Don’t Lose Your Religion!

“That’s me in the corner. That’s me in the spotlight. Losing my religion.” So sang Michael Stipe in a song dissected from every angle by rock journalists for whatever hidden meaning was intended. Whatever, be certain of one thing: don’t lose your religion. That’s the conclusion of a recent report according to the Association of Religion Data Archives. In a published report some interesting facts were revealed regarding parents with spiritual faith. According to research presented to the Association for the Sociology of Religion by Baylor sociologist Jeremy Uecker and Samuel Stroope of Louisiana State University:

• Daily prayer reduces stress for married mothers.
• Single mothers who attended religious services weekly were more likely than those who rarely or never attend services to strongly agree they are happy in their role as a parent.
• Fathers who said religion is important were more likely to strongly agree they are happy in their role as a parent
• Religion can be a positive influence on parenting, providing a resource for a less stressful and more joyful parenthood.

This isn’t exactly rocket science, but it is backed up by hard research. The message? If you want to be a happy parent, get religion, and don’t lose it!