# When will the ENTIRE human race reject Christianity? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [October 24, 2010, 9:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-the-entire-human-race-reject-christianity/558176 "2010-10-24T09:56:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2011, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-the-entire-human-race-reject-christianity/558176/121 "2011-01-19T19:22:09Z")
> [@Hennessy](#): > > It would be part of evolution if we did collapse, right? Not unless we evolve into Eloi and Morlocks afterwards. ---
**Author:** ![cedman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/da6949/32.png) [@cedman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cedman)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2011, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-the-entire-human-race-reject-christianity/558176/122 "2011-01-19T21:51:00Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > You are, again, engaging in a standard religious/right wing well-poisoning technique. You are insisting that I have to meet a _completely impossible_ standard before I am allowed to condemn something, in this case religion. What you are doing is nothing more than trying to rule out any criticism of religion whatsoever, since no one can meet your ridiculous standard of knowing every single religious group on the planet. It’s not necessary to do so in order to validly condemn religion any more than it is to study every racist organization on the planet before condemning racism. Racism and religion are both wrong because they are irrational, factually incorrect and destructive; it isn’t necessary to meet some ridiculous standard where I know every possible permutation of their wrongness before I condemn either of them. You ARE dense aren’t you? I NEVER defended believers or claimed to be one. I NEVER defended right-wingers or claimed to be one. I believe that I even said they were stupid. You’re arguing from the stance that I am trying to convince you that you’re wrong; I’m not. I AM saying that the “religious nuts” sound just like YOU when they promote their beliefs and you sound like THEM when you promote yours. I’m not asking you to do the impossible, i.e. meet a standard, just show us how these "facts: of yours disprove religious beliefs, just as I would ask a believer to prove his beliefs., Guess what? Neither one of you can do that so you are just as bad as they are. Believer when cornered: “You just gotta have FAITH!” Der when cornered: Religion BAD, BAD, BAD! ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2011, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-the-entire-human-race-reject-christianity/558176/123 "2011-01-19T21:57:35Z")
> [@cedman](#): > > You ARE dense aren’t you? Dial it back in Great Debates. [/Moderating] ---
**Author:** ![clairobscur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2011, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-the-entire-human-race-reject-christianity/558176/124 "2011-01-20T01:19:47Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > How many modern religions - by which I mean organized, multi-national systems of faith - have disappeared over the past 2000 years? I can’t think of one. Manicheism has totally dissapeared. It was both organized and multi-national extending even into China. ---
**Author:** ![appleciders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85f322/32.png) [@appleciders](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/appleciders)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2011, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-the-entire-human-race-reject-christianity/558176/125 "2011-01-20T01:34:19Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > Those were all national religions - bound to a specific place and tongue. Once you conquered and converted the region, the religion could be eradicated. One a religion starts hopping borders and cultures, like Christianity, Islam, Buddhism or Hinduism did, they’re almost impossible to stomp out. You kill them in one country, they flourish in another. > > (Note that according to my own definitions, I do not consider Judaism a modern religion). By your definition, ancient Judaism is not a modern religion. However, modern Judaism would seem to be a textbook case of a religion where “You kill them in one country, they flourish in another”. > [@acsenray](#): > > If the Indian nation is eliminated, Hinduism will be effectively dead. There are significant Hindu populations in Nepal and Bangladesh. Given that these countries are geographically contiguous with India, I take your point. But there are also millions of Hindus in Indonesia, which is not. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2011, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-the-entire-human-race-reject-christianity/558176/126 "2011-01-20T03:07:05Z")
Are there definitive stages of religious evolution like we sometimes ascribe to political evolution? It seems politics goes from things like fiat to monarchies to democracies (I probably shouldn’t assume world history follows the technology tree of civilization 2, but meh). Does monotheism necessarily have anything that separates it from animism or a different faith? It seems as the west becomes more wealthy we become more secular. I think the last 3 generations have been more secular than the last, and I don’t see that changing. By that rate, by 2100 most of the world should be pretty secular. Even though we say we are religious in the US, we don’t act like we believe what we say we believe when asked. But if they reject christianity will another faith come up, or will all faith more or less go away? I don’t know. