I love it when science validates my worldview.

An article today from The Times of London reports on a new study by social scientist Gregory Paul on the correlation between the strength of a nation's religious convictions and the damage those convictions do to that society.

RELIGIOUS belief can cause damage to a society, contributing towards high murder rates, abortion, sexual promiscuity and suicide, according to research published today.

According to the study, belief in and worship of God are not only unnecessary for a healthy society but may actually contribute to social problems.

The study counters the view of believers that religion is necessary to provide the moral and ethical foundations of a healthy society.

It compares the social peformance of relatively secular countries, such as Britain, with the US, where the majority believes in a creator rather than the theory of evolution. Many conservative evangelicals in the US consider Darwinism to be a social evil, believing that it inspires atheism and amorality.

Many liberal Christians and believers of other faiths hold that religious belief is socially beneficial, believing that it helps to lower rates of violent crime, murder, suicide, sexual promiscuity and abortion. The benefits of religious belief to a society have been described as its “spiritual capital”. But the study claims that the devotion of many in the US may actually contribute to its ills.

Seriously, I've been saying this for years. It's a big part of why I'm an atheist. You don't need a PhD to recognize the correlations.

I'm not about to say that belief in a higher power CAUSES social ills, but there is certainly a preponderance of evidence that there is at least a relationship between the two.

So be patriotic: don't go to church this weekend.