Robert P. Jones writes in his Figuring Faith blog in The Washington Post on some of the most important religions findings of 2011.
1.Occupy Wall Street Matches the Tea Party in Influence.
2.Support for Same-sex Marriage is No Longer a Minority Position.
3.Views on Abortion and Same-Sex Marriage Decoupling.
4.Americans Continue to Struggle with Muslims’ Place in American Society.
5.Americans Register Serious Concerns about the Morality of Income Inequality.
6.Taxing the Wealthy and Raising the Minimum Wage Enjoy Broad Support.
7.Significant Numbers of White Americans Register Concerns about Reverse Discrimination.
8.Americans are Divided on Whether the American Dream Still Holds True Today.
9.Millennials Distance Themselves from Traditional Church Teachings on Sexuality Issues.
10. Americans Continue to Support a Comprehensive Approach to Immigration Reform that Includes a Path to Citizenship.
11. Voters Say it is Important for Presidential Candidates to have Strong Religious Beliefs.
Each entry includes a paragraph of explanation, along with at least one link.
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This is an interesting list, though I disagree with number 1. OWS has no influence at all. They may be doing great in publicizing the issues, but influence is the capacity to make change and they have yet to elect a person to any level of government or change any law or policy. When they have done that they will have influence.
While #9 about the millennials is an important trend, the inside story is that they and others are moving from no religious preference to no religion at all. The articles on the apatheists have been sad, because it is one thing to distance oneself from religion, another entirely to say your life has no purpose or meaning.