Pew Research Center reports eight in ten Americans say religion is losing influence in the country, and most are not happy about it. 80% of survey respondents see religious influence in public life declining, and nearly half say that’s a bad thing. Meanwhile, 18% believe it is gaining influence.
Sierra Johns, 33, a Christian stay-at-home mom near Charlotte, NC, agrees with the survey’s findings overall but believes those previously influenced by religion are “actually clinging tighter to God and their beliefs.” “Religion has been cultural for so long, but no longer,” she says. “I believe many who used to be ‘religious’ no longer feel the need to identify that way because culture as a whole has a different more moralistic — versus theistic — worldview.
” Majority Desire a Moral President 94% of respondents believe it’s important that the President of the United States lead a moral life. However, few see either major presidential candidate for the 2024 election — former President Donald Trump and current President Joe Biden — as particularly religious. About 51% of Republicans would prefer a president who shares their religious beliefs.
This number jumps to 70% when looking at White evangelical Protestants. Just one-quarter of Democrats similarly prioritize a president’s religious beliefs, and only 11% of religiously unaffiliated Americans believe a president’s beliefs are important. Only 13% responded that they see President Biden, a practicing.