After Years of Decline, US Christian Population Steadies

The decline of Christianity in the US is “relatively stable” and may have leveled off after a long-term decline, according to a Pew Research Center (Center bias) study. The “religiously unaffiliated” population leveled off after a long-term rise.

The Data:

• 62% identify as Christian, in comparison to 71% in 2014 and 78% in 2007. “28% of Americans say they’ve grown more religious over their lives; 29% say they’ve grown less religious,” with 43% more spiritual and 11% less spiritual.
• 29% identify as religiously unaffiliated.
• Only 38% of ages 18-24 say they believe in God or a universal spirit with absolute certainty.
• There is a rise in non-Christian religions, with 1.7% identifying as religiously Jewish and 5.4% identifying with other non-Christian religions.
• 35% of adults have switched religious identities since childhood. 
• Daily prayer rates have declined, but belief in heaven and hell is steady or rising. 
• The long-term decline in Christianity is higher among Liberals (25% point change) than Conservatives (7% point change) and moderates (16% point change), though 37% of Christians are Liberal.

Outlooks: Pew pointed out generational replacement plays a role in the decline – though no causation for it was found – considering “no recent birth cohort has become more religious as it has aged,” and younger adults are less religious than other adults. However, “Americans of all ages are more likely to say their spirituality has grown stronger than to say it has weakened.” 

How the Media Covered It: Most news media across the spectrum focused on the steadying of Christian identities, which falls in line with the Pew article’s headline. CNN (Lean Left) was an outlier, with its headline reading, “Americans decreasingly call religion important to their lives and are divided over its role in society.”