The More Educated, the Less Religious?
Recent news reports tell of surveys showing people leaving organized religion pretty much across all denominations, including those of white evangelicals, who until recently were steadily adding to their numbers.
But the reports don’t tell the whole story.
A study by the Survey Center on American Life found interesting data on the subject in its survey on the benefits of a college education.
Not surprising, the survey confirmed the economic advantages of a college education.
“Since the Great Recession,” the report says, “most of the jobs that have been created require a college degree, and the lifetime earnings of college graduates far outstrip those of Americans without a college education.
“But there is another reason a college education might be worthwhile, even without the evident financial advantages a degree offers. College graduates live increasingly different lives than those without a college degree. They are more socially connected, civically engaged, and active in their communities than those without a degree.”
Social Support and Close Friends
The survey also found that college graduates have more extensive systems of social support and a larger number of close friends. Consequently, they feel lonely and isolated less often.
“Today,” the survey found “Americans without a college education are far less likely to marry and become involved in religious life. Marriage and religious participation have been, and continue to be, strongly associated with greater social engagement and stronger community attachments.”
To me, this helps explain why so many people today, apparently to a greater extent among those without a college education, feel left out and on the margins of society, becoming more vulnerable to radical political and social ideas. Obviously, that’s a generalization and not true of everybody without a college degree, but I believe the association between the two exists.
And a surprising finding, at least for me, was the relationship between a college degree and participation in a religious congregation.
Just the Opposite
“There is a sense in the culture,” said Survey Center pollster Daniel Cox in an interview, “that the more educated, the less religious. But we’ve found just the opposite when it comes to a religious congregation: that those with a degree are more likely to be members.”
And Cox says research has already shown that “Americans who are involved in a local congregation tend to be more active in their communities and participate more often in civic and political life. Those who attend religious services more often have been found to have more extensive social connections than those who do not attend services.
“Overall, Americans who are members of a place of worship are much more likely than those who are not to volunteer in the community at least a few times a year (47 percent vs. 23 percent), talk to someone in their community they do not know well (64 percent vs. 54 percent), and attend a community meeting or local event (60 percent vs. 41 percent). They are also more likely than others to feel connected to their neighborhood and the people who live there (58 percent vs. 46 percent).
Fact is, religious practice is a crucial way of establishing “enduring social bonds and providing a sense of belonging.”
“Spiritual but not Religious”
I don’t doubt the data showing a decline in religious participation. What has been happening in Europe for several decades appears to be well underway here. Secularism and consumerism rule the day. “Spiritual but not religious” has become a favored mantra.
Much of this is understandable. Religious leaders have often shown themselves incapable of taking love of neighbor seriously and a few have sullied religion by their unethical behavior. And undoubtedly many people struggle to maintain their faith.
But I have a feeling that much of the flight from religion has come with little thought, study or prayer and from people showing little interest in, let alone commitment to, their faith. For many, the “revolt” against religion seems to amount to sleeping in on Sunday mornings.
