Publications on Religion

This section features selected Pew Research Center reports (since 2005) on religion and public affairs. Individual project websites contain more reports related to this topic. In particular, please visit the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. The website features major surveys, event transcripts, legal backgrounders, news headlines and more related to issues at the nexus of religion and public policy.

One Year Later, Egyptians Embrace Democracy, Islam in Political Life
Muslim Brotherhood and Military Receive Positive Ratings
8 May 12Egyptians remain upbeat about the course of the nation and prospects for progress. Most Egyptians continue to want democracy, with two-in-three saying it is the best form of government. Egyptians also want Islam to play a major role in society.
Pew Global Attitudes Project

Romney Split White Evangelical Voters with Santorum in Tuesday Primaries
4 Apr 12In winning the Wisconsin and Maryland GOP presidential primaries on Tuesday, Mitt Romney ran neck-and-neck with Rick Santorum among white born-again/evangelical voters, while Romney was the clear favorite of non-evangelical voters.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religion and the 2012 Louisiana Republican Primary
26 Mar 12In winning the Louisiana GOP presidential primary, Rick Santorum won the majority of votes cast by white evangelical/born-again Christians, people who attend worship services weekly and voters who say it is at least somewhat important to have a candidate who shares their religious beliefs. He also won a clear victory among Catholic voters for the first time this primary season.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

More See “Too Much” Religious Talk by Politicians
Santorum Voters Disagree
22 Mar 12A new survey finds signs of public uneasiness with the mixing of religion and politics. The number of people who say there has been too much religious talk by political leaders stands at an all-time high since the Pew Research Center began asking the question more than a decade ago.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religion in Prisons
A 50-State Survey of Prison Chaplains
22 Mar 12Professional prison chaplains see America's state penitentiaries as places bustling with religious activity, ranging from efforts by inmates to proselytize or convert other inmates to religious switching by prisoners, according to a survey of chaplains in all 50 states.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religion and the 2012 Illinois Republican Primary
21 Mar 12In winning the Illinois Republican presidential primary, Mitt Romney continued to draw less support from white born-again/evangelical voters than from non-evangelicals, while Rick Santorum has yet to secure an outright victory among Catholic voters in any state for which data are available.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Santorum and Gingrich Split Evangelical Vote in Southern Primaries
14 Mar 12Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich finished in a virtual tie for first place among evangelical voters in both Alabama, where evangelicals comprised 75% of the electorate, and Mississippi, where evangelicals accounted for 80% of all GOP primary voters.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Romney Leads GOP Contest, Trails in Matchup with Obama
Gas Prices Offset Good News about Jobs
14 Mar 12Mitt Romney has retaken a significant lead nationally in the race for the Republican presidential nomination, even as he has fallen further behind Barack Obama in a general election matchup. Obama’s job approval rating has reached 50% for the first time since last May, shortly after the killing of Osama bin Laden.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Faith on the Move
The Religious Affiliation of International Migrants
8 Mar 12There are an estimated 214 million people who have migrated across international borders as of 2010. Almost half of the migrants are Christians while a little over a quarter of them are Muslims. The vast majority end up immigrating to a relatively few areas -- North America, Europe, Australia and the Arab states of the Persian Gulf.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Romney Struggles with Evangelicals While Santorum Trails with Catholics
7 Mar 12In the 10 GOP presidential caucuses and primaries held on Super Tuesday, Mitt Romney continued to get significantly less support from white born-again and evangelical voters. Rick Santorum has yet to achieve an outright victory among Catholics in any state for which data are available.
Pew Research Center

