Poll Finds 43 Percent Of People Believe God Helps Tebow Win

"According to a national telephone survey conducted by Poll Position, 43 percent of people believe that “divine intervention” is responsible for his success compared to 42 percent of people surveyed who think that God has nothing to do with Tebow winning."

Images of Jesus Christ and Other Religious Figures Seen in Everyday Objects

Interesting slideshow of images--it speaks to contemporary popular culture and also contemporary religious psychology.

Study Links Religious Services to Optimism

"Regular attendance at religious services is associated with a more optimistic outlook and a lesser inclination to be depressed, compared to those who do not attend services at all, a study concluded on Thursday."

Worrying Can Impact Interpersonal Relationships

"A new research study, led by a Case Western Reserve University faculty member in psychology, also shows that worrying can be so intrusive and obsessive that it interferes in the person’s life and endangers the health of social relationships."

Religious Happier During Bad Times

"Religious are happier and outnumber the non-religious in societies under stress but their numerical edge diminishes during peace, U.S. researchers say."

Mental Illness Often Ignored By Churches

"Mental illness is prevalent in church communities but is also accompanied by significant distress that is often ignored, U.S. researchers found."

Study: How Satanists See Death

"A researcher from Concordia University recently published a journal article with some rare access to high level Satanists exploring what they think about death and dying."

Religious Belief is Human Nature, Huge New Study Claims

"Religion comes naturally, even instinctively, to human beings, a massive new study of cultures all around the world suggests."

Religiosity, Spirituality Impact Health

"A person's religiosity and spirituality independently predicts health outcomes after a collective traumatic event like Sept. 11, 2001, U.S. researchers say."

Are You Angry at God?

"Survey Shows Up to Two Thirds of Americans Blame God in Hard Times"

Meditation Can Change Brain in Eight Weeks

"The study, published in Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging, reports meditation produced changes over time in the brain's gray matter -- including increases in density in brain areas having to do with learning, memory, self-awareness and compassion. Decreased density was seen in the amygdala -- an area linked to anxiety -- in those reporting less stress. None of the changes were seen in the control group."

Very Religious Exhibit Higher Well-Being

"U.S. adults who say they are very religious have higher overall well-being than their counterparts who are moderately religious, a survey indicates."

Study: Unbelievers Also Angry at God

"The study, published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, finds Protestants, African-Americans and older people tend to report less anger at God. People who do not believe in God may still harbor anger and anger toward God is most distressing when it is frequent, intense or chronic."

Prayer Helps Victims of Domestic Violence Vent Anger, Up Self-Worth

"In a study of victims of violent relationships with intimate partners, U.S. researchers found prayer helped them vent their anger."

Why Religion Breeds Happiness: Friends

"As important as your religious beliefs may be to you, they don't necessarily make you happier, a new study in the American Sociological Review finds. What does make you more satisfied with your life, the study finds, is having friends at your congregation and a strong religious identity."

Research Shows Grateful People Are Healthier

"A growing body of research suggests that maintaining an attitude of gratitude can improve psychological, emotional and physical well-being."

Americans' Views of God Shape Attitudes on Key Issues

"Surveys say about nine out of 10 Americans believe in God, but the way we picture that God reveals our attitudes on economics, justice, social morality, war, natural disasters, science, politics, love and more, say Paul Froese and Christopher Bader, sociologists at Baylor University in Waco, Texas. Their new book, America's Four Gods: What We Say About God — And What That Says About Us, examines our diverse visions of the Almighty and why they matter."

Study: Priorities May Drive Happiness

"But according to one of the first studies to look at long-term happiness, major life events, like a sudden cash windfall, are not what make us happy, rather, it's the priorities we set in life."

Bishop Long's 'Anointed' Path to Power at New Birth

"Bishop Eddie Long, facing accusations of sexual coercion, is considered 'anointed' by his congregants. Scholars say his rise has followed a familiar pattern, with worshipers fiercely devoted to a powerful leader."

Doctors' Beliefs Affect End-of-Life Care

"A new study finds that doctors who are not religious are more likely to take steps to help end a very sick patient's life, and to discuss these kinds of decisions, than doctors who are very religious."