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Just because someone is not a Christian or does not identify with any religious group does not make them an atheist. People can believe in god or be spiritual in their own way without being a Christian or belonging to any other religion.
I think in most countries the Christians and/or religious groups out number the atheists though.
AnswerIt is difficult to say. In most western countries Christians outnumber atheists by varying degrees. However, This is not always the case. In many former Warsaw Pact countries atheists outnumber Christians, as well as in France. In non-Christian countries atheists probably outnumber Christians too. AnswerFurther to the above - about 69 per cent of Chinese citizens are reported not to have religious beliefs. This would amount to about 900 million atheists in just one country. The vast majority of those in China who do profess a religious belief are Buddhists and Daoists, however a small minority openly practise Islam or Christianity. AnswerSome statistics are notoriously unreliable. For example, in the former Warsaw pact countries, and as is still very much the case today in China, it is a dangerous thing (or was, in the case of the former Soviet bloc) to be a Christian. Christians suffer imprisonment and persecution for their faith. So, for the great majority, in order to avoid this, they will 'go along' with the official party line which is atheism in all of the Communist countries. This external threat itself makes the figures unreliable.Similarly, although different, in many western countries, at least in the not too distant past, it was somewhat fashionable to call oneself a Christian, even if one rarely attended a church and had no practical ongoing relationship with Jesus Christ. Persecution did not follow but sometimes social stigma did, although this is now changing.
What also muddies the waters is that surveys rely on what people say and cannot really judge what is the real situation. Since Christian faith is a matter of the heart and of reality, not just outward profession, many may claim to be Christian of one kind or another who are, in fact 'practical atheists', in that God never enters their thinking in any meaningful way, except in some kind of occasional religious observance to appease their conscience (from what they are not quite sure).
Since true Christianity is a heart and soul commitment it is likely that the real figures are therefore much lower. So, even though more people, even many more, may claim to be Christian than atheist, this may not be a true figure, just as the reverse may be possible under the duress of real and active persecution.
In any case, although this is an interesting question, it matters not really in terms of the respective truth of either system of belief how many believe in them. If God is true, and the poster of this piece is among those who know that He is, then it matters not who does or doesn't believe. He still exists and is a rewarder of those individuals who diligently seek Him, as He has been in every age, regardless of what the rest of the crowd is doing.
My best guess would be that there may well be a few more real Christians than atheists. However the figures would seem to indicate a much greater majority overall of Christians. I do not believe these figures for the reasons stated above. Nor would anything coming out of a country which persecutes believers be considered reliable. China is just one example of a country with censorship, where the daily reality of the 60 million plus who are reported to be in the secret house church movement is to face persecution and imprisonment, especially the leaders. In such countries, where to openly practice Christianity may be costly, it is likely that many who are non-commital will opt to be known as atheist for the sake of peace.
AnswerIn 2005 Christianity accounted for 33% of the world population. This contrasts to non-religious which accounted for 16% of the world population. However, non-religious is broken up into both Agnostic and Atheists. Overall, around 8% of the world is Atheist.Therefore, depending on the reliability of the statistics, Christianity is around three times larger than those identifying at Atheists.
source: http://www.adherents.com/Religions_By_Adherents.html
AnswerHas to be more christians. its tradition being a part of your family, community culture! AnswerAll published surveys on religious affiliation and atheism need to be viewed with great caution. Obvious points include these:- Was everyone asked the same questions?
- Did the participants have the freedom to answer honestly, without fear?
- Are all the participants accustomed to answering surveys? (After all, for some people it might have been the first survey that they ever took part in).
- How meaningful and relevant were the questions? For example, a question like 'Do you believe in a life force?' doesn't indicate much.
- Are the results based on actual surveys of individuals, or were representatives of various religious and non-religious organizations simply asked for their best estimates?
- How were 'nominal Christians' - the sort of people who go to church once a year for a sing-song at Christmas - classified?
Wiki User
∙ 13y ago
Wiki User
∙ 13y agoAnswer:
The problem is getting an honest answer to generate the figures.
In many countries atheists are pretty much despised by the "moral majority". In some areas being an out of the closet atheist is a capital crime. Politicians never admit to being other than religious to avoid offending the electorate.
As far as atheists being "religious" since that is their "belief", it is the same as saying that not playing Baseball is a sport.
However, given the number of people that profess a faith of some sort, it could be said that there are definitely more religious than atheist people around. Having said that, many tick the box "Christian" or "Islam" or whatever else simply because they can and always have, or are required to by government law.
(New person adding a thought) I think some atheists will hesitate to identify themselves because of the problem with discrimination. You could lose the opportunity to be hired or promoted if your boss is religious and finds out you are an atheist Some reports recently indicate that soldiers are being discriminated against if they do not act as though they are evangelical Christians, and could be in mortal danger if it was thought they were atheists. I know that I made sure I never publicly stated I was an atheist until I retired, and after retirement, working at a motel, I avoided religious discussions of that topic with guests.
I like the description, above, of why Atheism is not a "belief." Best one I've seen in years.
Wiki User
∙ 8y agoNo. Most all statistics would point to Christianity representing over 30% of the world population. It is much harder to calculate the number of people professing to be atheists, though a modern trend seems to have this group increasing but not reaching large percentages.
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Why there is an atheist?
