Vertical-Earth

Knowing the religious affiliations of listeners can provide useful information because religious training often underlies many of our social and cultural attitudes and values. Members of fundamentalist religious groups are likely to have conservative social and political attitudes. Baptists tend to be more conservative than Episcopalians, who in turn are often more conservative than Unitarians. In addition, a denomination may advocate specific beliefs that many of its members accept as a part of their religious heritage.
A word of caution needs to be added here. You can’t always assume that because an individual is a member of a particular religious group, he or she will embrace all the teachings of that group. One thing you can count on, however, is that audiences are usually quite sensitive concerning topics related to their religious convictions. As a speaker, you should be aware of this sensitivity and be attuned to the religious makeup of your anticipated audience. Appealing to “Christian” values before an audience that includes members of other religious groups may offend listeners and diminish the effectiveness of your message. The classroom audience of today is likely to be made up of students from different religious backgrounds. Since religious affiliation may be a strong indicator of values, it is wise not to ignore its potential importance.