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January 1st, 2012
03:00 PM ET
15 faith-based predictions for 2012To ring in the New Year, CNN's Belief Blog asked experts in religion, faith leaders, and a secular humanist about how the forces of faith and faithlessness will shape the world in 2012. Here's what they told us: 1. The Republican Party will tap Mitt Romney as its presidential nominee, and America will finally have its "Mormon moment." As evangelicals try to figure out whether they can support a president who practices Mormonism, the rest of us will try to figure out whether Mormonism is a cult, a form of Christianity, or something in between. Meanwhile, visitors to Marriott hotels will finally crack open some of those nightstand copies of The Book of Mormon. 2. Despite all of the lessons that could have been learned from Y2K and Harold Camping, people will still rally around the idea that apocalyptic events are on the calendar for 2012. Some will turn to the end-date of the 5125-year-long cycle in the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar (closely associated with the Maya civilization) and a handful of folks believe cataclysmic events are awaiting on December 21, 2012. But the dates with will pass with little fanfare — except for those profiting from the sale of gold coins, generators, and dried food that you'd probably rather want to die than eat. 3. Continuing revolutions across the Arab world will raise alarming questions about the fate of the remaining Christians in the region, and will put the issue of religious persecution squarely on the political agenda. Sizable Christian populations now survive in only two Arab countries, Egypt and Syria, both of which could soon be under Islamist rule. At a minimum, expect to see inter-faith violence on the ground. In a worst case scenario, Arab Christians could face large scale persecution, forcing millions to seek new homes overseas. Watch too for religious persecution to be an emotive issue in the U.S. presidential race. 4. The year will see an increase in the number of people "coming out" as nonbelievers. Major events like the Reason Rally in March will be a catalyst for more people to publicly declare their secular worldview. The statements of popular celebrities George Takei and Ricky Gervais as atheists in 2011 are just the tip of the iceberg. 5. "All-American Muslim" will become a bigger hit than "Jersey Shore" ever was. Obsessed fans worldwide, regardless of gender, will begin rocking sassy colorful hijab (veil) and converting en masse. Tim Tebow will choose to fast in solidarity with Muslim football players and Tebowing will be replaced by Teprostrating. President Obama will jump on the bandwagon and replace VP Joe Biden with Keith Ellison as his running mate, guaranteeing his re-election in a landslide victory in November. Peace will reign on earth and pigs will have a new lease on life. 6. There's no question the worldview of most younger Christians already differs from previous generations regarding social justice, cultural engagement and politics. The next issue of probable divergence? The conflict in Israel and Palestine. The American church has largely purported just one theology about the modern state of Israel, but now questions are being asked - especially by younger Christians learning of persecution and human rights issues happening in the region - if the church should have a more active role in peacemaking. Is there a way for the Church to be pro-Israel, pro-Palestine and pro-peace? 7. Significant numbers of millennials (young people born in the 1980s and 1990s) will continue to walk away from socially conservative religious traditions. Bringing them back will be tough, especially for religious organizations deeply invested in brick-and-mortar and bureaucracy. Millennials who are facing the erosion of access to affordable, quality education and meaningful employment and who stand to inherit from their elders a great deal of debt and environmental destruction want to know why and how faith matters. 8. The year 2012 promises to be a time of great spiritual stirring in our nation. People are seeking both practical and spiritual answers to their problems. As a result, churches and media ministries that answer specific needs will grow in unprecedented numbers. We can expect to see the numbers of mega-churches and super mega-churches continue to grow. Culturally there will be marked return to helping the poor (both domestically and internationally) and political and social engagement by a younger/more racially diverse, evangelical people. 9. Sabbath becomes trendy! Fourth Commandment makes a comeback! Sabbath named Time’s person of the year! A new movement sweeps the country. They call themselves 24/6. Worn out by being tethered to the grid 24/7, sick of being accessible all hours of the day, inundated by updates, upgrades, and breaking news, Americans finally rebel, demanding, “We need a day off.” People all over the country go offline for 24 hours every week. The simple break from the frenetic pace results in lowered cholesterol rates, fewer speeding tickets, and a reduction in marital strife. Peace, tranquility and contentment spread like wildfire. 10. Women in the Middle East and around the world will rally in protest about the woman who was beaten, stomped on and stripped down to her blue bra (under her abaya) during a demonstration in Egypt. Women everywhere who have been oppressed by their religions will rise up, as they have already done in Egypt, to join "The Blue Bra Revolution." We're mad as hell and we're not going to take it anymore. 