A new survey by Trinity College found that 75% of Americans consider themselves Christian, down from 86% in 1990. The study concluded that the missing 11% had not largely migrated to other religions. Instead, most had gone over to the "dark side" of logic and reason.
You'd never know it watching athletes, though. Last night I was watching the seniors give their post-game speeches after North Carolina defeated Duke in basketball. The first three seniors to speak gave some variation of this: "I just want to give thanks and glory to God, because without him, I wouldn't be here."
I guess if you believe in a divine creator, the statement is literally true. But it would hardly be worth mentioning, since none of us would "be here" if not for said creator. I think, though, that the players are referring to "here" as senior night in the DeanDome, playing for one of the top college basketball programs in the country. So my response is, what does God have to do with that?
As much as I love Tarheel basketball, I am convinced that if there is a God, he is not watching basketball or worrying about whether the 12th man walk-on is feeling chipper about a 40 minute contest involving a ball and a hoop. In fact, if there is a God, I'm pretty sure he's never heard of J.B. Tanner. Or you. Or me.
Keep in mind, these athletes started by thanking God (or in one case, Jesus). Not their coaches. Not their teammates. Not their fans. Not their parents! But God or Jesus. (It's worth pointing out that even Christians realize Jesus is dead). To them, God/Jesus has more to do with them being on the floor, as seniors at UNC, than their parents, who by any measure are certainly the athlete's true creators.
That's not unusual. Quarterback throws a touchdown pass and points to the sky. Thanks God for watching the game and making me throw a touchdown pass. I wonder what the religious defensive back thinks about God after that play. Why did the QB get the glory and the DB got burned? Duplicitous as always, religion says that God was teaching DB some kind of lesson. All in the "great plan."
So what's with the survey? Are many Americans turning away from religion while athletes are turning toward it? I think the answer might lie elsewhere in the study, which found that evangelical Christianity is on the rise. It is the mainstream religions that are losing ground. The evangelical brand of Christianity is more likely to give a shout out to the big man in the sky(?).
That's really interesting, because like politics, we are seeing polarization in the religions. Mainstream Christians are either going hardcore evangelistic, or bailing out altogether. One of the Trinity College representatives said that those who are bailing out are bailing out because they see the others heading for evangelism. They are turned off by religion because of the phenomenon.
That's probably true to a degree. I have another theory: the proliferation and accessibility of information. One of religion's great strengths is to explain away uncertainties. People are comforted by answers. When there's no real answer, insert God. Voila, answer! Never mind that it isn't actually an answer. It'll do.
Now, in the Information Age, with knowledge largely a push button away, we are growing to expect real answers. Moreover, the more information becomes a part of our cultural lives, the more curious we become. Intellectual investigation is not religion's sweet spot. The answers religion used to give are less satisfying to a lot of folks now.
In closing, I'd just like to say "Thanks be to Bill Gates, for without him I would not be typing this blog post. Oh, and my parents and teachers too I guess [insert begrudging tone]."
