Probably the last thing you would expect to here on the secular BBC, but the Radio 4 programme Americana features an interview with Harvard professor Robert Putnam who reports that in the US, and, but to a slightly lesser extent in the UK, by any of a number of measures, those who engage in some form of regular religious practice are more likely to engage in charitable activities, more likely to donate to charities, more likely to volunteer in their free time and are all round better neighbours.
Well, that's an observation that I make from life, and perfectly understandable - if anybody went to a weekly meeting where they confessed their misdeeds, expressed thanks for the good things in life and promised to lead a better life, then it is hardly surprising that, on average, they make for more congenial neighbours, but it is not something that you hear very often on the BBC.
1 comment:
Yes, as long as you subscribe to their point of view they generally are nicer to you.
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