Future of God: It’s Personal
Now and then, people contemplate imponderable questions such as: What is consciousness? What existed before the Big Bang? Or, what came first – the chicken or the egg? Another such question could easily be: What is the future of God? Who might be interested in the future of God? Members of the Abrahamic religions (i.e., Christians, Jews and Muslims) would be among those who would likely be interested (close to four billion souls). The factors considered in this article include the decreasing level of faith in God, the assumption that belief in God will never be extinguished and a review of how religions evolve.
For many decades now, perhaps even for centuries, humankind has increased its understanding of its surroundings primarily through scientific discoveries. Correspondingly, humankind has decreased its faith in God. As author Alex Shelby concluded, “The more we know and understand, the less necessary God becomes.”1 Huston Smith, former professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Syracuse University, had a similar conclusion, stating, “The more the universe seems comprehensible, the more religion seems pointless.”2 Karen Armstrong, a religious scholar and author, observed, “People must outgrow God in their own good time.”3
Through periodic polling and census taking, we can examine the trends in faith in God over the past few decades. For example, over 40 million Americans have stopped going to church over the past 25 years. Today, less than 20% of Americans attend church on any given Sunday.4 And the decrease in congregation size has affected all religious denominations. In 2023, a Gallup poll found that the belief in God had dropped from 90% to 74%.5
According to a recent Pew Research study, close to a third of American adults now identify as religiously unaffiliated, known as “Nones,” compared to just 16% back in 2007. Nones outnumber both Catholics (23%) and evangelical Protestants (24%).6 Jason DeRose, the religion correspondent for National Public Radio News, reported in The Washington Post, “I think it’s possible these people don’t believe in anything [supernatural]. We just don’t have the language [or religion] yet to describe what they do believe.”7
However, it has been shown that believing in a higher power is healthier, at least psychologically. The benefits outweigh the harm if one chooses to believe in God.8 Finding solace in times of grief and loss is a human need. Religion and God provide comfort and hope, which are essential for mental health.
Many people are naturally resistant to change. Limiting change is one of the primary goals of religion.9 So, as humankind evolves away from having faith in God, it is clear that faith will probably never disappear, no matter how much science has discovered.10
Throughout history, religions are created, though most expire after a relatively short period of time. When a religion dies, it tends to become a myth. As for new religions, they are often perceived as cults in the beginning. The key to the survival of any new religion is an effective champion (such as Paul the Apostle with Christianity) with a message that resonates with people (such as the belief in Jesus as the son of God is the only way to get into heaven11).12
Finally, there is the negative impact of the internet. Greg Cootsona, a professor of religious studies at California State University, Chico, reported that discussions on social media are largely hostile toward religious faith. Countless comments such as “The internet will kill religion,” and “Jesus will soon go the way of Zeus and Osiris,” adversely affect the opinions of millions of internet users regarding God and religion.13
Evolution of God and New Religion
If any religion in world history were perfect, then we would not witness the denominational branching or sects continually being created.14 In other words, no single religion has satisfied nor will satisfy everyone.15 New denominational branches are motivated by many factors, including greed (specifically money) and political power (specifically corruption).
A prominent reason for a new denominational branch is a new interpretation of holy scripture that appeals to people more than the current ones. Rodney Stark noted, “There must be something novel about the new religion in order to justify change,” and that “people embraced a new faith because they find its teachings appealing.”16 The best example of this is the separation of Christianity from Judaism.
Change could evolve from within a religion such as Catholicism. The pope could use any of several mechanisms to direct a change in religious doctrine or policy. However, getting Catholicism to move from one all-powerful and all-knowing God to just one personal god for each follower would take the longest time of any of the evolution possibilities – though it is technically possible.
The next possibility to consider is for change to evolve from an established religion, such as Protestantism. Because Protestants do not have one overarching leader like the Catholics do (i.e., the pope), branches can occur emphasizing different beliefs. Shelby observed, “The division of the Christian faith involved several political issues primarily as a result of inherent vagueness and ambiguous translations from the original Hebrew into Greek and Latin.”17
Finally, a new religion could evolve from an original source, such as the ancient faiths. Stark observed that “all successful new religions are founded by gifted individuals.”18 With the continued loss of faith around the world, one day it may be possible that the only faith remaining is just the belief in one personal deity.
