An aerial view of the Bountiful Utah Temple
(LDS Media Library), very near the place where I\u2019m currently typing<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\u00a0<\/p>\n
Well, I\u2019m very close to posting my last notes from Paul McFate, 52 Good Reasons to Go to Church, Besides the Obvious Ones<\/em> (Chicago: ACTA Publications, 2004). \u00a0But I\u2019m not quite there yet<\/em>. \u00a0Happily, though, I can report that the two items listed below, like those that have gone before them from Paul McFate\u2019s excellent little booklet, are more than appropriate for inclusion in your Christopher Hitchens Memorial \u201cHow Religion Poisons Everything\u201d File<\/em>:<\/p>\n\n- Fewer Criminals (page 60) \u2014<\/strong>\u00a0One interesting criminological study of 550 white men \u2014 averaging forty-one years of age and reporting an average of $30,000 in annual income \u2014 focused on residents of a metropolitan area in the American Midwest. \u00a0Published in 1995, it measured a variety of religious behaviors as well as asking about whether or not, during the previous year, the men surveyed had committed one or more of forty-three criminal activities. \u00a0The study found that religious activity was significantly and inversely correlated with criminal activity. \u00a0[T. D. Evans, F. T. Cullen, R. G. Dunaway, and V. S. Burton, \u201cReligion and Crime Reexamined: The Impact of Religion, Secular Controls, and Social Ecology on Adult Criminality,\u201d Criminology<\/em> 33 (1995): 195-217; R. M. Fernquist, \u201cA Research Note on the Association Between Religion and Delinquency,\u201d Deviant Behavior<\/em> 16 (1995): 169-175]<\/li>\n
- Greater Longevity (page 61) \u2014<\/strong>\u00a0Numerous studies demonstrate that those who attend church or religious services tend to socialize more, have more friends, feel more concern for others, and do more volunteer work \u2014 all of which have been shown to enhance health and happiness. \u00a0But \u201cCouldn\u2019t we just skip going to church and engage in these other health-promoting behaviors to achieve the same results?\u201d \u00a0Very surprisingly but very possibly, the answer is No<\/i>. \u00a0Basing his analysis on a 1984 national health survey and a 1991 follow-up to that survey, R. G. Rogers was able to show the distinctly stronger positive impact of church attendance on health, as opposed to mere socializing. \u00a0His findings supported an earlier study that had been based on a random sample of 507 adults over the age of forty-five. \u00a0In that 1973 study, participation in voluntary organizations other than churches was found not to be correlated with greater life satisfaction. \u00a0[R. G. Rogers, \u201cThe Effects of Family Composition, Health, and Social Support Linkages on Mortality,\u201d Journal of Health and Social Behavior 37 (1996): 326-338; D. L. Klemmack and J. N. Edwards, \u201cCorrelates of Life Satisfaction: A Reexamination,\u201d Journal of Gerontology<\/em> 28 (1973): 497-502)]<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
Posted from Bountiful, Utah<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u00a0 \u00a0 Well, I\u2019m very close to posting my last notes from Paul McFate, 52 Good Reasons to Go to Church, Besides the Obvious Ones (Chicago: ACTA Publications, 2004). \u00a0But I\u2019m not quite there yet. \u00a0Happily, though, I can report that the two items listed below, like those that have gone before them from Paul […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1019,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[12740,3199,8963,4735,5439,13060,9997,4711,909,12743,2704,13028,13045,13048,13051,2412,13057,12731,3547,8993,11606,12734,6390,2686,743,12737,13054],"class_list":["post-86254","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-adjustment","tag-attendance","tag-benefit","tag-church","tag-crime","tag-criminal","tag-criminality","tag-divorce","tag-faith","tag-families","tag-family","tag-friend","tag-friendliness","tag-friendly","tag-friendship","tag-health","tag-longevity","tag-maternal","tag-mental-health","tag-mother","tag-motherhood","tag-peer-pressure","tag-prayer","tag-psychology","tag-religion","tag-school","tag-shootings"],"yoast_head":"\n
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<\/a>