Increased Numbers Now Link Christian Faith to Being American

By Adelle M. Banks
Religion News Service

(RNS) As the U.S. has grown more diverse, more Americans believe that being a Christian is a key aspect of being "truly American," researchers say.

Purdue University scholars found that between 1996 and 2004, Americans who saw Christian identity as a "very important" attribute of being American increased from 38 percent to 49 percent.

Scholars said the findings, published in the fall issue of the journal Sociology of Religion, couldn't be definitively tied to a particular event but they suspect the 9/11 attacks and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan could have played a role.

"We suspect that these events accentuated the connection between Christianity and American identity by reinforcing boundaries against non-Christians and people of foreign origin," said Jeremy Brooks Straughn, co-author of the study.

"Although we can't be certain of the underlying causes, our data clearly show diverging attitudes between American Christians and their non-Christian counterparts here in the United States."

Researchers found that non-Christians and those with no religious affiliation overwhelmingly rejected a link between being Christian and being "truly American."

The findings are based on an analysis of data from the General Social Survey, collected by the National Opinion Research Center, in which more than 1,000 respondents were queried in 1996 and 2004.

In a separate survey, Public Religion Research Institute found that 42 percent believe "America has always been and is currently a Christian nation." The survey, taken Sept. 1-14, was based on a random sample of 3,013 adults.

Comments

[Big Game Hunter]

04:28 AM on 10/29/2010

That image reminded me of something Sinclair Lewis once said:
"When Fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag, carrying the cross".

[Zanti]

01:47 AM on 10/29/2010

Cool. The journal Sociology of Religion says something that cyber-atheists want to hear, and no problem. But last year's study showing that the majority of American college profs are religious--why, that must have been flawed! Or fixed, even!

Re the other poll and its finding that 42 percent of respondents believe "America has always been and is currently a Christian nation"--that statement can have more than one meaning. It doesn't necessarily reflect a view that Moses wrote the Constitution. The average person is likely unaware of the up-and-down aspect of religiosity in America--they probably assume current levels are the historical norm. We can't logically take any of this to mean we have a huge minority of theocractically-minded tea partiers, but of course that's precisely how it will be taken.

Which is more foolish? 1) Driving into a wall at 300 mph; 2) Going on line and asking people to stop, let go of cliches, and give some honest thought to a poll result. Discuss amongst yourselves.

[TOS100]

09:11 AM on 10/28/2010

Christians don't even know or understand the contents of either the Constitution or the bible. These idiots don't know jack. They only believe.

[Zanti]

01:50 AM on 10/29/2010

A bold and daring statement, especially in this forum.

[Jim Anderson]

07:44 AM on 10/28/2010

That's going to shock the hell out of the billions of non-American christians.

[Zanti]

02:00 AM on 10/29/2010

What, that so many Americans see being Christian as an important aspect of being American? Will they be shocked to discover that athleticism, vigor, a drive to succeed, etc. are also on the list?

So, you're reading the survey result to say, in effect, that being American is a key aspect of being Christian. But, in fact, it says the opposite.

[LonosCurse]

03:12 PM on 10/26/2010

Jesus Christ was a great American.

[oldlady2000]

01:16 PM on 10/26/2010

More proof that the plan of the religious right, initiated years ago, has been successful.

[rissole]

12:37 PM on 10/26/2010

Not me.

[Yorksgal]

12:13 AM on 10/26/2010

The Evangelical Right is not me, nor is it my family, my neighbor or my friends.

The Evangelical Right is made up of people who are frightened, desperate and at the same time are bullies. They say they are for love and justice, but I have not seen much of either within their make-up.

The Evangelical Right have more in common with the Fundamentalist Muslim than with the ordinary American. Both want the same thing - total domination - they just have a different book of instructions and both have twisted those instructions so much that they will never achieve their goals.

[Unerrante]

03:58 PM on 10/25/2010

How is this news? This poll is reporting what people thought 6 years ago, and how it differs from what people thought 14 years ago. Aren't poll normally supposed to be more current? Why was this article written?

[dancingstu]

04:45 PM on 10/25/2010

Good point. I would be more interested if the data were provided from 2009 just at the end of Bush's presidency. I suspect the percentages would have gone back down.

[Keyser77]

02:34 PM on 10/25/2010

Anyone claiming to be a "Real American" probably isn't very secure in their own world. Much like the confused person who wrote the comment that being a Muslim is now linked to being an American and thanking the president. Obviously some of these so called "christians' can't get by on their faith and need a government stamp of approval to make them feel whole. Their knowledge of being a christian is as ignorant as their knowledge of what america stands for.

[zkelly]

01:38 PM on 10/25/2010

sure whatever. when christians get along with each other i'll be worried, until then who cares. these different sects can't even agree on what day of the week it is.

[jayraye]

11:15 AM on 10/25/2010

First they say Real Americans are all Christians, then they add, but only a certain kind of Christian with a certain type of politics. The Real Americans in American are in a very selective group. The rest of us are Unreal Americans.

[TheFriendlyAtheist]

07:44 PM on 10/27/2010

The only real Americans are the ones who accept all other Americans as Americans.