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2011, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-the-entire-human-race-reject-christianity/558176/127 "2011-01-20T03:55:56Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > Are there definitive stages of religious evolution like we sometimes ascribe to political evolution? It seems politics goes from things like fiat to monarchies to democracies (I probably shouldn’t assume world history follows the technology tree of civilization 2, but meh). Does monotheism necessarily have anything that separates it from animism or a different faith? It naturally tends towards intolerance since it denies the existence of other gods, instead of just considering them of less interest or importance. Note that it’s the monotheisms of Christianity and Islam that have spread themselves across the world by the sword. I’d expect monotheisms to prevail over time because they are the ones trying to erase their rivals. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2011, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-the-entire-human-race-reject-christianity/558176/128 "2011-01-20T04:05:59Z")
Most likely this has already been asked, but are there any examples of religions that have zero followers but but who’s civilization or core people haven’t been completely or mostly wiped out? I can’t think of any. My guess is that there will be some small remnant of Christian of some type or another kicking around as long as our civilization lasts. It’s simply too entrenched. It might only be a few million in a century or so, and maybe a few hundred thousand after that, and maybe only a few thousand after that, but at some point it will probably not fall lower than that, unless we take a major hit to the population and to our civilization. If we ever go back to wandering tribes of nomads or hunter gatherers then it will be the luck of the draw as to what few remnants survive at that point…for all I know, it could be a band of Wiccan’s who survive the attack of the Space Bats and form a new Clan. ISTM that there will always be some percentage of the population who is drawn to the mystical or to pure faith, and that no amount of technology or science will ever erase that core group. -XT ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2011, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-the-entire-human-race-reject-christianity/558176/129 "2011-01-20T04:07:15Z")
> [@Darth\_Panda](#): > > I’m assuming that when the aliens come, we’ll all convert to Scientology and follow John Travolta and Tom Cruise into battle. We’ll tear down the Cathedral in Washington and replace it with a 200 foot tall soup can. War is hol? ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2011, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-the-entire-human-race-reject-christianity/558176/130 "2011-01-20T04:20:06Z")
> [@xtisme](#): > > ISTM that there will always be some percentage of the population who is drawn to the mystical or to pure faith, and that no amount of technology or science will ever erase that core group. I doubt the people of the past thought that smallpox would ever be eradicated, either. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2011, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-the-entire-human-race-reject-christianity/558176/131 "2011-01-20T04:23:19Z")
Isn’t it making a come back in some 3rd world countries? Or am I thinking of something else? Regardless, I think that religion will be a bit more difficult to get rid of than a disease. There might be an inoculation or cure for a disease, but faith seems to be nearly hard wired into the human animals brain. Well…that might be overstating things. Perhaps it’s more cultural…but it seems to span every culture throughout all of recorded history, and there are at least some indications that it existed in one form or another in pre-history as well. -XT ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2011, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-the-entire-human-race-reject-christianity/558176/132 "2011-01-20T04:24:52Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > When will the ENTIRE human race accept that Christianity is a crock of shit? When another religion takes over and kills all the non-believers? If you’re lucky it will happen in your lifetime. ---
**Author:** ![donnie\_darko](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@donnie\_darko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/donnie_darko)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2011, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-the-entire-human-race-reject-christianity/558176/133 "2011-03-13T05:07:44Z")
That’s an interesting question. I would probably say within about 50 years Christians will be a minority in almost every country, maybe in 150-200 years, it will be a virtually extinct religion. At least in the sense of following the Bible. ---
**Author:** ![donnie\_darko](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@donnie\_darko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/donnie_darko)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2011, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-the-entire-human-race-reject-christianity/558176/134 "2011-03-13T05:15:05Z")
> [@elmwood](#): > > The Holocaust reduced the number of Jews on the planet by up to a third, but it didn’t cause a mass exodus of Jews away from their faith. actually, it kind of did. many Jews in Israel are actually atheist now. oddly, since the Holocaust, being Jewish has BECOME more of a ‘racial’ than a ‘religious’ thing, before it wasn’t so much. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-will-the-entire-human-race-reject-christianity/558176.md?page=6)