There are more than "an atheist". Atheists and the non-religious make up between 7 and 25% of most countries' populationsAs to why there are atheists - you only have to think it through.
Do atheists perform Satanic rituals?
No. Most atheists do not believe in Satan any more than they believe in God, and they consider satanist rituals to be as pointless as any other religious rituals.
What do religious people think of atheists?
Opinion:Generally, religionists have very little respect for atheists. Curiously, they view the atheist as a threat to their own beliefs and think of atheists in religious terms since they seem to possess no other way to describe how a person views human existence. Perhaps they are put off by fact-based thinking. Many preachers condemn atheists from their pulpits, consider them to be agents of "Satan" and promote a mythology of all the bad things atheists do. Many religionists are obsessed with atheists and believe that atheists are obsessed with religionists. Of course, that is not true since atheists care little for what others believe and are not dedicated to forcing their non-belief on others.
Are atheists terrorists?
Generally, No. There certainly have been terrorists who do not believe in God, e.g. are Atheists. However, the vast majority of Atheists are not terrorists and there are fewer Atheist terrorists per capita than any other religious group. Atheists in the United States are slandered as terrorists and similar by religious people who may feel threatened by them or find their lack of belief repellent. This is simply name-calling and does not change the reality of whether Atheists commit acts of terror.
What are three sentences for the word atheists?
Atheists are people who do not believe in religion.The atheists were the most calm and rational people involved in the debate.Studies find that atheists are generally happier and more successful than those who follow Christianity.
What are American atheists?
American Atheists, eh? Well, being one I would have to say they are Atheists who are more involved in promoting science, reason, and rational thought over religion. In other countries such as Sweden or the UK. You would not have to do this because most of the people in said countries already know how important science is. Giving them a higher percentage of non-religious people. Like the Reason Rally that recently took place in DC. That couldn't have been imagined in somewhere like the UK because they don't need a rally for reason. America is somewhere around 85% Christian, and 15% Non-religious. It is said that there are more non-religious because there are those who don't want to tell their families because they are afraid of what they might think of them. On the other-hand, Sweden is 85% non-religious and the UK 48% non-religious. And such rallies are unnecessary. All in all, american atheists are atheists who live in America and are subject to religious dogma more often than that of other countries.
What job sector employs the greatest amount of atheists?
Each job sector employs people who, because they are people, fall into many categories. There is no data to suggest one type of work attracts atheists more than another, or that employers in one industry will seek out atheists, or the reverse, more than in another. It might be theorized that the religious (church) sector could employ fewer atheists than in other sectors, but since atheism is frequently a privately-held belief there is no way of knowing. As far as suitability for any type of employment, it is difficult to see how any kind of belief could affect the worker or applicant for work, or their employer. Again, committed and overt atheists would probably not be found in significant numbers in the religious sector, just as few committed and overt vegetarians would be unlikely to be found working in the meat production industry.
Old people tend to become more religious as they age true or false?
Old people are more religious than young people. This is because they know more than the young.
Why are there more universities established by theists compared to none by atheists?
A:The first university in the world, the Academy, was founded by Socrates, who expressed views that could be regarded as atheist rather than pagan. In modern times, atheists do not formally organise specifically as atheists, so there is no central organisation of atheists. However, atheists rely on and encourage the secular governments to set up universities. The best universities in the wolrd are these secular universities. Those universities set up by religious groups are almost always dedicated to achieving religious objectives, iand often favour the advancement of religious students in preference to non-religious applicants.
What do you think of atheists?
This isn't really an opinion service! Atheists are people who don't believe in a god. Plenty of people don't believe, there is no evidence that atheists are better or worse than theists - it's easy to think of evil things done by atheists (Stalin) or theists (911 bombers) just as it's easy to think of good things done by atheists (Churchill, Bob Geldof, Betrand Russell) and theists (Ghandi).Views on atheists differ widely.Among the religious, atheists are many times used a symbol of moral decay of society. To the religious, godlessness is something to be feared. Many people like to equate atheism with the works of brutal dictators and extremist leaders, like Stalin, Mao, Hitler, etc. This being said, there are plenty of religious people who understand that atheists are not evil simply because of their lack of faith.To atheists themselves, the idea that there is no such thing as God is simply a statement of rationality. It often does take courage to admit such a view, as it is not widely held in the United States. Generally, atheists are highly committed to social justice and the welfare of humanity as a whole.
What percent of atheists revert to Christianity?
Revert is the wrong word in this case. We are all atheists at birth. Religion is a learned behavior and children are indoctrinated into the religion of their parents. Your question illustrates the arrogance of religiosity. While some atheists may adopt religious beliefs there are more than Christianity to choose from. In any case, there are no statistics.
Do non-religious people care less regarding justice than religious people?
well, it depends on which religion. if you could state the question more specifically, it would be very helpful. Also, it depends on who you are.AnswerUnless we know the person concerned, we can never say if a religious person is cares more about justice than a non-religious person or vice versa. Atheists accept people as they find them, seeing good in people where there is good, and recognising arrogance or dishonesty when these traits exist. Mahatma Gandhi is an excellent example of a religious person (Jain faith) who cared about justice, but there are many non-religious people who also care. AnswerYou don't have to believe in an invisible super being who will either reward or punish you for eternity when you die to believe in justice.