Romney's Wins in GOP Contests Depended on Non-Evangelical Voters
2 Mar 12In the caucuses and primaries that Mitt Romney has won so far in the race for the Republican nomination, Romney’s wins have come on the strength of his support among non-evangelical voters.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religion and the 2012 Republican Primaries: Arizona and Michigan
29 Feb 12The vote in the GOP presidential primaries in Michigan and Arizona continued a pattern where Mitt Romney's support was weaker among born-again/evangelical voters than among non-evangelicals while Rick Santorum received his strongest support from evangelicals.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Public Views of the Divide between Religion and Politics
27 Feb 12Recent comments by presidential candidate Rick Santorum have brought renewed attention to the role of religion in politics. In both 2010 and 2008, narrow majorities said that churches and other houses of worship should keep out of political matters rather than express their views on social and political questions.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Religion in the News
Islam and Politics Dominate Religion Coverage in 2011
22 Feb 12The biggest religion stories of 2011 involved tensions over Islam and questions about faith in presidential politics, especially Mormonism, according to a study of news coverage by the Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism and the Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Public Divided Over Birth Control Insurance Mandate
Religious, Partisan and Gender Differences
14 Feb 12Americans are closely divided over whether religiously-affiliated institutions should be given an exemption if they object to a proposed federal rule requiring employers to cover birth control as part of their health care benefits.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Trends in Party Identification of Religious Groups
Jewish Support for GOP Rises
2 Feb 12The share of voters identifying with or leaning toward the GOP has either grown or held steady in every major religious group, according to a new analysis by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religion and the 2012 Florida Republican Primary
1 Feb 12In his commanding win in the 2012 Florida Republican primary, Mitt Romney received strong support from Catholics and from voters who do not describe themselves as white born-again/evangelical Christians, according to results from the National Election Pool exit poll.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Mormons in America
Certain in Their Beliefs, Uncertain of Their Place in Society
12 Jan 12A new nationally representative survey focused exclusively on Mormons explores their religious beliefs and practices, political ideology, views on moral and social issues, and attitudes toward faith, family life, the media and society.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religion and the 2012 New Hampshire Republican Primary
11 Jan 12 Mitt Romney -- who won the overall New Hampshire vote by a double-digit margin -- was the winner among born-again evangelical Christians as well as among non-evangelical voters.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Civic and Community Engagement of Religiously Active Americans
23 Dec 11Religiously active Americans are more tied to many civic and other organizations than non-religious Americans. Many report that their use of technology helps them in their group activities.
Pew Internet & American Life Project

Global Christianity
A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World’s Christian Population
19 Dec 11Christians make up about the same proportion of the world's population today as they did a century ago, but there has been a momentous shift in where they live.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Romney’s Mormon Faith Likely a Factor in Primaries, Not in a General Election
Religion and the 2012 Election
23 Nov 11About half of all voters, and 60% of evangelical Republicans, know that Mitt Romney is a Mormon. The former Massachusetts governor's religion has implications for his nomination run, but not for the general election should he be nominated as his party's standard bearer.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Lobbying for the Faithful
Religious Advocacy Groups in Washington, D.C.
21 Nov 11The number of organizations engaged in religious lobbying or religion-related advocacy in Washington, D.C. has increased roughly fivefold in the past four decades, from fewer than 40 in 1970 to more than 200 today. A new study by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life examines the agenda, strategy, religious affiliation and structure of 212 religious advocacy groups operating in the nation's capital.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The American-Western European Values Gap
American Exceptionalism Subsides
17 Nov 11Americans' values differ significantly from those of their Western Europeans counterparts. Although this gap is long-standing, current polling shows Americans coming closer to Europeans in not seeing their culture as superior to others.
Pew Global Attitudes Project

Religion and Politics: Profiles of the 2012 President Candidates and Their Beliefs
16 Nov 11Profiles of the religious backgrounds and beliefs of the 2012 presidential candidates.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Supreme Court to Take Up Case on Church Employment Disputes
21 Sep 11The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in a case that could help determine how much latitude religious organizations have in making employment decisions about clergy and others who perform religious duties.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Muslim Americans: No Signs of Growth in Alienation or Support for Extremism
Mainstream and Moderate Attitudes
30 Aug 11While a majority of Muslim Americans say they have endured suspicion and enhanced scrutiny since the 9/11 attacks nearly 10 years ago, a wide-ranging survey finds no indication of increased alienation and anger or rising support for Islamic extremism. On the contrary, majorities of Muslim Americans express concern about the possible rise of Islamic extremism, both here and abroad.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Rising Restrictions on Religion
One-third of the World's Population Experiences an Increase
9 Aug 11More than 2.2 billion people -- nearly a third (32%) of the world’s total population of 6.9 billion -- live in countries where either government restrictions on religion or social hostilities involving religion rose substantially between mid-2006 and mid-2009.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Muslim-Western Tensions Persist
Common Concerns About Islamic Extremism
21 Jul 11Muslim and Western publics continue to see relations between them as generally bad, but there has been somewhat of a thaw in the views of the U.S. and Europe about the Muslim world.
Pew Global Attitudes Project