11.“Occu-pew Church" – a movement away from counterfeit "Church-ianity," cult of personality and religion toward authentic grassroots personal faith, based on living and loving like Jesus. More churches will lose the moat dragon mentality, lower the drawbridge and dispatch members beyond the church service to church SERVICE, applying their faith in the community through volunteerism and outreach. A renewed global emphasis on prayer - especially for peace and reconciliation - as individuals and leaders recognize that personal spiritual peace in one's heart provides the only lasting foundation for physical peace among families, friends, neighbors - even nations 12. Hindu Americans will continue to become better advocates for themselves, particularly in the public policy arena. They will play a larger role in defining the manner in which Hinduism is represented in the media, academia, popular culture, and interfaith dialogue. The acknowledgment of the Hindu roots of yoga will continue to spread with more people seeing the connection. And the Hindu ethos of religious pluralism will take on a more prominent role in nurturing not only tolerance, but respect for and between the world's religions. 13. In 2012 the lines between the sacred and the profane will get even more blurry: Scientists will religiously maintain their search for the elusive God particle (they won't find it); evangelical sports superhero and Denver Bronco quarterback Tim Tebow will continue to be both an inspiration to the faithful and an object of scorn to skeptics (he will be watching, not playing in, the Super Bowl); at least one well-known religious leader or leading religious politician will be brought down by a sex scandal (let's hope all our leaders have learned a lesson from former Rep. Anthony Weiner and stay away from sexting); and the "nones" - those who don't identify with one religion - will grow even more numerous and find religious meanings in unexpected places (what TV show will become this season's "Lost"?) 14. America’s evangelical community will have its hands full addressing both a presidential election and offering a biblical response to “end of days” Mayan prophecies surrounding 2012. With the economy emerging as the primary issue for the November election, America’s born-again community will have an opportunity to contextualize an alternative narrative to the polarizing elements from both the right and the left by reconciling the righteousness message of Billy Graham with the justice platform of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. By offering compassionate, truth-filled solutions and focusing on the message of grace, love, reconciliation and healing, evangelicals will demonstrate that the greatest agenda stems neither from the donkey nor the elephant but rather from the lamb. 15. We are seeing the divide between younger generation evangelicals and older generation (baby boom and older) get wider every year both theologically and culturally (lifestyle). 2012 promises to widen the gap even more with Gen X and younger evangelicals having trouble understanding why the traditional lines make sense and/or just outright rejecting those lines. |
  About this blog
The CNN Belief Blog covers the faith angles of the day's biggest stories, from breaking news to politics to entertainment, fostering a global conversation about the role of religion and belief in readers' lives. It's edited by CNN's Daniel Burke with contributions from Eric Marrapodi and CNN's worldwide news gathering team.  |
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Nobody, absolutely nobody, can predict the future. Even Nostradamus was as stupid as the 15 people who offered their predictions to CNN.. And as stupid as them is any reader who believes anyone of them.
I am not a religious person and I'm not going to get into it with 'religious bloggers'. Just that phrase by itself is an oxymoron.
That being said, I don't feel religions are about all powerful deities or varying versions of creationism. I feel that religion is about faith. It's about attempting to understand and trust in something that is beyond the comprehension of all of us. Whether you have faith in an invisible man in the sky or the fact that we may have come from some primordial ooze billions of years ago is your choice. It doesn't make you better or worse than anyone else because you may believe differently. Let people believe what they want. Fear of what lay beyond 'death' intrigues and frightens us all. What matters is what you do with the short time you're given. Why should it matter whether or not you think that you'll become some phantasmal apparition with wings or you'll be metamorphosized into a flower or a dog or whatever?
The great thing about mankind is it's ability to think for itself. We're not sheep(well, some of us anyway) and we're not primates or wild animals. We're humanoid and that's what sets us apart from the rest of the food chain. I won't force what I think on people provided they don't force their beliefs on me. When we can start there and be individuals instead of followers or what we think others want us to be, I think we'll be moving in the right direction. Decide for yourself, let others do the same, and respect their choices.
