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The Spread of Islam and Catholicism |
Religious Awareness Week began on April 7, 2008 at the Northwestern University Campus, the North. Stephen Prothero, Chair of the Department of Religion at Boston University, and author of newly released “Religious Literacy – What every American needs to know – and doesn’t” spoke to hundreds of college students to promote religious awareness among Americans. Statistics show that although 90% of Americans say they belong to the Christian faith,
only half of them can name the four gospels of the Bible.
Another recent report shows that Muslims outnumber Catholics for the first time in history. Many Americans are in favor of religious tolerance and respect and yet 15% of American teenagers are unable to name one of the five major religions of the world. Prothero writes, “"But the world is what it is. And both tolerance and respect are empty virtues until we actually understand whatever it is we are supposed to be tolerating or respecting." Prothero’s challenge to Americans is a challenge to Korean Americans as well. In understanding the similarities and differences of the world’s major religions beyond what media tells us, can be a starting point for us to begin to respect and befriend all Americans and their respective religions as equal to our own.
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