Are Republicans Ready Now for a Mormon President?
The Polls Show Trouble
5 Jul 11An important group within the Republican base, white evangelical Protestants, is more uncomfortable with the idea of a Mormon candidate than are other Republicans.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Global Survey of Evangelical Protestant Leaders
22 Jun 11A survey of participants in the Third Lausanne Congress of World Evangelization offers a detailed portrait of the beliefs and practices of this group of global evangelical leaders. It finds, a high degree of consensus on some core theological matters, such as the belief that Christianity is the "one, true faith leading to eternal life," but it also finds a number of subjects on which evangelical leaders are divided.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Churches in Court
1 Apr 11American religious institutions have been at the center of many legal controversies in recent years. These and related lawsuits raise complex constitutional questions that have been troubling American courts for more than a century. Are legal disputes involving churches and other religious institutions constitutionally different from those involving their secular counterparts, and if so, how?
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Continuing Divide in Views of Islam and Violence
9 Mar 11The public remains divided over whether Islam is more likely than other religions to encourage violence among its believers. Political and ideological divisions are wide, though. Most conservatives and Tea Party supporters link Islam with violence.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Religion in the News: 2010
Islam the No. 1 Media Topic
24 Feb 11Though still small in volume, mainstream media coverage of religion in 2010 doubled over the preceding year. Events and controversies related to Islam -- especially a proposed Islamic center in New York City -- dominated coverage, bumping the Catholic Church from the top spot.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Tea Party, Religion and Social Issues
23 Feb 11Tea Party supporters' conservative opinions extend beyond economic matters to social issues such as abortion and same-sex marriage. The Tea Party also draws disproportionate support from the ranks of white evangelical Protestants.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Future of the Global Muslim Population
Projections for 2010-2030
27 Jan 11The world's Muslim population is expected to increase by about 35% in the next 20 years, rising from 1.6 billion in 2010 to 2.2 billion by 2030, according to new population projections by the Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion & Public Life. Globally, the Muslim population is forecast to grow at about twice the rate of the non-Muslim population over the next two decades.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

American Grace: How Religion Divides and Unites Us
A Conversation with David Campbell
7 Jan 11America is unusual among countries in that it is at once religiously devout, religiously diverse and religiously tolerant. The co-author of a book on the subject discusses ways in which religion divides American society but also other ways in which it is united by religion, or at the very least, in spite of religious differences.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Faith on the Hill
The Religious Composition of the 112th Congress
5 Jan 11Many analysts described the November 2010 midterm elections as a sea change, with Republicans taking control of the U.S. House of Representatives and narrowing the Democratic majority in the Senate. But this political overhaul appears to have had little effect on the religious composition of Congress, which is similar to the religious makeup of the previous Congress and of the nation.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Muslim Networks and Movements in Western Europe
6 Dec 10Scholars discuss the purpose and findings of a major study that examines several of the oldest, largest and most influential Muslim groups operating in Western Europe today many of which are virtually unknown to non-Muslims.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religion in the 2010 Elections
3 Nov 10Following voting trends, white Protestants voted overwhelmingly Republican and religiously unaffiliated voters overwhelmingly supported Democrats. But Catholic voters swung to the GOP, and Republicans made gains in all three groups.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Can Civilization Survive Without God?
A Conversation with Christopher and Peter Hitchens
29 Oct 10Two brothers, both authors of much discussed books on opposite sides of the question, argue over whether religion is necessary for the development and maintenance of values, ethics and order in modern day societies.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

In the Courts: Voucher Battle Redux
Arizona Christian School Tuition Organization v. Winn and Arizona Department of Revenue v. Winn
19 Oct 10A coming Supreme Court case on an Arizona law allowing funds donated to religious schools to be subtracted from state taxes owed by donors could severely limit future Establishment Clause challenges.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Blogs Take Test of Faith
7 Oct 10Pew Forum's religious knowledge survey was the No. 1 topic on blogs last week. A majority of bloggers celebrated news that atheists and agnostics scored the best.
Project for Excellence in Journalism

Gay Marriage Gains More Acceptance
Majority Continues to Favor Gays Serving Openly in Military
6 Oct 10For the first time in 15 years of Pew Research Center polling, fewer than half oppose same-sex marriage, though, support (42%) remains below opposition (48%). The shift in favor of gay marriage has been broad-based, occurring across many demographic, political and religious groups.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