Good points but how is the term 'religious blogger' an oxymoron?
Actually, we are primates. We are animals. How strange that you would rather say the opposite.
Hey atheists; if God isn't real, where did the Bible come from?
Idiots.
Uh... a bunch of people in the desert that wrote down their mythological traditions?
Haha, have you ever even read the Bible? Stupid. If you had, you'd know it was the word of God. Where were desert people to write down what was happening in the garden of Eden? Seriously, read it before you pretend you understand it.
The Babble .. oops I mean the buy-BULL ... sorry .. the bible came from several authors (men) written over the course of centuries. The Old Testament was "completed" sseveral hundred years before that Jesus guy roamed around. The New Testament's earliest writings were done 40 years AFTER Jesus was displayed as art for a few hours. Not a single author of the New Testament ever knew, walked with, or listened to Jesus. They just wrote down stories passed down for 40 years, and you know how oral stories get corrupted every time they are told and passed down. The book was written by dozens of men, and complied at the Council of Nicea in the 300's
Ha Ha.... you're funny. If there was only Adam & Eve, a talking snake and god then how did the human race become the human race without some serious inbreeding? I also recall from reading the bible that when cain was banished from Eden he was given a mark from god... why would that mark be required if Adam and Eve were the first humans created? Oh yeah and where are the women? Anything else about this silly children's story you wish to illuminate us about?
When Cain was banished, and sent away with his "mark", the story says he went out, and found a wife. Just WHERE, exactly, did she come from? Was it a sister? Was it another species? An alien from another world? Just where did this wife originate?
Mirosal, I have learned not to bother with these "god wrote the bible" people. They are trying to convince us a man lived in a whale, people turned to pillars of salt, the earth was created in 6 days, talking snakes, parting waters, burning bushes, dead raised to life and a bunch of other stories that very closely mirror the mythological tales of hundreds of other civilizations. Impossible to reason with those who can't reason.... which is why we just end up laughing at them.
Biblical scholars, most of them Christian themselves, acknowledge that the Bible had begun to be written by humans at least 900 years after the death of Abraham. Your statement is ludicrous. There may be other reasons for Christians to believe the Bible is the Word of God, but this isn't one of them.
As far as Adam and Eve go you could interpret that a few different ways. If you want to take it literally then yes humankind was made possible through incest but Adam and Eve had pure genes and I doubt any genetic abnormalities would arise from any inbreeding within those first few generations. Cain's wife was likely a niece or granddaughter or some other female relative since by the time he killed his brother there would have been more humans than just Adam, Eve, and their immediate family.
I know to people today all that seems gross if you want to believe in the story of Adam and Eve that's a good possibility. Of course you don't have to believe that, you could look at it as an allegory, or just reject the whole thing outright and believe in your own creation myth or scientific theory.
Trolling right? have to be to make the comment about how could desert people write down what happened in the garden of eden, that one was just too funny.
Dan, please. If that's your trump card question you've got a lot of work to do. Other beliefs have a holy book, too, but you think they are all incorrect. I assume you've read them all and consciously made the decision to follow the bible, right? I'm slightly concerned that the bible was written at least 50 years – perhaps as many as 200 years – after Christ. I am also concerned that there is no other book from that era that describes the life and times of Christ. You mean no one else jotted anything down as all of this amazing stuff was happening in his life? No other books about it at all? Why?
Coming from a scientific family, I was brought up with a looser interpretation of religion. I guess now called spiritualism. No, I'm not "new age" either. I tried to figure out what faith is. But that's impossible. It just is.
The Masonic Lodge, who are not demons in disguise, just as varied in behavior as any group of people, talk about a Supreme Architect.
God, in any of the sacred writings, changed with time, just as our view of the world has changed. Why go back to the 'world is flat' idea when the world is round. (Unless you come from Discworld.)
I don't understand, why people who believe in Jesus Christ, can be so nasty to others. Jesus preached love. That's all there is to it. Accept, love, cherish, delight in everything in this marvelous world. You will sleep better at night.
