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Survey: Americans don't know much about religion
The Dailey Caller ^ | 09/28/2010 | Rachel Zoll - AP

Posted on 09/27/2010 10:13:02 PM PDT by svxdave

A new survey of Americans’ knowledge of religion found that atheists, agnostics, Jews and Mormons outperformed Protestants and Roman Catholics in answering questions about major religions, while many respondents could not correctly give the most basic tenets of their own faiths.

Forty-five percent of Roman Catholics who participated in the study didn’t know that, according to church teaching, the bread and wine used in Holy Communion is not just a symbol, but becomes the body and blood of Christ.

More than half of Protestants could not identify Martin Luther as the person who inspired the Protestant Reformation. And about four in 10 Jews did not know that Maimonides, one of the greatest rabbis and intellectuals in history, was Jewish.

The survey released Tuesday by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life aimed to test a broad range of religious knowledge, including understanding of the Bible, core teachings of different faiths and major figures in religious history. The U.S. is one of the most religious countries in the developed world, especially compared to largely secular Western Europe, but faith leaders and educators have long lamented that Americans still know relatively little about religion.

Respondents to the survey were asked 32 questions with a range of difficulty, including whether they could name the Islamic holy book and the first book of the Bible, or say what century the Mormon religion was founded. On average, participants in the survey answered correctly overall for half of the survey questions.

Atheists and agnostics scored highest, with an average of 21 correct answers, while Jews and Mormons followed with about 20 accurate responses. Protestants overall averaged 16 correct answers, while Catholics followed with a score of about 15.

Not surprisingly, those who said they attended worship at least once a week and considered religion important in their lives often performed better on the overall survey. However, level of education was the best predictor of religious knowledge. The top-performing groups on the survey still came out ahead even when controlling for how much schooling they had completed.

On questions about Christianity, Mormons scored the highest, with an average of about eight correct answers out of 12, followed by white evangelicals, with an average of just over seven correct answers. Jews, along with atheists and agnostics, knew the most about other faiths, such as Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism and Judaism. Less than half of Americans know that the Dalai Lama is Buddhist, and less than four in 10 know that Vishnu and Shiva are part of Hinduism.

The study also found that many Americans don’t understand constitutional restrictions on religion in public schools. While a majority know that public school teachers cannot lead classes in prayer, less than a quarter know that the U.S. Supreme Court has clearly stated that teachers can read from the Bible as an example of literature.

“Many Americans think the constitutional restrictions on religion in public schools are tighter than they really are,” Pew researchers wrote.

The survey of 3,412 people, conducted between May and June of this year, had a margin of error of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points, while the margins of error for individual religious groups was higher.

____

Online:

Pew online quiz about religion: http://features.pewforum.org/quiz/us-religious-knowledge

Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2010/09/28/survey-americans-dont-know-much-about-religion/#ixzz10nV6vmib


TOPICS: Education; Religion; Society
KEYWORDS: americans; catechesis; deficit; knowledge; religion
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"On questions about Christianity, Mormons scored the highest, with an average of about eight correct answers out of 12, followed by white evangelicals, with an average of just over seven correct answers".
1 posted on 09/27/2010 10:13:07 PM PDT by svxdave
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To: svxdave

The more I learn .... the more I realize how much I don’t know. Fortunately, I have my faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.


2 posted on 09/27/2010 10:15:54 PM PDT by boycott (CAL)
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To: svxdave
“Many Americans think the constitutional restrictions on religion in public schools are tighter than they really are,” Pew researchers wrote.

That's because they are tighter than they "really are". That is, they are tighter de facto than they are de jure.

3 posted on 09/27/2010 10:19:43 PM PDT by dr_lew
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To: svxdave

Got 14 out of 15.

Thought a teacher could read from the Bible as an example of literature. They read from other religions.

Guess we are on the outs.

Oh well, I’m off to the lions den.


4 posted on 09/27/2010 10:23:55 PM PDT by Vendome (Don't take life so seriously... You'll never live through it.)
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To: svxdave

Interesting that they didn’t ask any muslims whether they knew that mohamed (may pigs be upon him) raped a 9 yr old girl.


5 posted on 09/27/2010 10:25:58 PM PDT by Eagles6
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To: svxdave
Mormons scored the highest

Reflects the organization of the Mormon church. Whatever one thinks of their doctrines, Mormons do take their religion seriously and try to pass it on to their children.

Overall, this study is a major embarrassment. I am told that: "You scored 15 out of 15, better than 99% of Americans." In fact, any literate American should know these elementary religion facts.

6 posted on 09/27/2010 10:26:28 PM PDT by iowamark
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To: svxdave
” ... Forty-five percent of Roman Catholics who participated in the study didn’t know that, according to church teaching, the bread and wine used in Holy Communion is not just a symbol, but becomes the body and blood of Christ. ... “


US Catholic Priests, Bishops, Archbishops and Cardinals should be on their knees, sweating blood and praying for forgiveness for failure to transmit the central truth of The Eucharist!
This is proof positive that the Novus Order Mass, which was written by a suspected Mason, is an instrument that furthers Satan's War on Salvation. Please bring back the Traditional Tridentine Latin Mass for the salvation of the flock

7 posted on 09/27/2010 10:26:37 PM PDT by J Edgar
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To: Vendome
Thought a teacher could read from the Bible as an example of literature. They read from other religions.