U.S. Religious Knowledge Survey
28 Sep 10Atheists and agnostics, Jews and Mormons are among the highest-scoring groups on a new survey of religious knowledge, outperforming evangelical Protestants, mainline Protestants and Catholics on questions about the core teachings, history and leading figures of major world religions.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religious Beliefs and Political Issues
17 Sep 10Religious beliefs continue to be influential in shaping some Americans' views about social issues such as abortion and same-sex marriage. Far fewer cite religion as a top influence on issues such as immigration, the environment and poverty.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Muslim Networks and Movements in Western Europe
16 Sep 10The Muslim population in Western Europe has grown from less than 10 million in 1990 to approximately 17 million. A new report profiles some of the oldest, largest and most influential religious networks and movements affecting Islamic relations in Europe.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Glenn Beck, Christians and Mormons
2 Sep 10In contrast to the Beck's comments, it's incorrect to say that “most” Christians do not view Mormons as Christians. However, many have mixed views about Mormonism.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Public Remains Conflicted Over Islam
24 Aug 10Favorable views of Islam have declined since 2005, but a plurality still says Islam does not encourage violence more than other religions. More Americans agree with those who object to the building of the center in New York, but a majority also say that Muslims should have the same rights as other religious groups to build houses of worship.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Growing Number of Americans Say Obama is a Muslim
Religion, Politics and the President
19 Aug 10More than a year into his presidency, 18% of Americans say that Barack Obama is a Muslim. A plurality say they do not know what religion he follows. The view that president is a Muslim is highest among his political opponents. Yet the public also generally says Obama handles his religious beliefs appropriately.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religion in the 2008 Presidential Election
An Analysis of 2008 Exit Polls
11 Aug 10An analysis of newly released exit poll data finds that Barack Obama succeeded in attracting a larger share of the vote among some religious groups than John Kerry did in 2004. The contours of religion and politics, however, were largely the same in 2008 as in 2004.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Federal Court Strikes Down California Same-Sex Marriage Ban
5 Aug 10A federal district court judge struck down California’s ban on gay marriage, ruling that the prohibition violates the U.S. Constitution. The decision, which is expected to be appealed, represents the first time a federal judge has ruled that the U.S. Constitution protects the right of same-sex couples to marry.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

High Court Rules Against Campus Christian Group
Decision in Christian Legal Society v. Martinez
28 Jun 10A divided Supreme Court has ruled, 5-4, that a public law school can deny recognition to a student group that excludes gays and lesbians. In Christian Legal Society v. Martinez, the Court said the school could enforce a policy requiring official student organizations to accept all students who want to join.
Pew Research Center

Public Sees a Future Full of Promise and Peril
Life in 2050: Amazing Science, Familiar Threats
22 Jun 10Most Americans envision a future where cancer is cured and space travel is for everyone. But they also see a world beset by war, energy shortages and a terrorist attack with nuclear weapons. Still, most see a better future for themselves and the nation over the next four decades.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Media Coverage of the Catholic Clergy Sex Abuse Scandal
11 Jun 10Newspaper coverage of the Catholic clergy sexual abuse scandal grew more intense this spring than at any time since 2002, and European newspapers devoted even more ink to the story than American papers did.
Project for Excellence in Journalism

Rights of Conscience vs. Civil Rights
Are Health Care Workers Obligated to Treat Gays and Lesbians?
3 Jun 10New "conscience protection" cases have emerged in the health care area expanding the debate beyond abortion and birth control to discrimination protection for certain groups, notably gays and lesbians.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Islam, the West and the Challenges of Modernity: A Conversation With Tariq Ramadan
12 May 10What can Western Muslims do to balance faith and modernity? What lies ahead for the future of Islam in Europe, the U.S. and the rest of the world? A controversial Muslim scholar discusses these and related topics.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Supreme Court Rules on Religious Display
A Cross in a National Park Can Stay, For Now
29 Apr 10The court overturned a lower court ruling that had ordered the removal of a cross from a World War I memorial located in California’s Mojave National Preserve.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Islam and Christianity in Sub-Saharan Africa
15 Apr 10In little more than a century, the religious landscape of sub-Saharan Africa has changed dramatically. In 1900, traditional African religions dominated. Since then, the numbers of both Muslims and Christians have risen into the hundreds of millions. A new survey explores how sub-Saharan Africans themselves view the role of religion in their lives and societies.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Broad Criticism of Pope Benedict's Handling of Sex Abuse Scandal
Most Catholics Critical as Well
7 Apr 10Amid new revelations of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church, Pope Benedict XVI's job ratings for handling the scandal have plummeted.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Christian Legal Society v. Martinez: Can Government Funds be Denied to Religious Groups on Campus?
6 Apr 10Can a public institution refuse official recognition to a religiously-based organization that prevents those who do not share its religious and moral values from becoming voting members?
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religion in the News: 2009
25 Mar 10Pope Benedict XVI, though he made no visits to the United States last year, was the subject of two of the top 10 religion stories, while the Obama administration accounted for three of the top 10 religion-focused storylines during the year
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Indonesia's Place Along the Spectrum of Global Religious Restriction
18 Mar 10Indonesia, where President Barack Obama will visit this month and where he spent part of his childhood, is among those countries of the globe where such restrictions and hostilities are highest.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religion Among the Millennials
Less Religiously Active but Fairly Traditional in Other Ways
17 Feb 10By some key measures, such as affiliation with a particular faith or regular attendance at religious services, Americans ages 18 to 29 are considerably less religious than older Americans. But by other measures such as beliefs about life after death and the existence of heaven, hell and miracles they closely resemble their elders.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

