The Influence of Immigration and Generation Change on America Religion

Abstract

The U.S. continues to be a major player on the world stage. It is also a country whose religion continues to play a role in both politics and society. Because of this, it is important to understand the trends and changes going on with American religion in order to better understand the changes a major world player is experiencing. After the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, the number and categories of immigrants changed enormously. Based on the data of immigrants, I analyzed their nationality and numbers and found that Christianity believers decreased, the religiously unaffiliated people increased and the new religions’ believers, Islam, Hinduism etc., continually increased. I also found that the number and the characteristics of Christianity changed simultaneously in US. Finally, I used the generation change in American itself to explain why the number of religiously unaffiliated people increased so quickly.