For the past twenty years, the number of what sociologist call “nones”—people who associate themselves with no religion—has been rising as a portion of the American population. But a recent study by the Pew Research Center suggests that trend may finally be leveling off. It also provides more detail about this group, who are not precisely the secularists one might assume. Kelsey Dallas explains:

Among the 28 precent of U.S. adults who fall into the broad category of nones, 17 precent identify as atheists, 20 precent as agnostics, and 63 precent as “nothing in particular,” Pew found. Once you know that only 17 percent of nones identify as atheists, it’s easier to understand the overall group’s feelings about God.

Fully seven in ten nones say they believe in God or a higher power and 63 percent believe there’s something spiritual beyond the natural world, according to the survey. Still, it’s fair to say that most nones have a low level of religious commitment. Few pray regularly and even fewer attend religious services at least once per month.

While nones tend to be Democrats, and tend to be under the age of 50, they are otherwise much like the overall population when it comes to race, sex, and education. About half express dislike of religious institutions and people as driving them away from belief. Ryan Burge, an expert on the subject, tells Dallas he has some advice for them:

Burge said he’s gone as far as telling religious nones to start attending church just for the social benefits. “I say, ‘Go to church! I don’t care what you believe,’” he said. “Religion can do a lot of good for people socially.”

For some time, opponents of U.S support for Israel have been urging the White House to end the war in Gaza, or simply calling for a ceasefire. Douglas Feith and Lewis Libby consider what such a result would actually entail:

Ending the war immediately would allow Hamas to survive and retain military and governing power. Leaving it in the area containing the Sinai-Gaza smuggling routes would ensure that Hamas can rearm. This is why Hamas leaders now plead for a ceasefire. A ceasefire will provide some relief for Gazans today, but a prolonged ceasefire will preserve Hamas’s bloody oppression of Gaza and make future wars with Israel inevitable.

For most Gazans, even when there is no hot war, Hamas’s dictatorship is a nightmarish tyranny. Hamas rule features the torture and murder of regime opponents, official corruption, extremist indoctrination of children, and misery for the population in general. Hamas diverts foreign aid and other resources from proper uses; instead of improving life for the mass of the people, it uses the funds to fight against Palestinians and Israelis.

Moreover, a Hamas-affiliated website warned Gazans last month against cooperating with Israel in securing and delivering the truckloads of aid flowing into the Strip. It promised to deal with those who do with “an iron fist.” In other words, if Hamas remains in power, it will begin torturing, imprisoning, or murdering those it deems collaborators the moment the war ends. Thereafter, Hamas will begin planning its next attack on Israel:

Hamas’s goals are to overshadow the Palestinian Authority, win control of the West Bank, and establish Hamas leadership over the Palestinian revolution. Hamas’s ultimate aim is to spark a regional war to obliterate Israel and, as Hamas leaders steadfastly maintain, fulfill a Quranic vision of killing all Jews.

Hamas planned for corpses of Palestinian babies and mothers to serve as the mainspring of its October 7 war plan. Hamas calculated it could survive a war against a superior Israeli force and energize enemies of Israel around the world. The key to both aims was arranging for grievous Palestinian civilian losses. . . . That element of Hamas’s war plan is working impressively.