Veera Korhonen
Research expert covering United States data for society
Religious trends in the United States - statistics & facts
The United States, home to the largest number of Christians worldwide, has recently begun to reflect a more diverse religious landscape. While the majority of the population still identify with a Christian denomination, most commonly as Protestants or Catholics, others report a wide variety of religious beliefs and backgrounds. Although there are no official figures on the size of any religious groups in the U.S., as the Census Bureau does not collect information on the religious identification of residents, surveys have estimated that Jews, Buddhists, Hindus, and Muslims represent the main non-Christian faiths in the United States. As of 2022, Muslims were identified as the most likely religious group to be aged between 18 to 24 years old in the U.S., while White Evangelicals and Catholics were least likely to identify with this younger age group, suggesting America’s religious demographics will continue to diverge with future generations.
The diversity of America’s religious landscape can be largely attributed to immigration; however, studies have shown that immigration is not always linked to non-Christian faiths. A survey on Indian Americans found that while over half of Indian Americans identified as Hindu, 11 percent identified with some form of Christian denomination and 16 percent identified with no religion at all. Indian Americans who identified as Christian were also twice as likely than those who were Hindu to report attending religious services once or several times a week, with 58 percent of Christian Indian Americans saying they attend religious services this frequently. In comparison, only 21 percent of Hindu Indian Americans said that they attended religious services once or several times a week, an almost identical statistic to the amount of all U.S. adults who attend church or synagogue weekly.
These demographics further depict the rise of a different type of religious identity in the U.S.: the lack of one. Research has revealed that many Americans are leaving religion to instead identify as atheist, agnostic, or nothing at all, with the most common reason given for leaving or changing their religious affiliation being that they stopped believing in the religion’s teachings. Simultaneously, fewer Americans have been found to say that religion is very important to them, that they belong to a church, or that they believe in God. If these trends continue, the number of Americans who are religiously unaffiliated has been estimated to reach 52 percent by 2070, ultimately taking over Christianity to make up the majority of the population.
Scholars have warned that this reported pullback from religion could negatively affect American society, as religious participation has been linked to greater life satisfaction, with 67 percent of Americans who attended religious services weekly saying they were very satisfied with their personal lives compared to 48 percent who attended religious services less often. Over half of Americans also agreed that if enough people were brought to Christ, social issues would take care of themselves. However, critics argue that the charitable and goodwill aspect that is often attributed to religion only applies when Christianity is the religion in question.
Moreover, despite reports of Christianity’s decline in the U.S., numerous controversies linked to Christian denominations in recent years indicate that the religion has not yet lost its reach. Over the last few years, the Catholic Church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the Southern Baptist Convention have been suspected of covering up child sexual abuse, the Supreme Court sided with an evangelical Christian website designer who refused to create websites for same-sex weddings, despite defying anti-discrimination laws, and the Court ruled in favor of a Christian football coach who prayed on the field with his students after games at a public school, calling into question whether leading private prayers at public schools violates the separation of church and state that the nation promotes. Furthermore, a recent decision by the state of Oklahoma to approve the first religious public school in the U.S. further ignited criticism that a religious school funded solely by tax dollars portrays a state which is no longer separate from the church, but rather supporting it.
Although a majority of Americans were found to believe that social issues, such as school shootings, school violence, and bullying, would decrease if public schools included religious instruction, concerns arose that allowing a Catholic public school upheld the goal of Christian nationalism, the political ideology that claims America was founded to be a Christian nation. This ideology has often been used to justify White supremacy and racial discrimination, by asserting that the U.S. was founded solely for its White Christian inhabitants. However, a 2024 survey found that 60 percent of Republicans said that they would be in favor of declaring the United States a Christian nation, even though most Americans agreed that such an action would violate the U.S. Constitution. In addition, Republican parents were found more likely to believe that public school teachers should be allowed to lead students in Christian prayers, even if prayers from other religions are not offered, giving the impression that religion is another facet of American society that has become divided by politics.
Conversely, however, almost half of Americans agreed that congregations should get involved in social issues, even if that means having challenging conversations about politics. A further 26 percent agreed that religion is alienating adults in their 20s and 30s by ignoring things like racial justice and the Black Lives Matter movement. As younger Americans have been found less likely to have had a religious upbringing, to have participated in religious services, and to believe that children should be brought up in religion so they can learn good values, it seems probable that younger generations are driving the decline of religion. According to the literature, it is important to note that the diversity of a religious community is actually what makes it stronger; in comparison to majority White congregations, multiracial congregations were found more likely to include younger participants, to experience growth over a five-year period, and to have a high spiritual vitality, mission, and vision.
Ultimately, it is possible that promoting diversity could help bring Americans back to religion. Although the number of multiracial congregations has been steadily increasing over the last few decades, studies show that almost half of surveyed Americans still wished for their church to have more Black, Hispanic, or other people of color in leadership positions. However, in midst of a resurgence of Christian nationalist values, it seems unlikely that religion will be used to advocate for racial diversity. In addition, as religion remains at the top of America’s political agenda, it appears more likely that liberal Americans will continue to move away from organized religion while conservatives promote a new era of government-approved religious activity in schools, businesses, and other public spaces.
