Religious Americans Better Citizens?

Michael Gerson of the Washington Post writes an opinion piece based on a recent book by Robert Putnam and David Campbell called American Grace. Gerson argues essentially that Americans who consider themselves "religious" are more generous with their time and money (both in religious and secular causes), join more voluntary associations, attend more public meetings, three times as likely to be more socially engaged than the unaffiliated, and even more likely to let people cut in line in front of them more readily. As Gerson says, "Ned Flanders is a better neighbor."

This is interesting since some secularists have not only predicted the inevitable end of religion but have claimed how detrimental religion is to society. Granted, countless human atrocities have been committed in the name of religion, but this doesn't necessarily mean that there's something inherent in the religious systems, values, and practices themselves that is the cause. At a fundamental level, it's the clinging, clamoring, selfish human ego that has led people to make horrible, harmful and violent decisions, whether it be through the Crusades or Stalinist Soviet Union. Regardless, I don't foresee religion going away anytime soon, and it's intriguing to hear of research that is suggesting that religious people in the U.S. live their lives more likely to be involved in their communities and altruistic activities.

Read the article at Faith in Public Life.