Growth in the Eastern religions (Sikhism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Taoism) could be due, in part, to immigration from India and China (more than 700,000 people from India and China immigrated to the United States from 1991-2000). The New Age movement also has contributed to the popularity of these religions. New Age takes some of its beliefs and practices from Eastern religions. Immigration from traditionally Muslim countries may contribute, in part, to the growth of members of the Muslim/Islamic faith also. But, as the previous panel showed, the Islamic faith is also popular among those seeking a new religion. In 2001, more than 84,000 adults in the United States converted to Islam.
The New Age movement became popular in the 1960s and continues strong 40 years later. A backlash against traditionally God-centered, organized religion spurred this movement which seeks more of a personal spirituality: a oneness with nature, the universe, and society. The modern Wiccan movement essentially grew out of this tradition also. Wiccan religion also emphasizes personal freedom within the community as evidenced by its central creed: "If it harms none, do what you will" (PEN)6.
Evangelical Christian denominations, still traditionally Christian, have a diversity of worship styles according to the needs and desires of the individual congregation, not a uniform worship style across the religion as some traditional organized religions do, such as Catholicism.
With the huge growth in non-traditional religions (and in those professing to be of no religion) does this mean that traditional religion is fading away? Hardly. As we've seen in an earlier panel, traditional organized religions still make up a sizeable portion of the American population. The following table shows that despite the huge growth rates, the non-traditional religions each make up only a relatively small fraction of the total religious population of the United States. In terms of the number of adherents, only those professing no religion and those who consider themselves Pentecostal/Charismatic are in the top 10. The rest of the religions in the top 10 are the traditional organized religions, with Catholics and Baptists having the largest numbers of adherents.7
Adult Religious Affiliation, 2001
| Catholic | 50,873,000 |
| Baptist | 33,830,000 |
| Nonreligious/secular | 27,539,000 |
| Christian, no denomination specified | 14,190,000 |
| Methodist/Wesleyan | 14,140,000 |
| Lutheran | 9,580,000 |
| Presbyterian | 5,596,000 |
| Protestant, no religion specified | 4,647,000 |
| Pentecostal/Charismatic | 4,407,000 |
| Episcopalian/Anglican | 3,451,000 |
| Judaism | 2,831,000 |
| Churches of Christ | 2,593,000 |
| Congregational/UCC | 1,378,000 |
| Assemblies of God | 1,106,000 |
| Muslim/Islamic | 1,104,000 |
| Buddhism | 1,082,000 |
| Hindu | 766,000 |
| Unitarian Universalist | 629,000 |
| Wiccan | 134,000 |
| Native American Religion | 103,000 |
| Baha'i | 84,000 |
| New Age | 68,000 |
| Sikhism | 57,000 |
| Scientology | 55,000 |
| Deity (Deist) | 49,000 |
| Humanist | 49,000 |
| Taoist | 40,000 |
| Eckankar | 26,000 |
Sources: "Top Twenty Religions in the United States, 2001." Online. Available: http://www.adherents.com/rel_USA.html. February 28, 2002; DeBarros, Anthony B. and Cathy Lynn Grossman. "A Measure of Faith: By the numbers." USA Today, 24 December 2001. B. A. Robinson. "New Age Spirituality." Online. Available: http://www.religioustolerance.org/newage.htm. March 13, 2002. Immigration data: U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service. 2000 Statistical Yearbook of the Immigration and Naturalization Service. Online. Available: http://www.ins.gov. March 5, 2002. Wiccan data: Pagan Educational Network. "Contemporary Witchcraft." Online. Available: http://www.bloomington.in.us/~pen/Wicca.pdf. March 5, 2002. Pagan Educational Network. "Contemporary Paganism." Online. Available: http://www.bloomington.in.us/~pen/mpagan.html. March 5, 2002.
User Comments Add a comment…