Genuine Religious Commitment in Daily Life
Determining the number of genuinely religious people can be achieved by analyzing how religious beliefs actually influence a person’s everyday life rather than merely relying on self-declared affiliation. For example, according to data from file link txt, sociologists assess religiosity by asking whether faith influences a person’s daily actions—such as attending mass, confessing, etc. In Catholic countries, the count is based on the number of communicants on special religious days, while in Protestant countries it depends on whether a person reads the Gospel at home or hears it only during church services. This approach thus identifies the group of people whose beliefs are reflected in their way of living. It is precisely this method that has led to the conclusion that between 10 and 17 percent of the population (with a narrower estimate of 10–15 percent) truly allow their beliefs to impact their lives and take them seriously.Supporting citation(s):“There is one (rather puzzling) parallel between the gospel assertion and sociological data. Sociologists have their criteria for determining the number of genuinely religious people: they ask whether religious beliefs impact a person’s daily life. In Catholic countries, the number of parishioners is counted by the number of communicants on Maundy Thursday (the day commemorating the Last Supper, that is, the first Communion). It is revealed whether a person goes to confession and mass. In Protestant countries, sociologists ask whether a person reads the Gospel at home or only hears the Bible at Sunday services… Thus, the number of confessing French people, the number of Finns reading the Gospel at home, and the number of Soviet citizens who openly declared their religiosity during state atheism—these figures are very close, ranging between 10–17 percent.” (source: link txt)“10–15 percent of people are capable of allowing their beliefs to genuinely and continuously influence their lives. This is the percentage of people who seriously live as they profess. The rest do not attach much importance to issues of worldview and are ready to accept as their faith whatever authority (not necessarily governmental, as it could be the influence of mass media, trendy film idols, etc.) tells them.” (source: link txt)