A new religion is ripe to emerge at any time now. For a new belief system to succeed, it probably should not require much faith or tenets, as there appears to be little appetite for it today – especially among the younger generations. For example, there would be no reason to believe in an afterlife, including Heaven, Hell, or the Kingdom of God (as if God were a monarch!). Humankind’s “inherent sin” would not exist. Therefore, sin could not be used as leverage to influence anything one does while alive. The reincarnation of souls also would not exist. Therefore, providing money, resources and prayer to religious organizations would not affect anything for the provider after dying or for their ancestors who have already passed. As well, karma would not apply after death. “One gets what one deserves” applies only while a person is alive. In other words, one’s life is one’s own responsibility. Nothing in life is predestined to happen.
The bottom line is that the fewer requirements a new religion has, the more likely it is to flourish in a modernizing world. As such, I believe a new religion should be limited to just one leap of faith – the belief in god. However, the belief in God that is all-knowing, ever-present, and all-powerful is, in fact, many leaps of faith. So this new, revised god would not be omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent (hence, the non-capitalized “god”). Instead, the future of God could be a personal god with unknown powers that exists for each individual. The evolution here is that when you die, you are dead, and your personal god would cease to exist once you have passed.
This would be analogous to people believing in a guardian angel (everyone’s personal divine entity). The concept of guardian angels has existed for thousands of years. The Persian religion Zoroastrianism described the guardian angel as a spirit or divine essence that exists for every individual. Judaism’s rabbinic literature developed the idea that God appoints angels to watch over people. Catholic and Orthodox traditions teach that every person is assigned a guardian angel at birth to protect them from spiritual harm. Islam’s Quran describes guardian angels as those who protect individuals from death until it is their destined time. The 13th-century theologian Thomas Aquinas argued that “each man has an angel guardian appointed to them.”19
Guardian angels are typically viewed as non-human divine beings. From a psychological standpoint, belief in a guardian angel serves as a powerful buffer against loneliness and fear. A guardian angel is actually the personal god that exists whether a person believes it or not.
For thousands of years, humankind believed in multiple gods or almighty deities. Three thousand years ago, the Jewish people living in the Levant region of the Middle East decided to believe in one God, known as Yahweh in the Old Testament. Two thousand years ago, Jesus became the foundation of Christianity in the New Testament. Then, several centuries later, the Prophet Muhammad founded Islam on the Arab Peninsula and wrote the Quran in which God is known as Allah. It appears that humankind is on the verge of further religious evolution – the belief in just one personal god. This evolution accommodates the continued scientific advancements characteristic of modern societies.
Bibliography
Armstrong, Karen. A History of God. New York: Ballantine, 1991.
Cootsona, Greg. “Some Ways Emerging Adults are Shaping the Future of Religion and Science.” Zygon, 51(3) (September 2016).
Davis, Jim and Michael Graham. “The Great Dechurching: Who’s Leaving, Why Are They Going, and What Will It Take to Bring Them Back?” New York: HarperCollins Christian Publishing, 2023.
DeRose, Jason. “Religious ‘Nones’ are now the largest single group in the U.S.” NPR (January 24, 2024).
Shelby, Alex. The Evolution of Religion: How Religions Originate, Change, and Die. 2014.
Smith, Huston. Why Religion Matters. New York: HarperOne, 2001.
Stark, Rodney. Discovering God: The Origins of the Great Religions and the Evolution of Belief. New York: HarperOne, 2008.
Sumit, Paul-Choudhury. “Tomorrow’s Gods: What is the Future of Religion?” BBC Future (August 1, 2019).
[1] Shelby, 212.
[2] Smith, Why Religion Matters, 37.
[3] Armstrong, A History of God, 357.
[4] Davis, Jim and Michael Graham.
[5] July 2023 Gallup report titled “Belief in Five Spiritual Entities Edges Down to New Lows.”
[7] Ibid.
[8] Shelby, 40.
[9] Ibid., 51.
[10] Sumit (2019): https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20190801-tomorrows-gods-what-is-the-future-of-
[11] In John 14:6, Jesus declares, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except
through Me.” This verse emphasizes that belief in Jesus is the exclusive path to heaven.
[12] Sumit (2019): https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20190801-tomorrows-gods-what-is-the-future-of-
[13] Cootsona, 567.
[14] Shelby, 52.
[15] Ibid., 65.
[16] Stark, 51, 199.
[17] Shelby, 56.
[18] Stark, 156.
[19] Aquinas, Thomas. Summa Theologiae, I, q. 113, a. 2.