Skipping Sunday School: A Documentary (in production) Is God dead? The US is seeing a substantial downward trend in religious adherence, especially in young people. “If the trends continue, ‘the Millennial generation will see churches closing as quickly as GM dealerships,’ says Thom Rainer, president of LifeWay Christian Resources. In the group's survey of 1,200 18- to 29-year-olds, 72% say they're ‘really more spiritual than religious .... Most young adults today don't pray, don't worship and don't read the Bible ....” (USA Today, April 27, 2010) A downward religious trend in young adults suggest a downward trend in religious children. In this documentary, in its mid stages of production, we investigate the relationship between children and religion. Is it possible to raise ethical, moral children who do not have a basic belief in a god or higher power? How do children without a religious foundation come to terms with the concept of death and the afterlife? Do children raised by non-theist parents resent their godless upbringing? Which group, the faithless or the ultra-faithful, faces the most ostracism? Do parents struggle with their decisions? How do the experiences of growing up without religion compare to those of growing up with religion? Why is our focus on children? Well, because we’re interested in finding out if religion has anything to do with being a good person, as most religions would have you believe. A person’s sense of morality and ethics is developed in childhood and adolescence. Recent studies performed by Professor Frans de Waal at Emory University suggest that morality was developed as part of the evolutionary process, and has absolutely nothing to do with God. Through his research, he has discovered that “monkeys and apes can make judgements about fairness, offer sympathy and help and remember obligations.” (The Telegraph, Feb. 15, 2009) Consider the quote by eminent evolutionary biologist and active atheist, Richard Dawkins: “There is no such thing as a Christian child: only a child of Christian parents.” http://content.usatoday.com/topics/topic/Organizations/Religious+Groups/LifeWay+Christian+Resourceshttp://content.usatoday.com/topics/topic/Organizations/Religious+Groups/LifeWay+Christian+Resourcesshapeimage_2_link_0shapeimage_2_link_1
How you can HELP Let us shoot you! Looking for: - Religious and nonreligious parents of kids all ages - Those who had noteworthy religious and nonreligious upbringings - Atheist families - Freethinking and openminded children Keep in Touch! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter for updates, send us an email if you have any comments or questions, and visit us at IndieGoGo! Please consider contributing! http://www.facebook.com/pages/Skipping-Sunday-School-A-Documentary/124876114194951http://twitter.com/henlivisionmailto:henlivision@gmail.com?subject=Website%20Contacthttp://www.indiegogo.com/SkippingSundaySchoolmailto:henlivision@gmail.com?subject=I%20Can%20Helpshapeimage_3_link_0shapeimage_3_link_1shapeimage_3_link_2shapeimage_3_link_3
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Resources Children and Religion (Brief overview, Wikipedia article) Camp Quest: The Secular Summer Camp Parenting Beyond Belief: On Raising Ethical, Caring Kids Without Religion by Dale McGowan Article -- Do Children Need Religion? Are Religious Beliefs Necessary for Children? Atheists Can Raise Good Children Without Religion or Religious Beliefs Article -- Do Children Need Religion? For healthy psychological development, kids need to know there is something greater than themselves http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Children_and_religionhttp://www.camp-quest.org/http://www.amazon.com/Parenting-Beyond-Belief-Raising-Religion/dp/0814474268/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1256861034&sr=8-1http://www.amazon.com/Parenting-Beyond-Belief-Raising-Religion/dp/0814474268/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1256861034&sr=8-1http://atheism.about.com/od/atheistschildren/a/KidsReligion.htmhttp://atheism.about.com/od/atheistschildren/a/KidsReligion.htmhttp://www.beliefnet.com/Love-Family/Parenting/2004/02/Do-Children-Need-Religion.aspxhttp://www.beliefnet.com/Love-Family/Parenting/2004/02/Do-Children-Need-Religion.aspxshapeimage_6_link_0shapeimage_6_link_1shapeimage_6_link_2shapeimage_6_link_3shapeimage_6_link_4shapeimage_6_link_5shapeimage_6_link_6shapeimage_6_link_7

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