Fewer people are claiming a religion

NBC -- The only religious tradition that's growing in the United States seems to be no religion.

"Nones," or those people who don't identify with a religious tradition, are growing in number.

A growing number of Americans simply answer "none" or "no religion" if anyone ever asks and research shows they are the fastest-growing segment of the national religious landscape.

"You do see more people moving more to non-denominational churches that don't identify necessarily with a denomination, versus a religion," said Dallas resident Kevin Canida, "So no, it doesn't surprise me at all."

These people tend to be skeptics, not outright atheists, and some experts say churches are at least partly to blame.

"When they began looking for someone that they could lean on and they could articulate spiritual values and talk about spiritual paths and prayer," said theologist Dr. Frederick Schmidt, "what they found was that Oprah was closer to being prepared to talk about those spiritual issues than the average clergy was."

A new survey by Trinity College shows that within 20 years, a quarter of Americans will claim no religious affiliation.

Some say people are just tired of church politics.

"I think people often want to have their relationship directly with God," said Dallas resident Nancy Blake. "Organized religion gets so, so organized that they feel as though they have to fulfill a number of requirements with their time and do things that are maybe uncomfortable for them."

Experts says these trends likely mean the debate about spiritual and religious values will get more complex in the decades ahead.