Professor sees economic, social benefits to religion

A Pepperdine University professor believes a secular government that enforces tolerance fosters religion more than a pious state.

In a discussion about political polarization in the United States last night, public-policy professor James Wilson argued for the benefits of religious beliefs for a population ruled by a secular government.

A former president of the American Political Science Association and the author of 14 books, Wilson delivered a speech to students yesterday.

The self-proclaimed secularist said that "religious identification is now more closely associated with one's presidential vote than is age, sex or income."

He added that in addition to being the most modernized country in the world, the United States also contains the strongest religious sentiment, with half of its population claiming to attend church every Sunday, as opposed to less than 5 percent in most European countries.

Wilson said a "free market for religion" at the national level is responsible for the development of religion in the United States, which has subsequently shifted from liberal to conservative churches.

"Strict churches offer incentives to members that liberal churches do not," Wilson said. He added that members of strict churches are usually more committed.

Wilson cited numerous surveys to support his claim that people with religious beliefs are more likely to maintain lawful behavior, achieve economic success, live in two-parent families and donate money to charity.

"American democracy has helped shape American religion just as much as American religion has contributed to American democracy," Wilson said.

He added that religion has become increasingly part of how Americans identify themselves.

"Our culture, Constitution and views of the nature of the American regime affect how we think about religion," he said.

"The key argument is that the benefits of religion are the most important when the government is not itself religious and enforces fair rules among those who are religious."

The Fox Leadership Program co-sponsored the discussion with the Center for Research on Religion and Urban Civil Society. The program had been seeking a speaker in the area of religion.

"We had a lot of interest from students on the Fox committee, and in response to requests from a number of students, we wanted to bring in someone who could give a speech on the 'big picture' of religion in America," Fox Leadership Program Director John DiIulio said.

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