Topography Of Faith In The US *Map*

[Feuer Frei!]

An interactive map showing the Faiths in each State:

http://www.usatoday.com/news/graphics/pew-religion-08/flash.htm

[Castout]

That cannot be right. Most Americans are atheist in my understanding :DL

[Jimbuna]

That cannot be right. Most Americans are atheist in my understanding :DL

Certainly no suprises with the Utah result :DL

[Platapus]

USAToday forgot one important classification

People who claim to be christians but don't really make any effort to live like one except for Sundays and a few holidays a year. :yep:

[Castout]

Certainly no suprises with the Utah result :DL

I noticed that too Mormon majority.

[Feuer Frei!]

USAToday forgot one important classification

People who claim to be christians but don't really make any effort to live like one except for Sundays and a few holidays a year. :yep:
There's a reason why Sinners aren't included in the map.

[Penguin]

Some observations:

- The map only shows 96% of the states.
- Catholizism is on the rise (solely through immigration?)
- evangelical, mainline and black protestantism? D'oh! I will never understand the different fractions of protestantism - we call it all evangelical here, while the "evangelical christians" in the US sense are a small minority here (re-imported mostly);
- God hates Oregon (or vice versa)


People who claim to be christians but don't really make any effort to live like one except for Sundays and a few holidays a year. :yep:

If they would live like this on Sundays, they would have to put their priests to death, as those work on the holy sabbath ;) (Exodus 35:2)

[Castout]

There's a reason why Sinners aren't included in the map.

Yeah it's a topography of religion or religious belief that one subscribes.

It's not a topography of spirituality :DL You can't measure that. Only God knows that.

[Herr-Berbunch]

I'll avoid Mississippi then - only 6% unaffiliated and almost the highest rate of evangelicals :o

[nikimcbee]

I'll avoid Mississippi then - only 6% unaffiliated and almost the highest rate of evangelicals :o

You should see some of those mega-supersized churches in Texas.:o Talk about big business!

[Sailor Steve]

Certainly no suprises with the Utah result :DL
Actually I was surprised at the 58%. Last I heard Utah was 70% Mormon. On the other hand Salt Lake City is only about 50% Mormon (and 31% Catholic), which is mainly because of the suburban movement starting in the 1920s, when Mormons were the "old money" and moved out first.

USAToday forgot one important classification

People who claim to be christians but don't really make any effort to live like one except for Sundays and a few holidays a year. :yep:
That's one I always try to bring up in religious discussions. Just because someone claims to be something on a survey doesn't mean they practice it or even believe it.

[AVGWarhawk]

Interesting to note as you start in Maine and move south the Catholic religion dominates to the Mid-Atlantic states. Keep going south and Evangelical start to over take all others.

[Armistead]

I think the Civil War era dictated the religious structure of our nation.

[AVGWarhawk]

Would be a interesting study! :hmmm:

[August]

35k accurately represents an entire nation of 300 million? Sounds like a bunch of bull to me...

[mookiemookie]

35k accurately represents an entire nation of 300 million? Sounds like a bunch of bull to me...

Not bull at all: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sampling_(statistics)

With a margin of error of 0.6%, I'd say that's a well constructed survey.

[August]

Not bull at all: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sampling_(statistics) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sampling_%28statistics%29)

With a margin of error of 0.6%, I'd say that's a well constructed survey.


Yeah I know what the statisticians claim but I just don't believe it.

[Penguin]

For Germany, with 80 million inhabitants, the usual sample size is 1000-2000, with astonishing precise results, so 35000 for the US seems sufficent.
A good poll shows the error of margin, though 0.6% seems really a little too low- a low margin rate is considered +-2%.

[nikimcbee]

- God hates Oregon (or vice versa)


:har: He just hates ore-gone football.

I finally got a computer that had working flash, so I could see the map. I kinda question the accuracy of it and it would be interesting if they broke down some of the states by regions.

