Why So Many Americans Are Leaving Their Religion

American religion is in a state of flux. Religious “nones,” a category that includes atheists, agnostics and those with no affiliation to organized religion, now make up roughly a quarter of the American public. It’s a rapidly growing group ― now constituting the second largest “religious” category after evangelical Christians. And the designation is highly common among millennials, a trend likely to persist with every subsequent generation.

Nearly 80 percent of “nones” were raised in a religion they chose to leave behind once they reached adulthood. A recent survey conducted as part of Pew Research Center Religious Landscape Study investigates why these former faithful left the fold ― and the reasons they gave are illuminating. 

Forty-nine percent of religious “nones” who were raised in a religion say they simply stopped believing. That was true for 82 percent of atheists and 63 percent of agnostics. Many respondents mentioned science, saying their views evolved over time. Others said they became disenchanted with the faith....
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/why-so-many-americans-are-leaving-their-religion_us_57bf661ee4b04193420e6df0