods. They can easily find the best arguments put forth by both sides and so make an informed judgement. For example, suppose a Scientologist was trying to convert you. All you need to do is Google for a few minutes and you would find that they teach that the galactic overlord Xenu flew all our souls (thetans) to this planet in a spacecraft that looked "exactly like a DC8" and trapped us in our bodies by putting us in a volcano and blowing it up with H-bombs. You would then have enough information to avoid getting trapped in that ridiculous religion. Likewise, suppose some Young Earth Creationist was teaching that the earth is less than 10,000 years old and that evolution was false. A few minutes on Google and you would have all the information you need to keep you safe from that error.
What's the point of having lots of Christians but few who did the will of the Father who is in heaven. What difference are they compare to atheists? Thats exactly what Jesus said, they confessed to love God but their hearts are far away.


That's the power of the internet - anyone actually interested in the truth can quickly find the best arguments for or against any position so the weak arguments will fall. Of course, not everyone is actually interested in truth, so many people will continue to believe falsehood despite the evidence. And that's where the numbers come in to play. Most people do not want to be deluded, so they will use the internet to find freedom and truth, and that means they will reject things like the "Gospel" that are based on falsehood.
The power of internet also helps to spread religion far and wide. Isn't that what preterists and Christians are using to try and spread their beliefs? Just on the internet and you will find tons of creationist's materials refuting the theory of evolution; each with their own seemingly valid arguments. same as with atheists and believers. It seems the only way to solve these problems is when they literally see Jesus appearing with His host of angels in front of their eyes. He is the Truth, the way and the Life.


And this brings up a very strange question. From everything you have written over the years, it seems like your idea of the Gospel has many elements that are totally unique to you. As far as I can tell, you hold many beliefs that are contrary to every form of Christian I've ever read about. So when you say "spread the Gospel" it doesn't really have any meaning as far as I can tell. It seems to be nothing but empty words that mean one thing to you and something different to everyone else.
I have already told you from the start, I am a new breed of Christians who don't always follow mainstream Christianity. I question some mainstream Christian beliefs. Same as David. You will see more of us. I was a Preterist-Futurist remember?

God Bless.

[Richard Amiel McGough]

What's the point of having lots of Christians but few who did the will of the Father who is in heaven. What difference are they compare to atheists? Thats exactly what Jesus said, they confessed to love God but their hearts are far away.

What does being Christian have to do with "doing the will of God?" I've never seen any connection between those two concepts.

There is a HUGE difference between Christians and Atheists because Atheism is based on evidence, whereas Christianity is based on dogma.



The power of internet also helps to spread religion far and wide. Isn't that what preterists and Christians are using to try and spread their beliefs? Just on the internet and you will find tons of creationist's materials refuting the theory of evolution; each with their own seemingly valid arguments. same as with atheists and believers. It seems the only way to solve these problems is when they literally see Jesus appearing with His host of angels in front of their eyes. He is the Truth, the way and the Life.

Yes, the internet can be used by any crazy group to spread their false ideas, but that only helps keep people free because the evidence proving that they are wrong is also freely available, and most people don't want to be deluded by falsehood. Your assertion that both sides have "their own seemingly valid arguments" simply is not true. It doesn't take much intelligence to see through the errors.

Preterism is an excellent example. It began to thrive because of the internet because in the old days folks would just go to church and be taught the party line. They were never confronted with the evidence. Now the evidence is available for all to see, so more and more people understand that it is the best fit to the Biblical data. Take this forum for example. I have been debating Futurists for over five years, and not one has ever been able to support their doctrines with logic and facts. And most of their arguments are blatantly absurd and extremely easy to refute. This is why I am so confident that they are wrong.

Creationism is another excellent example. The creationists post crap that is very easy to prove false. For example, you posted a creationist video that accused evolutionists of being liars, frauds, and deceivers. I then exposed that the makers of the video were the liars, frauds, and deceivers in post #82 (http://www.biblewheel.com/forum/showthread.php?3176-What-s-the-best-evidence-for-evolution&p=46962#post46962) of that thread. You NEVER responded to the evidence I presented, so it stands. This is part of the challenge I have presented to you in the thread A Challenge for CWH (http://www.biblewheel.com/forum/showthread.php?3176-What-s-the-best-evidence-for-evolution&p=46962#post46962) that you have refused to answer for over five months. You are just like all the other creationists. When you are proven wrong, you simply refuse to answer. This is why the internet so deadly to falsehood. Only those who choose to ignore the evidence will remain deluded. Everyone else will find their way to freedom, truth, and light.



I have already told you from the start, I am a new breed of Christians who don't always follow mainstream Christianity. I question some mainstream Christian beliefs. Same as David. You will see more of us. I was a Preterist-Futurist remember?

It's great that you are thinking for yourself. Congratulations! :congrats:

But that only confirms my point. When people start thinking for themselves, they no longer are following a dogmatic religion. This is why atheists call themselves "freethinkers." Welcome to our club!

[CWH]

I don't belong to the Atheist club anyway, THANK YOU. I am still predominantly a Christian. Any person who believe in Christ and God and many of the teachings of Christianity is a Christian regardless of denomination as every Christian denomination preached the same principle, Love God with all your heart, soul and might and Love thy neighbor as thyself. That is doing God's will so that these "little ones" will not perish. Little ones mean true righteous believers.

