Word: religion
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Quick - what's the difference between Methodists and Presbyterians? (Presbyterians believe in double predestination; Methodists that free will can help you get to heaven.) Confused about how Hindus believe the world was created? (So are they; the religion has no single canon and there are many, sometimes conflicting, origin stories.) Why are so many celebrities drawn to Scientology? (A key teaching says personal success can help overcome the human condition...
...polite - or maybe too shy - to ask friends and neighbors about the nuts and bolts of their beliefs, let alone sneak into a service in a house of worship that we're not thinking of joining. Enter a new website that sets out to explain the differences among religions as well as illuminate the areas of common ground. Patheos.com, which is launching on Tuesday, is a mash-up of path and theos, the Greek word for "god." Its founders, husband and wife Leo and Cathie Brunnick, have created a library of the histories and belief systems of 50 (and counting...
...launch of this comparative-religion site comes on the heels of a study released last week that found people in the U.S. switch their religious affiliations more than previously thought. Half of Americans have changed religions at some point in their lives, according to the Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion & Public Life, and the large majority did so by the age of 26 - the perfect audience for online programming...
...that there are a lot of people jonesing for spiritual information. Steve Waldman, founder of Beliefnet - the world's largest spiritual website, with as many as 3 million unique visitors per month, and the closest thing to a Patheos competitor - says there is room for another spiritual site. "Religion until recently has been something major media companies have been scared of," says Waldman, whose company was acquired by News Corp. in late 2007. And the recession could deepen interest in spiritual sites. "People are seeking religious support or guidance to help them get through financial crises, which become emotional crises...
...also notes a key difference between Beliefnet and Patheos: "We're multifaith, but for the most part, people use us to explain their own, rather than learn about other, religions," says Waldman. Which is why Patheos may be well supported among those whose religions have been broadly misunderstood. "Islam is this bogeyman," says Patheos contributor Jonathan A.C. Brown, a professor of Arabic and Islamic studies at the University of Washington, noting that people act as though "everyone has achieved some enlightenment, except for Muslims, who are stuck in the Dark Ages." For Muslims, he says, "to have a forum where...