An overwhelming majority (79%) of those surveyed in a recent Pew Forum poll believes that there is solid evidence that the average temperature of the earth has been increasing over the past few decades; just 17% say there is no solid evidence for this. Sizable majorities of every religious group agree: 77% of Catholics, 79% of white mainline Protestants and 70% of white evangelicals. Most of those who believe that the earth is getting hotter also believe that human activity such as the burning of fossil fuels is responsible: 50% of the general public say this, while 23% say that global warming is mostly a result of natural patterns in the earth’s environment. Read More
Global Warming and Religious Belief
Russell Heimlich is a former web developer at Pew Research Center.