If you look at the future of religion, clearly within the American context of traditional denominations are moving toward secularization … And you see this in surveys, which show a longtime decline in core Christian beliefs. But we’ve already begun to see the effect of the combination of technology and religion in the proliferation of televangelists. With organized religion on the Internet, I think that weÕll see a lot more discussion, but also a narrowing of interest. I think that youÕll see people reveal very personal sides of their beliefs.
Predictor: Coates, Joseph
Prediction, in context:In a September 1995 article in Insight on the News, journalist Gayle M.B. Hanson offers predictions she gathered from futurists, policy analysts and administrators. The article includes material culled from the Internet and direct interviews, including some remarks made by futurist Joseph Coates. Hanson writes: ”The worldÕs religions are alive and well on the Internet, where lively discussions on the nature of belief are carried on at all hours. One can debate whether the second coming is linked to the proliferation of automated-teller-machine cards or confess sins to an on-line minister; more scholarly types can browse through the Dead Sea Scrolls, now available to anyone on the World Wide Web. ‘If you look at the future of religion, clearly within the American context of traditional denominations are moving toward secularization,’ says futurist Joseph Coates. ‘And you see this in surveys, which show a longtime decline in core Christian beliefs. But we’ve already begun to see the effect of the combination of technology and religion in the proliferation of televangelists. With organized religion on the Internet, I think that weÕll see a lot more discussion, but also a narrowing of interest. I think that youÕll see people reveal very personal sides of their beliefs.'”
Date of prediction: January 1, 1995
Topic of prediction: Community/Culture
Subtopic: General
Name of publication: Insight on the News
Title, headline, chapter name: Paved With Fool’s Gold?
Quote Type: Partial quote
Page number or URL of document at time of study:
Page 33
This data was logged into the Elon/Pew Predictions Database by: Guarino, Jennifer Anne