Buddhist and Hindu populations growing steadily in the U.S.

The Buddhist and Hindu religious groups have steadily increased in numbers, according to data compiled from the 2010 U.S. Religion Census. The greatest concentrations occur in the New York Metropolitan Area, and big cities in Texas, California, Illinois, and Georgia.

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Study indicates religion is on the road to extinction in nine countries

A research team studied census data from nine different countries and concluded religion is headed toward extinction in those countries due to a steady rise in individuals claiming no religious affiliation.

The countries in the study included:

• Australia
• Austria
• Canada
• the Czech Republic
• Finland
• Ireland
• the Netherlands
• New Zealand
• Switzerland

One of the team members, Richard Wiener of the Research Corporation for Science Advancement, and the University of Arizona, stated: “In a large number of modern secular democracies, there’s been a trend that folk are identifying themselves as non-affiliated with religion; in the Netherlands the number was 40%, and the highest we saw was in the Czech Republic, where the number was 60%.”

The team used a mathematical model to project the rate of extinction, using parameters that include nonlinear dynamics, such as social status and motives in being associated with certain groups.

What is yoga?

A debate is growing over the definition of yoga and the way it should be practiced. According to the Hindu American Foundation, yoga is considered a moral and spiritual philosophy, part and parcel of being Hindu.

“Yoga is really a spiritual discipline,” says Uma Mysorekar, the Hindu Temple Society of North America’s president. “From its origin in Hinduism, yoga really originated from a Sanskrit word yuj, which means union.”

But avid American practitioners believe that its present form allows it to be more accessible and provides many benefits.

Dalai Lama considering retirement in 2011

Although he plans on remaining committed to serving as a spiritual leader to the people of Tibet, the Dalai Lama stated his intentions of fully retiring as political leader of the Tibetan exile movement in the coming year and would hand over most of his political powers to the Tibetan prime minister-in-exile. He has been in semi-retirement since the movement first elected a political leader in 2001.

Such intentions will be discussed with the Tibetan parliament in exile, when it reconvenes in March 2011.

In a televised statement on December 14th, the Dalai Lama said the move does not mean he will dissociate himself from the Tibetan people’s struggle for freedom. “I am a Tibetan and every Tibetan has the moral obligation to carry out the struggle,” the 75-year-old Tibetan leader said, adding that to resolve the Tibet issue would remain his top priority.

According to the Dalai Lama’s office, the spiritual leader’s statement was delivered after reports of Tibetans living in Tibet expressing anxiety and confusion over his retirement plan.

Study points to ‘secret ingredient’ in religion that makes people happier

Past studies consistently indicate that people who proclaim to be religious also reveal that they are happier compared with those who are not religious. Now a new study reveals the real reason for the increased satisfaction in life.

“Our study offers compelling evidence that it is the social aspects of religion rather than theology or spirituality that leads to life satisfaction,” said Chaeyoon Lim, an assistant professor of sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, who led the study. “In particular, we find that friendships built in religious congregations are the secret ingredient in religion that makes people happier.”

The findings occur among those who belong to a Christian-based organization, and even occur among groups of practicing Jews and Mormons.

The more friends and social connections associated with church-related activities, adding to one’s sense of belonging to a moral community, the more extremely satisfied the survey’s participants were. “To me, the evidence substantiates that it is not really going to church and listening to sermons or praying that makes people happier, but making church-based friends and building intimate social networks there,” Lim said.

Study: Religious diversity increases in America, yet perceptions of Christian nation intensify

Purdue University: While America continues to become more religiously diverse, the belief that America is a Christian nation is growing more intense, according to research from Purdue University.

“America is still predominantly Christian, but it is more diverse than ever,” said Jeremy Brooke Straughn, an assistant professor of sociology who studies national identity. “At the same time, many people feel even more strongly that America is a Christian country than they did before the turn of the century. This is especially true for Americans who say they are Christians and who attend religious services at least once a week.”

The fact that these beliefs have intensified since the mid-1990s suggests a connection to events such as the Sept. 11 attacks and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, Straughn said.

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Druidry finally recognized as a religion in Britain

It took the Charity Commission, which registers and regulates charities in England and Wales, five years to finally accept that druids’ worship of natural forces could be seen as religious activity.

“There is sufficient belief in a supreme being or entity to constitute a religion for the purposes of charity law,” the Charity Commission said. They also stated it accepted that druidry was an “ancient pagan religion” in its own right involving the worship of nature, particularly the sun and the earth.

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