The report from the Washington-based Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, issued on June 23, reveals that while people in the United States describe themselves as highly religious, most do not believe that their own religious faith is the only path to eternal life. The study found that 70 percent of those surveyed agreed that many religions can lead to salvation or eternal life, and that 68 percent believed, “There is more than one true way to interpret the teachings of my religion.”
About 83 percent of what are called mainline, or traditional, Protestants believe that different faith traditions can lead to salvation or eternal life. The Pew analysts said, however, they were surprised, even startled, to learn that 57 percent of evangelical Christians believe that different faith traditions can pave the way to eternal life, and that 53 percent of Evangelicals see the validity of multiple ways of interpreting a particular faith.
“That was a very surprising figure that will surprise many Evangelicals,” John Green, senior fellow at the Pew Forum, told Ecumenical News International during a telephone news conference with reporters to explain the study.
Green said that even for someone like himself, who studies U.S. religious trends, the survey’s findings of the “enormous diversity” of the religious landscape in the United States was surprising. “I was stunned by it,” he said.
The Pew researcher added that the finding about religious acceptance and diversity displayed a notable “pragmatic streak” in U.S. religious belief and practice that co-exists with an overall high level of religiosity in the United States. This was also underlined by the finding that 71 percent of those surveyed were, “absolutely certain” there is a god; 56 percent said, “religion is very important” in their lives, and 39 percent said they attend religious services once a week.
On the issue of religion and politics, the Pew study found that people in the United States who regularly attend religious services are more apt to describe themselves as political conservatives, and hold conservative views on such issues as abortion and homosexuality. However, the survey found shared views across the political and religious spectrum on such topics as a government’s responsibility to assist the poor, and the need for environmental protection.
The full report is available at: www.pewforum.org
