Buddhism is one of the fastest growing religions and by some estimates, it is THE fastest growing religion, especially among those who convert from one religion to another.
In 2005 the Swedish government conducted a survey and one of the questions asked high school students which religion they would like to choose. And 60% answered Buddhism.<ref>
</ref> The number of Buddhists in the Netherlands rose nearly 1,500% (from 16,000 to over 250,000) from 1998 to 2009.<ref>
</ref> The number of Buddhists has been steadily rising in Asia too. In Taiwan the number of Buddhists grew from 5.5 million in 2001 to 8 million in 2008. During that same seven year period the number of Buddhists in India grew from about 1% to 3.25% which was about 35 million in 2008.<ref>
</ref>
In the fast-paced world of modern life, many are becoming attracted to the meditation teachings found in Buddhism. For some it is for that reason and one or more of the following:
Once Sariputta remarked, “Venerable sir, I have such confidence in the Blessed One that I believe there has not been nor ever will be nor exists at present another ascetic or brahmin more knowledgeable than the Blessed One with respect to enlightenment.” The Buddha responds, “Lofty indeed is this bellowing utterance of yours, Sariputta, you have roared a definitive, categorical lion’s roar. Have you now, Sariputta, encompassed with your mind the minds of all the Arahants, the Perfectly Enlightened Ones, arisen in the past and known thus: Those Blessed Ones were of such virtue, or of such qualities, or such wisdom?” Sariputta responds, “No, venerable sir.” Samyutta Nikaya 47.12
In that discourse, instead of agreeing with the bold praise of the Buddha given to him by Sariputta, the Buddha basically asks him, “Have you met every Buddha of the past, present, and future? Then how can you call me the best that ever was or will ever be?” Such was the amazing wisdom, the intelligence, and humility of the Buddha of our time.
There are some people interested in Buddhism who are known as skeptical Buddhists or agnostic Buddhists who have doubts about rebirth and some other teachings. This is considered acceptable as it is a “come and see” for yourself religion. However, some take their doubt to an extreme and prefer a Buddhism without rebirth and argue that concepts like rebirth could keep some away from Buddhism, believing it to be a cultural accretion. However, is reincarnation / rebirth really a hindrance to getting more appeal for Buddhism? Studies show that belief / acceptance of reincarnation / rebirth are at very high numbers. Here are some statistics of the percentage believing in reincarnation / rebirth:<ref>
</ref> <ref>
</ref>
The above are very high percentages when you consider that the above countries / regions are primarily Christian (at least by birth certificate), which does not traditionally accept rebirth. The U.S. study showed that acceptance was especially higher among the younger age groups. Belief in reincarnation is held by 40 percent of people aged 25 to 29 but only 14 percent of people aged 65 and over.
Introduction to Buddhism Science of Buddhism Non-dogmatism Buddha's Lists