Items of Interest January 16, 2012 Issue

Study finds atheists with families are open to church

Dan Merica

“Study: Some atheists with children attend religious services” Courtesy CNN. December 7, 2011.

Nearly one in five atheist scientists with children involve their families with religious institutions, even if they personally do not agree with the institution’s teachings, a recent study says.

The study, conducted by Rice University and the University at Buffalo, found that these scientists affiliate with churches for both social and personal reasons. Additionally, the scientists indicated a strong desire to prepare their children to make educated decisions about their personal religious preference.

“This was so surprising to us just because of all of the public discussion about the ways in which scientists are very against religious people,” said Elaine Howard Ecklund, a sociologist at Rice. “When in fact, those we might most expect to be against religious people are sitting alongside them.”

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