Religion: March 2008 Archives

According to new statistics released by The Vatican, there are now more Muslims in the world than Catholics. "For the first time in history we are no longer at the top: the Muslims have overtaken us," said Monsignor Vittorio Formenti, who compiled the figures for the church's 2008 yearbook.

The Vatican estimates there are around 1.13 billion Catholics worldwide, while United Nations figures put the number of Muslims at around 1.3 billion. However if all denominations of Christianity are clumped together, Jesus still tops the charts, with an estimated 2.1 billion followers in total.

Formenti noted that while the number of Catholics in proportion to the world's population remains stable, Islam's popularity was increasing due to higher birth rates. In an interview with the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano, Formenti said, "While Muslim families, as is well known, continue to make a lot of children, Christian ones on the contrary tend to have fewer and fewer."

Despite The Vatican's no waste policy when it comes to sperm, it seems that Catholics have some serious shagging to do if they're to regain the top spot. Certainly it seems Gabriel Archangel, the patron Saint of Conception, needs to pull more weight. In light of his obvious slacking on the job, perhaps The Vatican might think about relaxing its attitude to IVF?

Don't try this at home. Devout Catholics in the Philippines are marking Good Friday with ritual flagellation and voluntary crucifixions. At least a dozen people from two villages in the North of the former American colony were crucified with "nails the size of pencils," including a 15-year old boy and an 18-year old girl. Scores more flogged themselves with bamboo whips and paddles tipped with broken glass.

The tradition began in the village of Cutud in the early 1960's. The local passion play has since mushroomed into a major tourist attraction, and has spawned copy-cat productions in nearby villages. At the behest of the country's health minister, participants were urged to have Tetanus injections, and use sterilized whips and nails. "If we can't stop flagellants from whipping their own flesh, the best thing these penitents can do is ensure that their whips are clean and well maintained," said Health Secretary Francisco Duque.

Though the proceedings are officially frowned upon by the Roman Catholic Church, thousands came out to watch the extreme devotional spectacle. In Cutud, the Reuters news agency reports that, "the atmosphere was festive, with hawkers selling beer, ice-cream and souvenir whips." VIPs were able to watch the proceedings, which were the hottest ticket in town, from a "specially elevated viewing platform.”

Photo courtesy of Jesus Christ Superstar: The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Album. For further Good Friday-themed listening, the Daily Mantra recommends the Life of Brian: Soundtrack Album, which features the classic crucifixion anthem "Always Look On The Bright Side of Life."

A new study has concluded that religious people are happier, and better able to cope with bumps in the road of life. Professor Andrew Clark from the Paris School of Economics and Dr Orsolya Lelkes from the European Centre for Social Welfare Policy and Research analyzed the attitudes expressed in existing household survey data, and concluded that those who had faith to lean on had a more positive outlook on life than atheists or agnostics.

"What we found was that religious people were experiencing current day rewards, rather than storing them up for the future," said Clark, who presented his research at the Royal Economic Society's annual conference in Coventry, England earlier this week. "Churchgoing and prayer are also associated with greater satisfaction," noted Clark. Religion also seemed to help people cope with adversity such as divorce and unemployment, serving as a "buffer" and "insurance policy."

Researches were unable to conclusively clarify however, whether it was faith itself that made people happier, or religion-related lifestyle factors, such as a stable family life, regular consumption of communion wine, or a higher incidence of singing. Either way, the God pill seems to work better than Prozac, which along with other similar drugs was found to be ineffective in all but the most serious cases of depression in another recent study (see previous story).