Regarding the mormons, that is mainly a Western (US) religion. I was kinda surprized that their numbers weren't higher in ID, OR, Ca, WA,WY, and AZ. Utah demographics are quite interesting. If you're familiar with UT geography, we'll break them up into 3 regions: Everything north of SLC (Ogden), SL valley, Ut valley (Provo). SL valley= ~50% Mormon, North of SL= ~90%, and UT valley =~95% mormon:o (Ducimus makes up the 5%:haha:)

I was kinda surprized the Jehovah Witnesses numbers were low, as they are one of the faster growing religions(?) Maybe they aren't growing anymore(?) Their big growth spike came during the Vietnam War afaik.

The numbers I'd be interested in seeing are: how many people actively/consistantly go to a church; the +/- numbers for each religious group. People who join or quit.

[August]

...with astonishing precise results...

How precise? Can you name a specific instance?

[nikimcbee]

Yeah I know what the statisticians claim but I just don't believe it.

I think people see what they want to see sometimes or skew the questions to get the results they want:shifty::dead:. (see city of Portland politics:nope:)

Would you rather build a eco-friendly, green bike bridge
or
smash kittens?

uh... build the bridge.

[nikimcbee]

For Germany, with 80 million inhabitants, the usual sample size is 1000-2000, with astonishing precise results, so 35000 for the US seems sufficent.
A good poll shows the error of margin, though 0.6% seems really a little too low- a low margin rate is considered +-2%.

That depends on the sample group. You need a truely random sample (which doesn't always happen:nope:) (they cherry-pick their sample group)

[Tribesman]

I was kinda surprized the Jehovah Witnesses numbers were low, as they are one of the faster growing religions
Maybe the people doing the survey hung up on them.

[August]

I've never once seen an election result that came within pre-election poll margins of error. In fact multiple polls always produce often widely varying results. That just should not be if they were as accurate as the pollsters claim they are.

[Herr-Berbunch]

That's one I always try to bring up in religious discussions. Just because someone claims to be something on a survey doesn't mean they practice it or even believe it.

In one of my wife's lessons she asks the question - Is religion/faith something you are/have, or something you do? (Or something along those lines.)

For example is the old lady who knits stuff for charity, believes in god, but never goes to church, a better person/or more religious than someone who goes to church twice a week but employs an accountant and goes to excessive lengths to 'work around' paying taxes? :hmmm: And myriad other versions.

[Feuer Frei!]

Map of Faith, globally, in 2002:

http://www.mapsorama.com/maps/world/map_world_religions.gif

[Penguin]

How precise? Can you name a specific instance?

Yes, it gets verified at elections. The polls used to be less precise, but I think the institutes meanwhile found a method to calculate the human factor in.
It would be interesting if they also calculated it in the OP's poll, as in polls about personal things people tend to paint a better picture of themselves - which would be a faithfull picture in this case.

I don't have the right word for it atm,it has a fancy scientific name, it is the thing about people giving social acceptable answers - for example fewer admit to vote radical parties than they do at elections.

[Penguin]

The numbers I'd be interested in seeing are: how many people actively/consistantly go to a church; the +/- numbers for each religious group. People who join or quit.

I only have this link about protestant church attendence:
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/Religion/post/2010/12/god-church-attendance-/1

There is the thing I talked in my previous post: about 40% say they'd attend church, while only every second who says so, really goes.(23%)

[August]

Yes, it gets verified at elections.

I notice you don't name a specific instance but maybe that can indeed happen in Deutchland. It doesn't happen here though. If 20 polls get conducted on a subject they'll get 20 different answers, all claiming to be with less than a couple percentage points of complete accuracy.

[danasan]

Maybe this can be an example: Edit: Source
(http://www.wahlrecht.de/umfragen/index.htm)
http://img845.imageshack.us/img845/372/capture0011608201118432.jpg

The question is something like: Which party would you elect, if elections were next Sunday.

The matrix: From left to right the different institutions which raised the question on different days within a month.

From top to bottom the different parties with the results.

On the right hand side the real official figures from the election two years ago.

On election's day, the "forecast" is always +/- 2 percent, rather precise.

