As Death Grows Nearer, Belief in God Grows Stronger

Religiousness is the highest among older people, and researchers at the University of Chicago are associating this with their realization that death is getting closer. The statistics are astounding; 43% of people aged 68 and older are absolutely sure God exists. With that said, only 23% of people aged 27 and younger said they firmly believe in God. Israel, Slovenia and Russia were three examples where belief in God had grown. For instance in Russia, non-believers who became believers outnumbered by 16 percent those who had lost their belief in God.Belief was highest in strongly Catholic countries such as the Philippines, at 94 percent, and lowest in Western Europe, with only 13 percent of former East Germans believers. In the United States, 81 percent of people surveyed said they had always believed in God, and 68 percent support the concept that God is concerned with people in a personal way.