@ BinyaminW
with that said...how do you explain dinosaurs??.. i mean seriously...I never recall hearing anything about Moses and his "clan" running from a T-Rex while roaming the desert. lol
@TheGOAT
The bible doesn't say that G-d didnt create dinosaurs and in fact it doesn't give a comprehensive list of all the creatures He created. Some believe the leviathan, behemoth, and tanniyan which are mentioned in the Bible may be references to creatures that are now known as dinosaurs. Of course the people who wrote the Bible or when G-d gave us the Torah (whichever one chooses to believe) there wouldn't have been words for triceratops or t-rex so that'd be my best guess. Of course I'm not expert on these things and in the end people choose to believe what they want to believe and they're perfectly within their right to do so. I'm Jewish but I tend to lean towards a less literal interpretation of the creation story and the age of the Earth because really what is a day to G-d?
Religion...it's such a silly thing. It was created by primitive man to provide comfort from the fear they developed from the unknown. Religion itself goes against human nature, it teaches people not to question what the "lord" has "made happen". That goes against human nature because humans have never been satisfied with not asking questions that start with "what if" or "why" and trying to find the best possible answer, hence the huge advancement in modern technology. Religion is a box. It does teach outstanding morals, but it's based off of a ridiculous idea that "God", a figure whom NOBODY has seen or shown any proof to exist. And people blindly place their faith in something that has not been proven real, but even worse, Christianity in particular, was stolen from ancient religions and re-written to be disguised as something new.(read your history books) Religion is another form of control in this world, just like anything else used to control people, religion uses fear to get people to "obey" the "lord". Look at all the "consequences" if you don't. People are afraid so they do what the "lord" says to. It's ridiculous and not logical in any way. There is so much evidence out there that disproves many things religion claims to have happened, I'm not sure why it isn't taken seriously. *shrug*
well said
You speak to people who go around as if they are on drugs or have a crowbar stuck in their skulls. Religious people cannot see themselves intelligently. To attempt such a thing would lead to something similar to an anxiety attack. Their eyes will slide past your words. Their thoughts will slide past all truth, all facts that might threaten their indoctrinated fantasies.
They are deaf, dumb, and blind. Most of them did not get good grades in school. They are the cancer of the world.
15 predictions about voodoo and mythology are meaningless. Who cares about a person that belongs to a sect that practices insanity over another person that belongs to a sect that practices insanity... it is all the same ridiculousness. The physics of the universe are not based on man made calendars either so can we please do away with talk about doomsday... it again is another sign of the insane among us.
Can we please stop talking about evangelicals, faith, religion and all this other silliness? We have wasted too much time in our civilization giving credit to fairytales like the Bible, Qu'Ran and Bhagavad Gita.... can logic please finally prevail over folklore? That would be nice for the 21st century, to have the world actually practice the peace discussed in these books instead of the war their supporters seem to bring no shortage of. Such hypocritical imbeciles.
hear, hear, hear.
Prayer changes things
Receive the grace of God today
Accept the Lord Jesus Christ
As your personal savior
Pray without ceasing in 2012
Religion is not healthy for children.Preacing of eternal damnation and hell fire is delusional at best and psychologically damaging.The beatings and child abuse religion presents helps no one. The best approach to life is to realize you dont have the answers. At best you can get a good education and add to the body of science which is trying to help society, not religions that only want us to go back in time to no dentists, doctors, or medicine. A Pox on all religions and the man cults that have sprung up. Especially the man cult jesus.
Lee Spaner, Where is that mentioned in the post you are replying to?
just sayin, the relevance is pretty obvious if you have a functioning brain. That criterion excludes religious folk, so you must be one of them.
Just saying...
Oh, Bill's got it figured out.
Very safe to declare faith in nothing.
Never have to fear being wrong if you disassociate yourself from something that you can't see ... especially when your eyes are closed.
Inexplicable is not necessarily the same as irrational ... and it's certainly not delusional.
The blog predictions contain some silly rhetoric. Take it for what it is, not as a catalyst to discount all faith based religion.
It is amazing how confused emptiness can easily be replaced by prayer for grace, peace and guidance.
