Study shows an increase in non-believers, no dramatic change among those who follow a faith.
More Americans than ever are separating themselves from religion. However, those who do belong to a religion are just as, if not more, committed to their faith as ever.
The Washington Post reports that the 2014 U.S. Religious Landscape by the Pew Research Center shows that most major religious groups have become more accepting of homosexuality, since the study was first conducted in 2007.
The new study shows an undeniable increase among “nones,” individuals who do not claim to be affiliated with a particular religion. Those who are a part of a religion, which is still the majority, have shown no obvious change in their level of observance.
Religious individuals report attending service just as often as they have in the past. They pray just as much as reported previously, and are just as likely to speak about religion as an important part of their lives. Some have even stated they have increased their religious activities.
More religious adults read scripture and participate in small worship groups than they did seven years ago. Eighty-eight percent of those who identified as religious said they prayed regularly, the same percentage as they did in 2007.
However, overall belief in God has declined 3 percent, likely due to the increasing number of “nones” identified in the survey. Yet, even among those who identified as Christian, fewer believe in God with complete certainty, at 76 percent, down from 80 percent in 2007. A similar decline was found among religion in general, with 77 percent considering themselves “religiously affiliated” in 2014, down from 83 percent in 2007.
Researchers attribute this shift to an aging population, with older believers dying off, and an increasing number of millennials with no religious affiliation.