New survey: half of Canadians think religion does more harm than good

[9-10ths_Penguin]

Highlights:

• 51% of respondents agree that religion does more harm than good in the world.
• 24% of respondents agree that religious people are better citizens.
• 13% of respondents lose respect for someone when they find out they're religious.
• 34% of respondents agree that religion should play an important part in political life.

Religion increasingly seen as doing more harm than good in Canada: Ipsos poll

I'm not sure it matches my personal experience these days, though my part of the country tends to be more religious and more conservative than average.

Thoughts?

 

[icehorse]

hooray

 

[Shadow Wolf]

I get my masters and I might just have to seriously consider getting work/Ph.D./staying in Canada.

 

[YmirGF]

Highlights:

• 51% of respondents agree that religion does more harm than good in the world.
• 24% of respondents agree that religious people are better citizens.
• 13% of respondents lose respect for someone when they find out they're religious.
• 34% of respondents agree that religion should play an important part in political life.

Religion increasingly seen as doing more harm than good in Canada: Ipsos poll

I'm not sure it matches my personal experience these days, though my part of the country tends to be more religious and more conservative than average.

Thoughts?

It's pretty accurate for those of us on the West Coast. Religious folks are looked at with a bemused, "Are you serious?" type thing here. So many of us out here have moved so far beyond religion that we tend to forget that some folks still find religion necessary.

Two of my neighbors are somewhat religious. One is an 86 year old woman who never married and the other is a 61 year old man who is physically and mentally disabled. Fairly telling, really...

 

[Shadow Wolf]

It's pretty accurate for those of us on the West Coast. Religious folks are looked at with a bemused, "Are you serious?" type thing here.

I've had to deal with that so much for not being religious here it sounds like you are speaking of some fabled fairy tale fantasy land, lol.

 

[LuisDantas]

A big part of it is that the word itself has been abused for a very long time.

Religion is not supposed to be validated by its demographic expansion - which, in practice, shows an almost inverse correlation to its actual worth. Many of the most vocal "defenders" of so-called "religion" are, frankly, bullies, cowards and nutjobs that happened to find a measure of security in numbers and peer support.

Sometimes I wonder if the word itself can be saved. It deserves better.

 

[Jayhawker Soule]

It strikes me as being, for the most part, a shallow and unsurprising view.

 

[9-10ths_Penguin]

It strikes me as being, for the most part, a shallow and unsurprising view.

Why do you think it's shallow?

 

[Jayhawker Soule]

Why do you think it's shallow?

Because such views tend to be perception-based.

 

[LuisDantas]

The alternative being...?

 

[9-10ths_Penguin]

Because such views tend to be perception-based.

Not really an answer, but thanks.

Is it your position that viewing religion overall as a net negative is necessarily uninformed?

 

[Jayhawker Soule]

Not really an answer, but thanks.

That you don't understand an answer doesn't render it any less one.

So, for example, what percentage of the respondents are intensely aware of the Islamic state? What percentage know anything about Islamic Relief?

Our perceptions tend to be formed by our social being and our news feed. Limit the respondents to those who regularly participate in food banks and soup kitchens and I suspect that you'll get a different response.

Is it your position that viewing religion overall as a net negative is necessarily uninformed?

If that were my opinion I would have said so.

 

[9-10ths_Penguin]

That you don't understand an answer doesn't render it any less one.

Adding insults to your failure to communicate?

So, for example, what percentage of the respondents are intensely aware of the Islamic state? What percentage know anything about Islamic Relief?

According to the article, the survey was designed to be representative of the overall views of Canadians.

Our perceptions tend to be formed by our social being and our news feed. Limit the respondents to those who regularly participate in food banks and soup kitchens and I suspect that you'll get a different response.

Likewise, if you limit it to people who grew up in the Mount Cashel Orphanage or the residential schools and you'd probably find a different response at the other end of the spectrum. If the study designed well, all those perspectives are reflected in the results in proportion to the number of people who share them.

I suspect that the vast majority of the respondents are between those two extremes but have general knowledge of the effects of religion.

If that were my opinion I would have said so.

You don't say much a lot of the time, so I often have to infer what you're trying to say.

 

[Quintessence]

Sometimes I wonder if the word itself can be saved. It deserves better.

The more I see nonsense like this, the more I wonder that as well. People love their scapegoats. The word "religion" has simply become one of the most recent to slander and shake a stick at. Oh well.

 

[Jayhawker Soule]

Adding insults to your failure to communicate?

No.

According to the article, the survey was designed to be representative of the overall views of Canadians.

Where did I suggest that I had some issue with the methodology (or the findings) of the poll?

Likewise, if you limit it to people who grew up in the Mount Cashel Orphanage or the residential schools and you'd probably find a different response at the other end of the spectrum. If the study designed well, all those perspectives are reflected in the results in proportion to the number of people who share them.

Of course.

I suspect that the vast majority of the respondents are between those two extremes but have general knowledge of the effects of religion.

I honestly see no reason to think so.

You don't say much a lot of the time, so I often have to infer what you're trying to say.

That's a fair criticism.

 

[YmirGF]

The more I see nonsense like this, the more I wonder that as well. People love their scapegoats. The word "religion" has simply become one of the most recent to slander and shake a stick at. Oh well.

And rightly so, in many case, @Quintessence
Heck, just look around at some of the threads over the last few days and the levels of mental instability required to write their OP's. Where I live people do not wear their religion on their sleeves and it is almost considered bad manners to advertise it too boldly.

I've had to deal with that so much for not being religious here it sounds like you are speaking of some fabled fairy tale fantasy land, lol.

Well, we would love to have you anytime you decide that enough is enough.

 

[9-10ths_Penguin]

Where did I suggest that I had some issue with the methodology (or the findings) of the poll?

The methodology? I didn't mean to insinuate you did.

The findings? You made it clear in your first post in the thread that you have an issue with them.

I honestly see no reason to think so.

What do you think they're missing?

 

[YmirGF]

What do you think they're missing?

A higher respect for religion, apparently.

 

[Quintessence]

And rightly so, in many case, @Quintessence

I can't agree with that. I might if people could be bothered to name specific religious traditions and elements within religious traditions they take issue with instead of grossly overgeneralizing with the word "religion," but all too often that isn't done. Very little of significance can be said about "religion" given its extreme heterogeneity. In spite of that, folks continue to speak of "religion" as if it's some singular entity, frequently assuming that "religion" equals whatever the dominant forms are in their culture. I'm just sick to death of that. It really isn't that hard to articulate more specifically what you take issue with instead of painting with such a broad brush that everyone gets paint splattered on them.

 

[YmirGF]

I can't agree with that. I might if people could be bothered to name specific religious traditions and elements within religious traditions they take issue with instead of grossly overgeneralizing with the word "religion," but all too often that isn't done. Very little of significance can be said about "religion" given its extreme heterogeneity. In spite of that, folks continue to speak of "religion" as if it's some singular entity, frequently assuming that "religion" equals whatever the dominant forms are in their culture. I'm just sick to death of that. It really isn't that hard to articulate more specifically what you take issue with instead of painting with such a broad brush that everyone gets paint splattered on them.

You would have to come here and visit, I suppose, to see what it is like.
Normally, people will just smile at you and comment, "Well, how nice. More tea?"
To quote Neil Young, "It doesn't mean that much to me to mean that much to you."
The thing is, we won't bug you about what you believe, in general, we just don't care.

More tea?