For over a thousand years, millions prayed to the likes of Zeus, Apollo, Hera, Isis, Osiris, Thor, Odin, et. al. Where are those civilizations now? What happened to them? These were GODS, and yet taken down, and swept aside by mere mortal men and women. In time, this current 'god' will suffer the same fate.
Here's a faith-based prediction for the new year: "holy men" will drain the bank accounts of a bunch of suckers this year, as they do every year.
This
All Religions lie about their attachment to a fake sky god. This is not unusual for religion and myths have been around for as long as we are able to know.Whats new is that today each and every religion seems to think it has the keys to the house and that everyone else is wrong.To those that would listen, My friends you are ALL wrong.There is no sky god.
A quick look at comments shows that the commentors (all whose comments I read), entirely missed the point(s).
Winning 1st prize for humor is the Muslim, with the Jew coming in second place. Nice to see intelligent notes by professors at (at least) two schools heavily supported by the Kenan Charitable Trusts!!!
But for right-on spirituality, I'd give 1st Prize Over-All to the Hindu. ALL are interesting for one reason or another . . .
Scott
For 2012- (for only the "newbies")
Recognizing the flaws, follies and frauds in the foundations of Islam, Judaism and Christianity, the "bowers", kneelers" and "pew peasants" will continue to converge these religions into some simple rules of life. No koran, bible, clerics, nuns, monks, imams, evangelicals, ayatollahs, rabbis, professors of religion or priests needed or desired.
Ditto for houses of "worthless worship" aka mosques, churches, basilicas, cathedrals, temples and synagogues.
For the oldies and anyone with common sense hit report abuse on all reality garbage
Amen.
Reality rocks. Keep on posting in 2012, Reality.
Just saying...
To know the heart of JESUS:
" How many of you know righteousness and life are in-separate-able. You, religion people, what good is righteousness if you cannot find true life in it, whose intent is to let you obeying a bunch of laws in heaven forever? You, non-believers, what benefit is your happiness if it cannot last, where can you find lasting incorruptible joy and freedom outside me? None of you can enter Garden of Eden without fulfilling my father’s righteousness and obtaining my liberation. I am the WAY, the TRUTH and the LIFE."
Putting your SKY FAIRY's name in all caps doesn't change the fact that your religion is FICTION. So you'd rather believe in fairy tales than face reality, and you think that's a better way to live? Fine, but don't vote, and keep your delusions to yourself.
A lot of contradictions here. One guy says less and less people, especially the young, will not go to church. Another says more people will go and mega churches will grow. Which is it? I say less and less are falling for this nonsense and church attendance will continue to decline until people who go to church are in a minority.
It all comes down to money. Churches are closing all over the place from lack of cash.
Mormons have always seemed like a cult to me. Had a friend that grew up that way, he was really messed up, and I thought being raised cathloic was bad. God does exist, to the atheits that dont#t beleive. If you read your bible properly you would now the churchs are just a form of control and really has nothing to do with what god expects from us. We are one, like it or not. Peace
Care to present evidence that your god exists?
These 15 comments cannot possibly be FAITH based opinions. As far as atheism – you have to acknowledge something in order to deny it.
What a load of crap. It will be just more of the same brainwashing, lunatic religious BS propaganda in 2012. The GOP and money hungry, greedy, hypocritical evangelicals will try to increase their bank account balances and control of the government, and force their hypocrisy down everyone's throat.
Weekly supermarket tabloids like "The Sun', 'National Enquirer', and 'The Globe' all run prophecies as well. Which do you think will be the most accurate? lol 🙂 Let's start a pool, and the winner takes all, no prize for second place.
It would be best if you were to be a silent atheist. No need to spout your hatred.
@ RAgs .. if the x-tians would shut up, quit knocking on my door, invade my television begging for money, and STOP INFLUENCING those running for office (which is against non-profit tax laws and is also unconsti'tutional), then we Atheists would gladly remain quiet. But, as long as you and your ilk continue to spout off and 'threaten' us with eternal pain, suffering, and torture from a deity not unlike the thousands of others before throughout human history, we will not go gently into that good night.
Atheism has actually devolved into a religion of intolerance, hatred and bigotry. Not to mention ignorance.
