From: Erik Moeller (flagg@oberberg-online.de)
Date: Tue Apr 21 1998 - 12:35:02 MDT
>Is it any different in the book? And does anyone have figures on the
>numbers that make up different religious beliefs, just in case I'm
>ever a candidate for first contact and find myself in need of a good
>defence?
I'm not sure they will suit you:
Bahism, 6.1 mio.
Buddhism, 323.9 mio.
Christianity, 1928 mio.
- catholics 968 mio.
- protestants 396 mio.
Hinduism, 780.5 mio.
Islam, 1099,6 mio.
Jewishness, 14.1 mio.
Confucianism, 5.3 mio
New religions (created after 1950 Hare Krishna, Transcendental Meditation),
121.3 mio.
Shintoism, 2.8 mio.
Sikhs, 19.2 mio.
Natural religions, 99.2 mio.
(Source: Encyclopedia Britannica Online, as cited in "Haremberg Aktuell 97".
I also have EB online so if something is unclear I can lookup there, too. I
hope all translations are understandable.)
>So clearly a religiously neutral candidate would have been the best choice.
You cannot be "religously neutral", that's a contradiction in terms. Either
you say that you believe in the presence of supernatural power(s) or you say
you don't. There are a few who don't believe in God but are afraid that they
are hit by a lightning when they admit it. They are called agnostics ;-)
(Anders, I know that your definition of agnosticism is probably slightly
different :-). I wouldn't call them neutral either.
Regards,
Erik Moeller
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