Survey: Atheists Know More About Religion Than Believers

[marieelissa]

Have a question about religion? You ought to ask someone who has completely rejected it.
According to a survey conducted by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, atheists and agnostics tend to know more about religion than members of most faiths, the Los Angeles Times reports. For example, most Protestants could not identify Martin Luther as the founder of the Protestant movement. Atheists took the top spot in the survey, followed by a tie between Mormons and Jews.


Why did atheists do so well? The study concluded that those who reject faith often do so after growing up in a religious household, and studying and deliberating keeping the faith. Also, atheists and agnostics tend to be better educated in general. Why did Christians do so poorly? It may be because once someone accepts a faith, they stop examining it.



The survey had one bright spot, at least: 80% of respondents knew that Mother Teresa was a Catholic.

http://newsfeed.time.com/2010/09/28/survey-atheists-know-more-about-religion-than-believers/