Religion in America

• Article, National Review (2021):

The “mystical-services market” — which includes crystals and other such hokum — brings in over $2 billion in the United States. There are 100,000 self-employed astrologers in the country — which is to say, around 90,000 more self-employed astrologers than there are employed rabbis. It’s a growth industry. Silicon Valley venture-capital firms, reports the New York Times, have been pumping millions into new apps and companies that cater to Zodiac-obsessed consumers. To put that in some context, Catholic Charities USA, the fifth-largest charity in the United States, collects around $714 million in private donations every year.

Now, it’s true that 37 percent of those who say they believe psychics can predict the future also identify as “Christians” themselves. But 47 percent of those who believe in horoscopes are atheists, agnostics, or those who are “nothing in particular.”

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