My advice to you RAM, don't be too confident. Don't you think your confidence will fall into pieces when you see Jesus coming or the Third temple being built or God speaking directly to you just like Paul?

i have said that I can't answer those questions as the thread cannot move unless my question is answered. Don't say 5 months, even if we wait 5 years or 10 , it will not be answered unless my question is answered. Therefore, if both sides refuse to give in and answer the questions, then there is no point pursuing the challenge. You can say whatever you want or call me names, it won't bother me a bit as my conscience is clear.

God Bless.:pray:

[Richard Amiel McGough]

My advice to you RAM, don't be too confident. Don't you think your confidence will fall into pieces when you see Jesus coming or the Third temple being built or God speaking directly to you just like Paul?

The idea of a third temple is not taught anywhere in Scripture. Your beliefs are just made up by silly Futurists and you believe them for no good reason.

And if something as amazing as "God speaking directly to me" really happened, then great! Why should I worry about that? I'm speaking with the best of integrity, so there is nothing for me to change, is there?



i have said that I can't answer those questions as the thread cannot move unless my question is answered. Don't say 5 months, even if we wait 5 years or 10 , it will not be answered unless my question is answered. Therefore, if both sides refuse to give in and answer the questions, then there is no point pursuing the challenge. You can say whatever you want or call me names, it won't bother me a bit as my conscience is clear.

If you think your conscience is clear, then your conscience is corrupt because you made up your demand that I answer your question AFTER you refused to answer my questions. I've explained this to you dozens of times but you persist in your falsehood. You know it is true. Therefore, you know you are lying. If your conscience is "clear" when you are choosing to lie, then your conscience is corrupt.

Look at the red bold words in my challenge to you, and ANSWER THEM. If you cannot answer them, then you only prove the truth of my words.



CWH has repeatedly posted false assertions on this forum and when I point them out to him, he runs and hides and refuses to answer. Then he posts more false assertions, and when I prove him wrong he runs and hides and refuses to answer. So I collected up a few of his recent offenses and asked him to answer and he did as he always does. He ran and hid and refused to answer. Here is the post that he needs to answer (from post #76 (http://www.biblewheel.com/forum/showthread.php?3217-The-Simplest-Cell&p=47473#post47473) in the thread The Simplest Cell (http://www.biblewheel.com/forum/showthread.php?3217-The-Simplest-Cell)):

================================================== =======
============= CHALLENGE TO CHEOW WEE HOCK=====================
================================================== =======


I have asked a simple question but instead receive a long reply unrelated to my request. The question is :

Oh, so you want to act like the Cleverbot (http://www.biblewheel.com/forum/showthread.php?3243-AI-Cleverbot-ain-t-so-clever) again? That ain't so clever, my friend. When the Cleverbot gets stumped it starts robotically mimicking the human. That's what you are doing right now. You have refused to answer many of my questions no matter how many times I ask. You evade, dodge, falsely claim that you did answer, and change the subject. So now in your mindless robotic brain you think you are going to throw all that back in my face and pretend that I'm the one who refuses to answer questions? Fat chance.

I would be happy to answer your questions after you demonstrate that you are not just a Cleverbot. Here is what you need to do:

1) Admit that you were wrong in post #58 (http://www.biblewheel.com/forum/showthread.php?3217-The-Simplest-Cell&p=47425#post47425) of this thread when you falsely asserted that the scientific report implied "500 million year old genes and no mutations." I have brought this to your attention twice and you have refused to acknowledge the question, let alone admit your error.

2) Answer my questions about the video link I posted in post #11 (http://www.biblewheel.com/forum/showthread.php?3217-The-Simplest-Cell&p=47118#post47118). I repeated the same questions four times but you refused to answer. Here is how I presented the questions in post #33 (http://www.biblewheel.com/forum/showthread.php?3217-The-Simplest-Cell&p=47209#post47209):
What was the conclusion stated in the video?

What evidence did the scientists give to support their conclusion?

Is their conclusion supported by the evidence? If not, why not?

Please try to answer those questions with some semblance of intelligence.

3) You recently challenged me to answer a 90 minute creationist video after you refused to respond to the answers I had already given to the 9 minute video you posted in post #75 (http://www.biblewheel.com/forum/showthread.php?3176-What-s-the-best-evidence-for-evolution&p=46949#post46949) of the What's the Best Evidence for Evolution? (http://www.biblewheel.com/forum/showthread.php?3176-What-s-the-best-evidence-for-evolution) thread. In post #82 (http://www.biblewheel.com/forum/showthread.php?3176-What-s-the-best-evidence-for-evolution&p=46962#post46962) of that thread I showed that the video was produced by creationist liars, frauds, and deceivers. So if you want me to answer another video or any other question you present, you must first respond to the answers I have already given.

4) Demonstrate that you have any knowledge of evolution at all by presenting the best evidence for the theory in the thread called What's the Best Evidence for Evolution? (http://www.biblewheel.com/forum/showthread.php?3176-What-s-the-best-evidence-for-evolution).

5) Admit that you have been deliberately evading these questions that I have been repeating over and over and over again. I collected them all together earlier in post #59 (http://www.biblewheel.com/forum/showthread.php?3217-The-Simplest-Cell&p=47426#post47426) of this thread and you ignored them all as usual. Then you tried to cover your tracks by changing the subject. Your behavior is making me think that you really are a Cleverbot. I'm not joking. I am seriously considering the possibility that I'm being hoaxed by some "clever" programmers who want to see how long it will take me to figure it out. You show no signs of any human awareness at all. You write like you are a machine that does not understand context, meaning, or trains of thought. If you are human, then please try to demonstrate this by responding intelligently to what I am saying to you.

Thanks!

:sunny: