If you’ve been feeling particularly sinful lately, it may be time for a change of scenery; it seems our Golden State isn’t so holy after all.
The results of The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life’s most recent U.S. Religious Landscape survey, published in February, found that only 62% of Californians hold an absolute belief in God, nine percent less than the national average. This does not mean that Californians were quick to denounce faith, however; those polled were simply more likely to describe their belief as only “fairly certain.”
In just about every category, though, respondents from California showed considerably less commitment to religion than the average American. The portion of Californians who admitted to placing great importance on religion, attending services at least once a week, and praying at least once a day was between six and eight percent lower than that of Americans as a whole. They were also much more likely to consider their scripture to be the product of humans, with less than a quarter of Californians believing their holy text to be the literal word of God.
The study’s demographic analysis of the state showed that California is 31% Catholic, seven percent higher than the national average. A full 21% of inhabitants professed no religious affiliation, however, compared to only 16% nationwide, and the state contains considerably fewer Protestants than the rest of the United States, where the religion’s majority status has dwindled to only 51% of the national population.
Perhaps the most interesting piece of data released by the Pew Forum, however, had more to do with national trends than California’s digression from them. The study showed that 70% of those polled nationwide felt that many different religions could lead to eternal life, revealing that Americans may be rather more religiously tolerant than we are often considered to be.
With the November elections approaching, this kind of data could provide hope for those worried about the proposed ban on gay marriage. Another section of the study provided empirical evidence that deeply religious Americans are significantly less accepting of homosexuality than others, confirming any suspicions roused by the two-page advertisement that the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property placed in the Los Angeles Times on June 5th. This would also explain in large part why 59% of Californians polled felt that society should accept homosexuality, compared to only 50% of the nation as a whole.
In the presidential election, expect faith to play a large role, as if the primaries left any doubt. Religious affiliation may be on the decline, but still 92% of respondents expressed a belief in God to some degree. Americans seem hesitant to pick any one religion as the true path to salvation, though, which suggests that the candidates may need only to reassure the public that they have faith, and can leave out how they pursue it.
And as for us Californians: the Pew Forum’s study found that 42% of Americans consider Hollywood to be a threat to their values, so it seems anyone feeling corrupted by our sinful state may want to stay out in the sun and away from the cinema.
Photo by cyancy
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