The New Claim that Smart People are Turning to Christianity

The three-pronged political group of anti-abortion, anti-gay and pro Christian keeps up a steady patter of new positive developments. The futility of their causes is put out of sight, though it probably is not out of mind. Today the case is being made that it has become cool for well educated people to become active members of Christianity. 

During the last couple of years, data on church attendance has suggested churches with above average income have been doing better than churches with members of below average income. One would expect educational levels to be higher with higher incomes. While there is no studied conclusion about why this has been happening, one can guess it has explanations that include some non religious. It could be people with above average incomes do not have to work Sundays or nights when services are held. Meeting and socializing with others in your peer group may be more important in careers in this group than in lower incomes. We know that asking people why they do things like going to church may bring answers that are not the real reasons. That lower incomes do not attend church as much tracks with polling about politics and religion generally.

The link includes comments from the above educational level people going to church. It skews heavily Catholic. Mentioned specifically were reasons that had nothing to do with Catholic theology. People like the music, the space and the art work. Incense was not mentioned but I wonder.

Catholics excel at the theater of church from the music to the costumes worn by priests. They know what they are doing. 

The link is but another in the sequence of reports meant to give the impression things are getting better in Christianity. Another was that young men are attending church more than young women. So long as each generation continues to have fewer believers than the previous one, which has been going on for three or four generations now, the downward trajectory of Christianity in the U.S. will continue.