Poll: Americans Dismayed over Waning Influence of Religion in Public Life

People pray during The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' twice-annual church co
Rick Bowmer/AP Photo
Thomas D. Williams, Ph.D.

A record high number of Americans say the role of religion in public life is shrinking and most believe this to be bad for the country, the Pew Research Center reports.

According to the survey, 57 percent of Americans believe religion plays a positive role in public life, while only 19 percent have a negative view of the role of religion.

Overall, “there are widespread signs of unease with religion’s trajectory in American life,” Pew reveals, and this dissatisfaction “is not just among religious Americans.”

A remarkable 80 percent of U.S. adults currently believe the influence of religion in American life is dwindling, Pew finds, and over 60 percent of these think this is a bad thing.

Leftists like Hollywood producer Rob Reiner have proclaimed a dangerous rise in “Christian nationalism” and one Politico reporter recently suggested that those who share Thomas Jefferson’s belief that human rights come from God rather than government are all “Christian nationalists,” presumably plotting a theocratic coup d’état.

Pew found, however, more than half of Americans (54 percent) have never even heard of Christian nationalism.

According to the Pew survey, 44 percent of Americans say the government should not declare the country a Christian nation but should promote Christian moral values.

Commenting on the report, Catholic League president Bill Donohue said that Americans’ concern for the decline in religion in public life likely has to do with the fact that “the inculcation of religious values has a stabilizing effect on individuals, and hence on society.”

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Public Advocate of the United States

Character building, which is essential to citizenship, “is facilitated by religion,” Donohue added. “Unfortunately, American society has become more unstable and character building has become more difficult.”

Dr. Donohue also noted that the majority of Americans echo the belief of the Founders, who did not want an established church, but maintained that the nation “would benefit by advancing Christian-inspired values.”

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