Muslims projected to be fastest- growing major religious group
It is estimated that by the year 2070, the Muslim population is set to outnumber Christians on a global scale. Currently, Christians make up roughly a third of the world population. This includes Evangelicals, Catholics, Protestants, Lutherans, etc. Islam is approximately a quarter of the world population, followed by Secularists/Agnostics/Atheists at roughly 16% and Hindus at 15%.
In the U.S., Christians are approximately 70% of the population. 25% of Americans are secular, 2% are Jewish, and 1% are Muslim. However, there is no other religious group with fertility rates as high as that of Muslims. The average Muslima bares three children, and the average Christian bares 2.5. But, as the U.S. grows increasingly secular, we may very well see demographic changes unlike what we have experienced on this continent before. This, combined with the current attitudes that tolerate practices like abortion or birth control, are contributing factors to the potential shift in beliefs in the West and how social movements will have to evolve in order to appease changing demographics. This is certainly something to ponder when considering a cultural clash between an increasingly liberal America and conservative Muslim practices.
There is no other religious group in the U.S. as racially diverse as Muslims. Here, Muslims are practically split between nearly a third of them being white, a third being black, and a third being Asian. This is mentioned because most people can infer that the Hindu population is generally South Asian. The Jewish people, if not under their ethnicity, are labeled as white with notable exceptions. Interestingly enough, less than 6% of the Muslim population in the U.S. are Hispanic, which is the largest growing racial demographic in the U.S. When considering diversity, it is essential to note that nearly two-thirds of Muslims in the U.S. are immigrants with great variation in their income, marital status, and educational distribution.
We should note that even Imam’s will admit- religious practices of Muslims are not what they were. The second pillar of Islam, salat, is not a priority for roughly a third of American Muslims, who admit to praying less than twice daily. The guidance for objective morality is completely split between American Muslims, with more believing in common sense and science than pulling directly from the Qur’an. Of course, true Islamic Fundamentalists would refuse to call them Muslim altogether. Over half of American Muslims read from it less than once a week. This draws the conclusion that American Muslims are more secular than foreign Muslims. However, we should also note that the religion of Islam gains about as many members as it loses through conversion, the vast majority of whom were formerly Christian.
Despite Sharia being a central part of the Islamic doctrine, interpretations are up for debate. Where 91% of Iraqi’s support making Sharia the law of the land, only 12% of Turks do, and it is even less for Muslims from Central Asia. Naturally, as Americans, we believe our law of the land, the constitution, still reigns as best because it is more about protecting freedoms and less to do with laws and regulations. Earlier this year, Switzerland banned face coverings. If you are a constitutionalist or a libertarian, you may deem this a violation of religious liberties. If you are a western loyalist, you may deem it as a symbolism of the east and think we must defend the West because the West is the best. If you are a critic of Islam, you may point out that the niqab or burka are symbols of oppression or acknowledge the instances in which women and girls were slain for not wearing them. If you are aware of the different practices between Muslim-dominant countries, you may know that some require men to wear various levels of hijab, some implement sharia fully or partially. Some don’t enforce it at all.
In the 2016 election, less than a fifth of eligible American Muslims voted Republican. This may surprise you, as the party of abortion, multiple genders, and post-modern feminism is undoubtedly not accepted among any conservative religious groups. Indeed, the Democratic party could not have been a pull. It is, instead, a push from the GOP that makes the “conservative party” look Islamophobic, just as the liberal-left has a habit of appearing anti-Semitic. There are several unitary beliefs that conservative Muslims and Christians can agree on. That is the belief in the God of Ibrahim, living a self-disciplined lifestyle that follows His plan, and of course, corruption in the West needs to be rooted out.
This was written not in criticism of Islam, Christianity, or even the east or western world. We have witnessed the multi-cultural clash in countries like France and England, where androgynous pansexuals and conservative Muslims exist in a vacuum, but it is not calm. Peace and coexistence are wearing thin. We should not ignore that many Muslims believe that the 9/11 attacks were justified or that suicide bombings are acceptable. We should also not forget that they are still being persecuted in several areas around the globe, just as Christians are. But, there are fundamental norms within our doctrines that cannot come together without some sort of sacrifice to either of our beliefs of liberties. Conservatives don’t like censorship. Islam is a self-censoring religion. One cannot curse his parents, his God, or other Ibrahimic religions. This shall be a long-term conflict that goes beyond the conversation of censorship we are having now.
When we consider the future of the United States, we cannot shake where our faiths and moralities will divide us. On the one hand, we can acknowledge that there has been no other religion that has conserved itself as well as Islam. At the same time, there have been calls to both reform to improved and return to more traditional versions of Christianity and Islam. This, paired with America becoming more secular, is something to keep in mind when it comes to the religious future of America, but we’ll check back in again before 2070.
About the Author:
Bean Dashnea is currently a student of foreign language and political science. She has lived between the U.S. and Europe for nearly 14 years but considers Texas home. After Bean changed her party registration from Democrat to Republican circa 2018, she immediately recognized the public discourse shift. She knew she was caught in the war on culture and information. Bean currently works with local Republican chapters and primarily advocates for smaller government and geopolitical awareness.