Excerpt: “However, the U.S. does stand out when compared with other high-income countries, particularly on questions about religious texts. U.S. adults are more likely than people in any other high-income country surveyed to say the Bible currently has either a great deal or some influence over the laws of their country (in other countries, people were asked about other texts). And the U.S. public is also more inclined than people in other high-income countries to say that the Bible should have that kind of influence (again, relative to the sacred texts asked about in other places). Americans are also among the most likely of any high-income public to:
- Describe a religious identity (in this case, being a Christian) as very important to truly sharing in the national identity (being American)
- Say it’s very important for their country’s political leader to have strong religious beliefs.”
report (pdf)
(124 pages)