Edit: Do not struggle about the results of FDP and Grüne, there is some reason for that....

[Osmium Steele]

I was kinda surprized the Jehovah Witnesses numbers were low, as they are one of the faster growing religions(?)

I became a Witness, then realized I was number 144,001 and I was screwed anyway. :doh:

[flatsixes]

I became a Witness, then realized I was number 144,001 and I was screwed anyway. :doh:

I had that problem, too, before I bumped off Number 112,456.

Quick survey: If a surveyor asked you questions about your religion/faith/practices, you would:
1. Answer truthfully
2. Say "It's none of your damned business."
3. Describe your worship of Noxbuk Humgralok, Vampire Lord of the Black Shadow of Icky Gooze behind the Game Stop on South Avenue Thursday evenings.
4. Both 1 & 3 above (which is a bit scary).

My point being is that I would have hung up before they finished question 1.

[Sailor Steve]

I'm an easy mark. I'll talk to anybody.

[Alex]

About mormons : Remember to keep that american stuff at home as much as you can. ;)
I'll remain courteous and will just tell you we don't have much to do with this bunch of elegant moralizing innocents dressed like penguins delivering toilet rolls (or is it bibles) wherever they can. They would be much more helpful to people living in underdeveloped countries and regions, wouldn't they ?

So send them there.

[Sailor Steve]

About mormons : Remember to keep that american stuff at home as much as you can. ;)
Which means?

I'll remain courteous and will just tell you we don't have much to do with this bunch of elegant moralizing innocents dressed like penguins delivering toilet rolls (or is it bibles) wherever they can.
Somehow you just managed to make now sense at all. What are you talking about?

They would be much more helpful to people living in underdeveloped countries and regions, wouldn't they ?

So send them there.
So you hate Mormons. I'm not that fond of them myself, but your whole post is bizarre, to say the least.

[MH]

I'll remain courteous and will just tell you we don't have much to do with this bunch of elegant moralizing innocents dressed like penguins delivering toilet rolls (or is it bibles) wherever they can.
So...frenchy :rotfl2:

http://www.istockphoto.com/file_thumbview_approve/8512584/2/istockphoto_8512584-french-attitude.jpg

[nikimcbee]

I became a Witness, then realized I was number 144,001 and I was screwed anyway. :doh:

:haha:. So what happen then?
I had a friend who car-pooled with one. He pushed religion non-stop.:dead: The funniest part,, one day, there was a driving rain storm. They guy dropped my friend of at a gas station and made him walk the rest of the way (he usually dropped him off at his house). The reason... he would have been late to his prayer meeting.:haha::dead:

So wish them a merry christmas.:yeah:

[Osmium Steele]

:haha:. So what happen then?


You'll know when Hastur begins stripping the flesh from all mankind and sucking the marrow from their bones. http://psionguild.org/forums/images/smilies/Useful%20Smilies/evil.gif

[Herr-Berbunch]

They would be much more helpful to people living in underdeveloped countries and regions, wouldn't they ?

So send them there.

No, underdeveloped regions and countries don't need (yet another) religion :o

[August]

No, underdeveloped regions and countries don't need (yet another) religion :o

Too late. According to this website (http://www.dearelder.com/index/inc_name/Mormon_Missionaries/) the Mormons have over 50,000 missionaries in 300 organized missions around the world.

And as far as not needing missionaries in general. Who will take their place feeding and caring for the millions they presently take care of?

[Sailor Steve]

You'll know when Hastur begins stripping the flesh from all mankind and sucking the marrow from their bones. http://psionguild.org/forums/images/smilies/Useful%20Smilies/evil.gif
:rotfl2:

Off topic: A friend of mine opened a game store years ago which he named Hastur Hobbies. At my suggestion his business card also says "The shop that is not to be named."

[Growler]

:rotfl2:

Off topic: A friend of mine opened a game store years ago which he named Hastur Hobbies. At my suggestion his business card also says "The shop that is not to be named."

I'm sure that helped the "D&D is from teh_devil!!11!!one!1!" rants.:D