They can. If you said yes to that one, it's not the one you got wrong.

I got 15 out of 15, but then again I have a degree in religion...

8 posted on 09/27/2010 10:36:26 PM PDT by xjcsa (Ridiculing the ridiculous since the day I was born.)
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To: svxdave
More than half of Protestants could not identify Martin Luther as the person who inspired the Protestant Reformation.

That is a history answer, not a Christian answer, it helps for people to know history but Martin Luther is not a biblical figure, or a holy figure, he is a historical figure.

9 posted on 09/27/2010 10:36:36 PM PDT by ansel12 ([fear of Islam.] Once you are paralyzed by fear of Mohammedanism...you have lost the battle.)
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To: iowamark
Overall, this study is a major embarrassment. I am told that: "You scored 15 out of 15, better than 99% of Americans." In fact, any literate American should know these elementary religion facts.

Yep.

10 posted on 09/27/2010 10:37:06 PM PDT by xjcsa (Ridiculing the ridiculous since the day I was born.)
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To: xjcsa

How can there be a successful drive against islam if these are the stats?


11 posted on 09/27/2010 10:41:12 PM PDT by himno hero
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To: ansel12
Martin Luther was not the person who inspired the Protestant Reformation. Early reformers like Jan Hus predated Martin Luther by a century or more. Martin Luther was just the first one to get away with it.

State religions were a bad idea then just like the state religion of politically correct agnosticism is a bad idea now.

12 posted on 09/27/2010 10:43:28 PM PDT by Vigilanteman (Obama: Fake black man. Fake Messiah. Fake American. How many fakes can you fit in one Zer0?)
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To: svxdave

This is about religion in general, including five answers that were of religions that are not Christian or Jewish and other answers of history or of law.

It is not a test about Christianity, so the results are pretty unimportant.


13 posted on 09/27/2010 10:44:43 PM PDT by ansel12 ([fear of Islam.] Once you are paralyzed by fear of Mohammedanism...you have lost the battle.)
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To: svxdave
A better (and even more saddening statement) - Americans who claim religion in ANY form, rarely really know much about their claimed faith. Whether it be about the particular Christian denomination they are members of/attend services of, or if it is someone trying to be rebellious and dabbling in one of the darker/easter religions - still very little beyond superficial knowledge. It is almost like politics - some folks are _________(fill in your chosen religious name/title) because my mom and dad/grandma, etc. were.

So you ask "what does that mean"... and they get a blank look.

I can't speak for others, but as a relatively new pastor, I can speak for at least some Christian denominations - we have completely missed the point of Christ's Great Commission - we have tried to sum it up as "go get folks to wear this name badge that says "Christian"... For many of us, that meant get them to profess faith in Christ, dunk-em, and add them to a list (aka - "Church Roll"). Yet the Great Commission doesn't say that at all - it says "Go make Disciples..." That means teaching them ALL that Christ commanded/taught. Making disciples is also more than just telling someone in a Sunday School class... it is demonstrating what faith REALLY means. It means taking time with people, holding their hand, and showing...

For us Christians - it is our own fault.

Maybe someone else can pipe in for other faiths...

14 posted on 09/27/2010 10:49:06 PM PDT by TheBattman (They exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature...)
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To: xjcsa
I got 14 of 15 but I have a degree in Business.

I think that most people are relatively ignorant. Check out the Jaywalk All stars.

15 posted on 09/27/2010 10:49:58 PM PDT by Jim from C-Town (The government is rarely benevolent, often malevolent and never benign!)
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To: dr_lew
That's because they are tighter than they "really are". That is, they are tighter de facto than they are de jure.

That's because the teachers and administrators are the ones who think they are "tighter than they really are."

16 posted on 09/27/2010 10:56:57 PM PDT by thulldud (Is it "alter or abolish" time yet?)
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To: reaganaut

Thought you all might be interested in this.

I don’t have an Inman list but maybe they will find it interesting.


17 posted on 09/27/2010 10:59:46 PM PDT by Vendome (Don't take life so seriously... You'll never live through it.)
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To: xjcsa

Oops. It was the religion of Pakistan which is Islam of course and I mistakenly answered Hindu, which would be India.

Oh well.


18 posted on 09/27/2010 11:03:23 PM PDT by Vendome (Don't take life so seriously... You'll never live through it.)
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To: svxdave

I grew up Christian, but have no religion now, so I guess I am in the atheist category.

I got 15 out of 15.

As far as I am concerned, most 8th graders should know the answers to the questions if they have been awake for most of their lives. The quiz is not even a religious quiz as it is just having a basic understanding of trivia.

I think the hardest question was the Jonathan Edwards question and I remember that from the my US history class in junior high.

And forgive me if I sound like a know it all; I have actually learned a lot about religion from some of the religion threads on Free Republic.

Some of the religious folks here really know their stuff. This lame quiz doesn’t compare to their erudition which I am in awe of.


19 posted on 09/27/2010 11:03:42 PM PDT by radpolis
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To: xjcsa

You answered 14 out of 15 questions correctly
for a score of 93%.

Not bad for a layman.


20 posted on 09/27/2010 11:04:30 PM PDT by Vendome (Don't take life so seriously... You'll never live through it.)
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