Why is the Public More Skeptical of Religion Than Ever Before


There is almost daily now an article by some prominent Christian giving his view on why the faith is in a slow decline. One today by a preacher laments that people are suspicious of Christianities' pitch. This, in turn, makes Christians reluctant to make their pitch.

Where do the suspicions come from? We all know about the sexual abuse and the preachers who got rich off of those in the pews.

Another may be related to the volume of advertising people have been exposed to. I would guess there is a collective lesson people get from so much advertising. It is that they believe less and less of it the more there is of it.

Included in the great volume of advertising are claims which the public may or may not believe. There are laws against making claims extraordinarily dishonest. Automobiles cannot claim to get 500 miles to the gallon. A pill company cannot claim it kills all cancers.

Religion is not subject to laws against false advertising. It can and does make claims far more dishonest than 500 miles to a gallon. It claims to heal illnesses and that one of its leaders was long dead and brought back to life. Even more extraordinary is the claim its believers never actually die.

If some company offered a pill that allows consumers to never die it would be forced to either no longer sell the pill or change its advertising message to something more honest. But, even if government did not come down on the company, very few people would be taken in by this claim.

After two centuries of making claims that are beyond believable, customers of religion have become suspicious. 


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