[Rand]

09:40 AM on 10/25/2010

Perhaps someone should have informed those non-Christians (Including many Jews who served in the Continental Army) who died in our nation's service that they weren't "really" Americans

Perhaps George Washington should have told his friend and fellow patriot Chaim Solomon the same

[Anonymous17]

01:50 AM on 10/25/2010

Certainly our founding fathers were most definitely Christian and wanted our country to be viewed this way. Take for example the - Treaty of Peace and Friendship between the United States and the Bey and Subjects of Tripoli of Barbary

Authored by American diplomat Joel Barlow in 1796, the following treaty was sent to the floor of the Senate, June 7, 1797, where it was read aloud in its entirety and unanimously approved. John Adams, having seen the treaty, signed it and proudly proclaimed it to the Nation.

The most telling article of this document....

Art. 11. As the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion; as it has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion, or tranquillity, of Mussulmen; and, as the said States never entered into any war, or act of hostility against any Mahometan nation, it is declared by the parties, that no pretext arising from religious opinions, shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries.

[Thinkster]

03:40 AM on 10/25/2010

They were not - they were Secular - they understood the extreme danger of organized religion, and did everything they could to prevent religious organisations from gaining too much power.

The battle continues today...

[Anonymous17]

03:17 PM on 10/25/2010

Actually the majority were Deist, I think you missed my sarcasm.

[JFHunt]

06:55 PM on 10/26/2010

The bottom line is that a solid faith motivates behavior, while the ever-changing relative values of Secular Humanists, using man-centered social constructs, do not - despite the Secularists' desire that humans are so malleable. World views based on Secular Humanism and relativism do not provide sufficient motivation for self-regulation of behavior. As a result, there are not enough “controllers”, “watchers”, “regulators”, or police to control behavior and achieve a healthy society. Therefore, such world views necessarily lead to totalitarianism in an attempt to determine regulations as replacements for true morality - and then they impose the regulations and attempt to control behavior. Totalitarianism ...

The founders naturally leaned toward and accepted the tenets of the "most civil of religions" - Christianity. The greatest commandment of Christianity is to love God above all things and love your neighbor as yourself. When a critical mass of the citizenry self-regulates according to this tenet of faith and the Ten Commandments, a democratic republic is possible and healthy. On the other hand relativism necessarily must "reinvent the wheel" to produce an ever-changing “morality” from thin air or the vestiges of “religion” and then impose their control on the citizenry who do not self-regulate. Result: totalitarianism.

I would much rather live in a Christian Republic than a Secular Totalitarian "Utopia"!!

[jcarterla]

06:52 AM on 10/25/2010

The founders were great at looking at their past struggles while constructing a basis for their futures. At the time of the founding, most people were Christians and religious. This is why you find many examples of Christianity woven into politics. They put in protections so that the church could not usurp control. As time goes by, our country has become very diverse with different religions and people of no faith. This is due to our explicit separation of church and state. I feel the founders were great thinkers and foresaw this future. Look at how long England battled over Catholicism and Protestantism. This is what they wanted no part of.

[Anonymous17]

03:17 PM on 10/25/2010

I agree.

[Citizen54]

09:24 PM on 10/24/2010

Our American hypocrisy and ignorance of the New Testament is astounding.
A "Christian" nation with two wars going on. A "Christian" nation with a political party that thinks it's fine to let people die because they cannot afford health insurance. A "Christian" nation whose religion is really Capitalism.

[Thinkster]

03:47 AM on 10/25/2010

A "Christian" nation with a thousand ideas of what it is to be Christian and American.

I am not Christian, and therefore not an American, even though I hire citizens and give them profitable work, support my community, pay my taxes, etc. and have lived in the US all my life – my parents and their parents are American and so am I – and yet…

Apparently, this insanity is supposed to be accepted without question - say "God" and be absolved of almost anything at all.

[JFHunt]

06:07 PM on 10/26/2010

#1) You are correct; there is often hypocrisy from pseudo-Christians who argue small government so they can rape and pillage our citizens. I would say that we should not cheat the poor and we have a social responsibility to the truly needy. However, the "vehicle" we use to get there is very important, because it will determine the actual outcome. The unintended consequences of good intentions can be ruinous to the social fabric. For example, the “Social Justice” of the leftists I knew in college in the ’60s is just another term for Communism - although most would now likely hate and deny the label.

In my opinion, there are some questions related to the government "looking out for us"... that we should think about. We do not have and likely would not want to have a theocracy, so is secular, government “extortion and redistribution” equivalent to independent, personal charity? Is God glorified by the practice of secular “extortion and redistribution”? Are social bonds strengthened by “extortion and redistribution”? That is, what is the nature of the spiritual transaction between the giver and receiver via the practice of “extortion and redistribution”.

I think secular, government-run charity, or “extortion and redistribution” breeds resentment and contempt, while independent and personal charity builds relationships and understanding of our brothers. I think that we as individuals, while not the secular government, are called to be our brother’s keeper. True charity enriches both the giver and the receiver.