(January 14, 2013 at 2:11 am)garbishcan Wrote: i think religion has a expiration date because nobody (where i live) goes to church anymore and the new generations are barely interested in jesus nd co.Atheists frequently note that the biggest predictor of a person's beliefs is their parents' beliefs. So, check birth rates by belief if possible, or by more religious v. less religious countries if that's the best info possible, and see what it shows you. Last time I did so I concluded that some European countries which now have little religion will likely end up Muslim, as the traditional (so to speak) population is reproducing below replacement rate.
do you agree? will there be a church in 200 years?
IOW if the link between parents' and children's beliefs is strong enough that, for practical purposes, it's a heritable trait, then it's simply a matter of selection. Those who reproduce more survive.