Religion Poll Bears Out Jewish Braininess

The fact that atheists and agnostics seem to be better informed than members of any faith is an interesting coincidence, isn’t it?

@ Dave
Perhaps because they have to justify their lack of faith to members of various faith groups :) — and maybe many of them come from Jewish/Mormon backgrounds?

Or perhaps the more you know about matters of religion and faith, the more likely you are to turn away from the unreasonable and misogynistic elements that underlie them.

God bless those atheists. As for the agnostics, I guess I’m not sure… :)

Here’s a thought. Jews have been a minority in so many different cultures and consequently needed to learn the whys and wherefores of diverse religions in order, for one reason, to stay out of harm’s way.

The results of the survey indicates nothing about Jewish ‘braininess’; Jews have taken responsibility to inform themselves, as I suspect many agnostics, athiests and Mormon’s have, due to a curiousity about those around us, especially those in the majority of the population – we seek knowledge.

Can’t explain for the Mormons, but the other groups have a large proportion of scholars, academic and religious, among their number. The huge numbers of Protestant Christians include a large nominal strain–believers in name only, wthout faith practice or knowledge—as well as a large anti-intellectual strain which disregards any catechism, any systematic theology or philosophy, any credal statements, any liturgy or tradition whatsoever. Assume a similar dynamic for Catholics who respond to tradition and liturgy only, without knowledge of the Bible or of history.
Religious faith has been reduced to vapid therapeutic deism.

If I’m reading the data correctly, the entire Mormon/Atheist/Agnostic/Jewish population queried totals NINE people. I’m asking Pew why, as they have a Muslim symbol on the cover of the survey, they don’t include a Muslim tabulation category. Could it be that this includes ONE person?

Lies, damned lies, and statistics.

In response to Marnieh:
Actually there were 3.412 people included in this survey- not 9. However, your question about why no muslims were included in the survey is problematic, I agree.

The results of the poll have nothing to do with Jewish braininess, and the author is counseled to avoid such bait-and-switch hyperbole just to draw in more readers. If one seeks evidence of Jewish braininess, the percentage of Nobel Prize winners in science, medicine or physiology, and economics should be considered a valid measure.

So what is the explanation of the results of the poll on religion? Jews value knowledge for its own sake, as well as its successful applications to promoting understanding of how the world works in all of its manifestations, including an understanding of the organizing philosophies and principles of economy, society, and polity, and what motivates people to behave the way they do in economic, social, and political transactions, including the motivations to pre-judge, stereotype, dislike, discriminate, and hate the others in general and Jews in specific. Jews also value empathy, and empathy is nurtured by understanding.

So a much better than average understanding of the basic teachings of the major religions of the world is a logical consequence of and consistent with the basic Jewish values, such as knowledge and empathy, as well as the applications of sociology and psychology to the religious motivations for pro- and anti-Semitism, which is one of our survival mechanisms.

I like whenever you talk about this type of things in your blog. Possibly would you continue doing this particular?