This question crossed my mind while I was reading
this article which suggests that SCOTUS Justice Stephen Breyer might be an atheist. It cites a statistic that 20% of Americans don't identify with a religion, but I question its implications. Indeed, this does not necessarily indicate that 20% of the country "doesn't believe in God," but it shows a trend few would have expected half a century ago.
To cite another issue, some have suggested that opposition to gay marriage is in fact higher than polls show because its opponents are afraid of telling people, even anonymously, that they are not in favor of it. There is indeed a growing stigma attached to opposing gay marriage today, and while there has been growth in support in the midst of its frequent media appearances, it isn't unreasonable to believe that a margin of self-proclaimed "supporters" are really opponents hiding inside their own proverbial closets.
I suspect the inverse to be the case with religious identification. Perhaps while there are more non-believers in the United States today than fifty years ago, the growing number of non-believers can be attributed to fewer people being stigmatized for their beliefs in an age where religion and society no longer intermix.
Thoughts?
