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#1270974 - 09/29/10 08:51 AM
More Evidence That Religion Makes You Dumb?
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Pelvic Missionary
Registered: 03/17/05
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If you want to know about God, you might want to talk to an atheist.
Heresy? Perhaps. But a survey that measured Americans' knowledge of religion found that atheists and agnostics knew more, on average, than followers of most major faiths. In fact, the gaps in knowledge among some of the faithful may give new meaning to the term "blind faith."
Atheists and agnostics -- those who believe there is no God or who aren't sure -- were more likely to answer the survey's questions correctly. Jews and Mormons ranked just below them in the survey's measurement of religious knowledge -- so close as to be statistically tied.
So why would an atheist know more about religion than a Christian?
American atheists and agnostics tend to be people who grew up in a religious tradition and consciously gave it up, often after a great deal of reflection and study, said Alan Cooperman, associate director for research at the Pew Forum.
"These are people who thought a lot about religion," he said. "They're not indifferent. They care about it."
Atheists and agnostics also tend to be relatively well educated, and the survey found, not surprisingly, that the most knowledgeable people were also the best educated. However, it said that atheists and agnostics also outperformed believers who had a similar level of education.
[...]
He said he found it significant that Mormons, who are not considered Christians by many fundamentalists, showed greater knowledge of the Bible than evangelical Christians.
"I think that what happens for many Christians is, they accept their particular faith, they accept it to be true and they stop examining it. Consequently, because it's already accepted to be true, they don't examine other people's faiths. That, I think, is not healthy for a person of any faith," he said.
[...]
_________________________
I come from a long line of people who convinced others to sleep with them.
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#1270975 - 09/29/10 09:11 AM
Re: More Evidence That Religion Makes You Dumb?
[Re: Shirley]
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Bowl Cut Boy
Registered: 09/01/04
Loc: JRP lunchroom
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Cue the "Shirley hates religion" crowd in 3, 2, 1...
_________________________
"You can't spell "sucked" without SEC."
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#1270976 - 09/29/10 09:12 AM
Re: More Evidence That Religion Makes You Dumb?
[Re: chiknbut]
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Wilt Chamberlain
Registered: 09/13/02
Loc: Korova Milkbar
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I wanna take the test!
On the contrary, I think the results mean that if you're dumb you believe in God. It's a chicken/egg hypothesis
_________________________
No time for the old in/out. Just here to check the meter.
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#1270980 - 09/29/10 10:04 AM
Re: More Evidence That Religion Makes You Dumb?
[Re: Shirley]
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Wilt Chamberlain
Registered: 05/17/04
Loc: Flint Hills
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"I think that what happens for many Christians is, they accept their particular faith, they accept it to be true and they stop examining it"
Same marketing scheme as pork barrel politics. Get em used to nodding "Yes" with comman fact then throw in the add-ons.
_________________________
"Better to do less well than more poorly." Appy
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#1270981 - 09/29/10 10:10 AM
Re: More Evidence That Religion Makes You Dumb?
[Re: appyhawk]
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Registered: 02/22/10
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This is nothing new. Most 'Christians' have no clue what the bible actually says. They are some of the dumbest people on the planet.
_________________________
"And you post at the pleasure of the moderators.
Who do you think you are?" - Geezer
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#1270982 - 09/29/10 10:14 AM
Re: More Evidence That Religion Makes You Dumb?
[Re: jeffreylebowski2]
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Wilt Chamberlain
Registered: 05/17/04
Loc: Flint Hills
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What do you mean by "actually says"? Ever heard of inerrancy?
_________________________
"Better to do less well than more poorly." Appy
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#1270983 - 09/29/10 10:17 AM
Re: More Evidence That Religion Makes You Dumb?
[Re: appyhawk]
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Registered: 02/22/10
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Yes.
What I mean is that 90% have never read the Bible for themselves and tried to understand it's meaning. They just sit in church and nod their heads as whatever their 'pasture sais'
They are sheep. Most of them, proud of it.
_________________________
"And you post at the pleasure of the moderators.
Who do you think you are?" - Geezer
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#1270985 - 09/29/10 10:19 AM
Re: More Evidence That Religion Makes You Dumb?
[Re: JHAWKinKY]
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Registered: 02/22/10
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My keyboard
_________________________
"And you post at the pleasure of the moderators.
Who do you think you are?" - Geezer
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#1270986 - 09/29/10 10:27 AM
Re: More Evidence That Religion Makes You Dumb?
[Re: jeffreylebowski2]
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Wilt Chamberlain
Registered: 09/13/02
Loc: Korova Milkbar
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I know God won't let you into heaven if you put cheese on BBQ.
_________________________
No time for the old in/out. Just here to check the meter.
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#1270987 - 09/29/10 11:34 AM
Re: More Evidence That Religion Makes You Dumb?
[Re: RManFlint]
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Max Falkenstien
Registered: 12/03/05
Loc: Lexington, KY
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The zman is the work of satan.
_________________________
Defense. Rebounds.
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#1270988 - 09/29/10 11:37 AM
Re: More Evidence That Religion Makes You Dumb?
[Re: jhawks99]
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Proudly Derivative.
Registered: 01/29/07
Loc: District of Columbia
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I love this thread.
It confirms just about everything you could want to know about those who take it seriously.
_________________________
Doodie is not collective; it is personal
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