The diversity of America’s religious landscape can be largely attributed to immigration; however, studies have shown that immigration is not always linked to non-Christian faiths. A survey on Indian Americans found that while over half of Indian Americans identified as Hindu, 11 percent identified with some form of Christian denomination and 16 percent identified with no religion at all. Indian Americans who identified as Christian were also twice as likely than those who were Hindu to report attending religious services once or several times a week, with 58 percent of Christian Indian Americans saying they attend religious services this frequently. In comparison, only 21 percent of Hindu Indian Americans said that they attended religious services once or several times a week, an almost identical statistic to the amount of all U.S. adults who attend church or synagogue weekly.
These demographics further depict the rise of a different type of religious identity in the U.S.: the lack of one. Research has revealed that many Americans are leaving religion to instead identify as atheist, agnostic, or nothing at all, with the most common reason given for leaving or changing their religious affiliation being that they stopped believing in the religion’s teachings. Simultaneously, fewer Americans have been found to say that religion is very important to them, that they belong to a church, or that they believe in God. If these trends continue, the number of Americans who are religiously unaffiliated has been estimated to reach 52 percent by 2070, ultimately taking over Christianity to make up the majority of the population.
Scholars have warned that this reported pullback from religion could negatively affect American society, as religious participation has been linked to greater life satisfaction, with 67 percent of Americans who attended religious services weekly saying they were very satisfied with their personal lives compared to 48 percent who attended religious services less often. Over half of Americans also agreed that if enough people were brought to Christ, social issues would take care of themselves. However, critics argue that the charitable and goodwill aspect that is often attributed to religion only applies when Christianity is the religion in question.
Concerns of Christian nationalism
While the U.S. is self-described as a ‘long-standing champion of the right to freedom of religion or belief for all people’, studies indicate that citizens of non-Christian faiths still face barriers to acceptance, as depicted by lingering belief in statements like ‘Jews are more loyal to Israel than to America’ and ‘most Muslims living in the U.S. are more prone to violence than other people’. Many Americans were also found to agree that they would not vote for a presidential candidate belonging to a specific religion, even if they agreed with the general position of the candidate, with atheists, Muslims, and Hindus at the top of their blacklists.Moreover, despite reports of Christianity’s decline in the U.S., numerous controversies linked to Christian denominations in recent years indicate that the religion has not yet lost its reach. Over the last few years, the Catholic Church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the Southern Baptist Convention have been suspected of covering up child sexual abuse, the Supreme Court sided with an evangelical Christian website designer who refused to create websites for same-sex weddings, despite defying anti-discrimination laws, and the Court ruled in favor of a Christian football coach who prayed on the field with his students after games at a public school, calling into question whether leading private prayers at public schools violates the separation of church and state that the nation promotes. Furthermore, a recent decision by the state of Oklahoma to approve the first religious public school in the U.S. further ignited criticism that a religious school funded solely by tax dollars portrays a state which is no longer separate from the church, but rather supporting it.
Although a majority of Americans were found to believe that social issues, such as school shootings, school violence, and bullying, would decrease if public schools included religious instruction, concerns arose that allowing a Catholic public school upheld the goal of Christian nationalism, the political ideology that claims America was founded to be a Christian nation. This ideology has often been used to justify White supremacy and racial discrimination, by asserting that the U.S. was founded solely for its White Christian inhabitants. However, a 2024 survey found that 60 percent of Republicans said that they would be in favor of declaring the United States a Christian nation, even though most Americans agreed that such an action would violate the U.S. Constitution. In addition, Republican parents were found more likely to believe that public school teachers should be allowed to lead students in Christian prayers, even if prayers from other religions are not offered, giving the impression that religion is another facet of American society that has become divided by politics.
Does Republican equal religious?
According to the evidence, the more religious someone is in the U.S. today, the higher the probability that they identify with the Republican Party. In comparison to Democrats, Republicans were found less likely to be religiously unaffiliated, more likely to believe in God, and more likely to be Protestant, with 56 percent of Republicans identifying as Protestant in 2023 compared to 38 percent of Democrats. This politicization of religion could be further amplifying the decline of religious identity in the U.S., if Democrats move away from religion solely in response to its association with conservative politics. In 2022, numerous churchgoers highlighted that their churches discussed political topics, such as poverty, racism, and abortion, frequently, and in that same year, 17 percent of Americans revealed that they left or changed their religious affiliation because the church or congregation became too political.Conversely, however, almost half of Americans agreed that congregations should get involved in social issues, even if that means having challenging conversations about politics. A further 26 percent agreed that religion is alienating adults in their 20s and 30s by ignoring things like racial justice and the Black Lives Matter movement. As younger Americans have been found less likely to have had a religious upbringing, to have participated in religious services, and to believe that children should be brought up in religion so they can learn good values, it seems probable that younger generations are driving the decline of religion. According to the literature, it is important to note that the diversity of a religious community is actually what makes it stronger; in comparison to majority White congregations, multiracial congregations were found more likely to include younger participants, to experience growth over a five-year period, and to have a high spiritual vitality, mission, and vision.
Ultimately, it is possible that promoting diversity could help bring Americans back to religion. Although the number of multiracial congregations has been steadily increasing over the last few decades, studies show that almost half of surveyed Americans still wished for their church to have more Black, Hispanic, or other people of color in leadership positions. However, in midst of a resurgence of Christian nationalist values, it seems unlikely that religion will be used to advocate for racial diversity. In addition, as religion remains at the top of America’s political agenda, it appears more likely that liberal Americans will continue to move away from organized religion while conservatives promote a new era of government-approved religious activity in schools, businesses, and other public spaces.
Veera Korhonen
,
Dec 18, 2024
Veera Korhonen
Research expert covering United States data for society
