Week 11: Is society becoming more secular?

          I do not believe that society as a whole is becoming more secular, however it is possible to argue that there has been a slight decrease in people's strict adherence to organized religion. Many people throughout the world practice their chosen religion and adhere to its values. There are also many people, however, who chose to make religion more individualized and consider themselves more spiritual than religious. Even though there is a significant percentage of people who are non religious or secular, this number does not seem to be growing. As the textbook states, even though regular church attendance is decreasing in European countries, in developing countries, the number of religious people seems to be growing. These countries also tend to have higher birthrates which contribute to a growing number of religious people worldwide. Historically and today in the United States, many immigrants have considered themselves religious. They also tend to have larger families which again contributes to a trend away from secularization. Another way to determine whether society is becoming more secular is to examine the amount of political influence religion carries today. There may be less political influence held by organized religion in certain aspects. For example, many countries have adopted a policy of separation between church and state. No one can deny, however, the enormous amount of influence religion still has on politics throughout the world. In some areas of the Middle East, the laws in place reflect a strict adherence to the religion of Islam. In the United States, the textbook mentioned the Christian right and their influence over election outcomes and the passage of laws. It seems that worldwide trends show that society is not becoming more secular, and that perhaps even the opposite is more likely.