Wednesday, September 28, 2005 New UK Study: Religion Hurts not Helps USA This study ought to give the God Squads a born-again aneurysm (via the Times UK): Religious belief can cause damage to a society, contributing towards high murder rates, abortion, sexual promiscuity and suicide. According to the study, belief in and worship of God are not only unnecessary for a healthy society but may actually contribute to social problems, and most in the US will refuse to accept this: The devotion of many in the US may actually contribute to its ills. "Many Americans agree that their churchgoing nation is an exceptional, God-blessed, shining and impressive example for an increasingly sceptical world. But, the US was the world’s only prosperous democracy where murder rates were still high, rates of gonorrhea in adolescents in the US were up to 300 times higher than in less devout democratic countries, & the US also suffered from "uniquely high" adolescent and adult syphilis infection rates, and adolescent abortion rates." In general, higher rates of belief in and worship of a creator correlate with higher rates of homicide, juvenile and early adult mortality, STD infection rates, teen pregnancy and abortion in the prosperous democracies. Say it ain't so... the preach-happy do not practice what they preach? What's next? Abstinence only classes don't keep kids from boinking? That would be soooo shocking. Perhaps if people actually read and understood the teachings and words of Jesus, and stopped twisting His lessons into an ugly, hatefilled, intolerant, political & greedy agenda, religion couldn't hurt a nation. |