Religious people

(2nd of three)

Dr. Stark puts the conclusions of the studies (see yesterday's post) right there in the introduction:

• "At all ages, religious people are much less likely to commit crimes."
• Religious people are far more likely to contribute money/time to secular charities (& religious)
• Religious people are happier, less neurotic, less prone to suicide
• Religious people enjoy better health and longer life expectancy
• Religious husbands are substantially less likely to abuse wives & children
• Religious students perform better on standardized achievement tests

The term "religious" is used in the book to identify people who go to church once a week. Stark may not be one of them, since he described himself in 2007 as a "cultural Christian," in the sense of being "one who is strongly committed to Western civilization" - and most of us would not call that a definition.

from America's Blessings: How Religion Benefits Everyone, Including Atheists