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Home Research Topics Religion Religious Knowledge & Education
Pew Research CenterJuly 22, 2019
What Americans Know About Religion

Most Americans know the definitions of both ‘atheist’ and ‘agnostic’

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Most Americans know the definitions of both ‘atheist’ and ‘agnostic’

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What Americans Know About Religion
Most Americans correctly answer basic questions about Christianity, atheism and Islam; fewer know about Judaism, Hinduism or what the Constitution says
Most Americans are familiar with key elements of Christianity, terminology of nonbelief, basics of Islam
Three-in-ten or fewer Americans know when Jewish Sabbath begins, that Rosh Hashana is the Jewish New Year
One-in-five Americans know Protestantism (not Catholicism) traditionally teaches that salvation comes through faith alone
Roughly half of Americans know Jesus delivered the Sermon on the Mount, that yoga has roots in Hinduism
Most respondents got between 25% and 75% of questions right; very few gave all correct answers
U.S. Jews among the most knowledgeable about religion
Evangelical Protestants get the most questions right about Christianity; Jews are most well-versed in world religions
Education strongly linked with religious knowledge
Christians who spend time learning about their religion get more questions right about Christianity
Americans who know more people of different faiths have higher levels of religious knowledge
More religious knowledge tied to colder feelings toward evangelical Christians
Three-in-ten Americans overestimate the size of the U.S. Jewish or Muslim population
Jews, atheists and agnostics correctly answer more than half of religious knowledge questions
Evangelical Protestants, Mormons and Jews among the most knowledgeable about elements of the Bible
Evangelical Protestants, atheists, agnostics score best on questions about Christianity
Jews average three out of four correct answers about Judaism; other groups struggle by comparison
Atheists, agnostics and Jews answer more questions correctly about elements of world religions than do Christians
One-in-five Americans know most people in Ethiopia are Christian
One-quarter of Americans know Muslims make up less than 5% of U.S. population
Most Americans know atheists do not believe in God
Most Americans know the definitions of both ‘atheist’ and ‘agnostic’
One-quarter know that there can be no religious test for holding public office in U.S.
Taking a class on world religions is associated with higher levels of religious knowledge
Christians who regularly learn about their own faith correctly answer more questions about the Bible
Christians who attended Sunday school get more questions about the Bible and Christianity right
Those who say they know ‘a lot’ about several faiths get more questions right
Those 65 and older average four more questions right than adults under 30
Knowing someone Jewish linked with more knowledge about Judaism
Those who know an atheist more likely to know atheists don’t believe in God
Among Christians, attending religious services weekly associated with more knowledge of Christianity
The connection between educational attainment and religious knowledge, all else equal
The connection between religious diversity in social connections and religious knowledge, all else equal
The connection between religious affiliation and religious knowledge, all else equal
The connection between religious attendance and religious knowledge, all else equal
The connection between religious education and religious knowledge, all else equal
The connection between demographic characteristics, political party and religious knowledge, all else equal
In U.S., Jews viewed warmly, atheists and Muslims less so
Religious groups garner warmest ratings from those with personal connections
Knowing about a religion linked with warmer views of its adherents
More religious knowledge tied to colder feelings toward evangelical Christians
American Trends Panel recruitment surveys
Weighting dimensions
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