"Atheism is no more a religion than not collecting stamps is a hobby."-R. Dawkins. Religion requires ignorance and blind adherence without questioning; Christianity is a prime example of that.
How's your flat-round earth doing today, and how are your mustard plants growing? Riding in a fossil fuel -powered vehicle today?
Will displaying this blog cause anyone to change there opinins about their beliefs? you are either condemed or not you do have a right to choose in this country/ we all know right or wrong, good or bad it;s a matter of choice! If you make the wrong choice you wont be able to say you were never told. better count the cost. Especiall when it comes to beliefs systems.
Your diatribe smacks dangerously close to something called "Pascal's Wager". Look it up.
I knew that sorry ass QB was going to get mentioned more than once.
He's playing the steelers next week, He'll spend a lot of time climbing up from the ground.
"Belief" is NEWS when you have a group of people who want to rule America according to their religious beliefs. THAT IS ONE
SCAREY IDEA! And they are succeeding when they hold AMERICA HOSTAGE via Congress. It is news and if we don't pay attention to this we are going to suffer, in America, as we will begin to lose our rights not only to FREEDOM TO WORSHIP but FREEDOMS we believe basic to all human beings. It doesn't help anyone to stick our head in the sand, least of all the person with their you-know-what sticking up in the air while they hide their head in the sand. AND if you notice, RELIGIONS CAUSE WARS, organized religions that are filled with POWER, PRESTIGE and POSSESSIONS as their goal. I don't think Americans will allow it to happen but if we are not paying attention we might wake up one day and be very surprised. Not all people who of a faith believe they have it RIGHT! Not all believers find it necessary to use their faith to manipulate others. There are many, many good people of faith. It is wise to pay attention, to listen to others and not be so closed minded. I think the GOP wanted to get the votes of the growing number of the conservative religious and I think they had no idea what they would suffer at this
particular group of WE GOT IT RIGHT conservatives. I think they are going to suffer huge losses because of it. SO, IT IS NEWS and IT IS IMPORTANT TO PAY ATTENTON!
Good Morning, “Belief” posters. I didn’t even open up the “Belief Blog” yesterday. This morning I opened it up, I was not surprised that with this post of opinions of what the future holds in relation to belief, and with over 1500 responses yesterday I don’t how there can be much more to say–to be sure, I’m not going to read 1500 responses. I can well believe that MissusPowell’s, response is not the first of this sort, but I do have a couple questions regarding this type response and that is: Why is there so much phobia about having a religious person in as a POUS in office? Why do people think that his/her religion is going to be a terrible influence on the way the government is conducted? There have been other politicians claiming religious convictions in the office of the President without a any terrible consequences, so why now? (I can remember there was a lot of controversy over John F. Kennedy, and he didn’t let his religion influence his judgment.) In my opinion, most all politicians who claim any religious convictions are not too religious. I believe that most of these politicians “tout” religion only to gain popularity and votes. Even secular humanists have to agree that they are out-numbered by people who claim to be religious and perhaps this is this is the reason for their phobia of a person claiming to be religious to be in the office of the president, but I think their fears are unnecessary. I do not think the majority of voting people of the U.S. will vote for a person just because a candidate claims some religious tendency, indeed, they are more apt to vote on the candidate’s “political leaning” i.e. “conservative or liberal, or his/her stand on some issue that is important to the voter; to me this is far more dangerous.
Let's review this article on December 31, 2012. At that time we will be able to review each prediction and say "Didn't happen,""Didn't happen," "Didn't happen"....
jeep, what make you think you got it right? why is it so important for you to be right? you cannot prove anything anymore than
you can disprove anything...
Plenty of things can be proved.
Can you prove that the tooth fairy doesn't exist? How about Santa Claus? An adult KNOWS these things do not exist. We foster these myths to bring comfort to our children, or to ourselves.
An adult also knows that believing in gods is irrational and delusional, just as believing in the tooth fairy is ridiculous, irrational and delusional.
God loves you but you condem yourself. Put a hundred unrepentent sinners in hell for a hundred years, then pull them out and ask if they repent and they will still ridicule you, its just the way it is. I've talked to many so-called educated atheist and they are all the same. Don't judge them just love them with as much patence as you can muster and pray for them.