A Brief History of Religion and the U.S. Census
26 Jan 10Public debate over the propriety, merit and feasibility of the Census Bureau asking questions about religion has waxed and waned over many decades with religious groups, civil liberty groups, social scientists and the Census Bureau's own staff divided over the issue.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

How Religious is Your State?
22 Dec 09An interactive graphic lets you check out how your state -- and all the other states -- rank on four measures of religiosity.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Little Support for Terrorism Among Muslim Americans
17 Dec 09The Pew Research Center's comprehensive portrait of the Muslim American population suggests that, despite recent events, America is less likely to be a fertile breeding ground for terrorism than are Muslim minority communities in other countries.
Pew Research Center

Global Restrictions on Religion
16 Dec 09Since some of the most restrictive countries are very populous, nearly 70% of the world's 6.8 billion people live in countries with severe restrictions on religion.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Many Americans Not Dogmatic About Religion
Reincarnation, Astrology and the "Evil Eye"
10 Dec 09Numerous Americans attend worship services of more than one faith or denomination, and many also mix Christianity with Eastern or New Age beliefs such as reincarnation, astrology and the presence of spiritual energy in physical objects. Sizeable minorities of all major U.S. religious groups say they have experienced supernatural phenomena.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Sikh-Americans and Religious Liberty
4 Dec 09With their religious beliefs requiring distinctive elements of dress and appearance -- wearing a turban, keeping hair and beards uncut, carrying a kirpan -- Sikhs have been a part of many legal disputes. In an interview, church-state scholar Robert W. Tuttle discusses religious liberty and accommodation issues involving Sikh-Americans.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

GOP Seen as Friendlier to Religion than Democrats
Obama Seen as Friendlier than His Party
1 Dec 09The Democrats' image with respect to religion fell sharply among groups inclined to dislike their party's politics. Obama, though, is seen as friendlier to religion than is his party. Both fare better than do Hollywood, the media and scientists.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

A Conversation with Pastor Rick Warren
Saddleback Church’s Signature Issues
23 Nov 09The author of The Purpose Driven Life describes the worldwide spread of evangelicalism and the particular agenda driving his church's role in that movement.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Abortion Plays Small Role in Health Reform Opposition
Though Most Oppose Public Funding
19 Nov 09While most Americans oppose government funding of abortion, concern about abortion funding plays only a small role in driving opposition to the health care reform legislation. If anything, opposition to reform has declined, with currently 42% in favor and 39% opposed to the health care proposals in Congress.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Modest Rise In Concern About Islamic Extremism
18 Nov 09Just more than half (52%) of Americans say they are very concerned about the possible rise of Islamic extremism in the U.S., up from 46% in April 2007.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Faith-Based Programs Still Popular
Democrats Now More Supportive Than Republicans
16 Nov 09Faith-based initiatives remain popular eight years after President Bush unveiled his plan, but church-state concerns remain and not all religions garner high support for receiving funds. Also, 9% of Americans say they recently have turned to religious groups to help make ends meet.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religious Landscape Survey Data Release
9 Nov 09Data files from the U.S. Religious Landscape Survey, including interviews with a representative sample of more than 35,000 U.S. adults, are now available to the public for further study and analysis.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Paradoxical Relationship of Religion and Science
6 Nov 09While most embrace science and its benefits, strong religious convictions can affect some Americans' willingness to accept certain theories and discoveries. A new report examines the history of science and religion, the debates about them and how the two have been both adversaries and allies.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The "Zeal of the Convert": Is It the Real Deal?
29 Oct 09People who have switched religions consistently exhibit higher levels of religious commitment than those who still belong to their childhood faith, but the differences are relatively modest.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Most Still Oppose Gay Marriage, but Support for Civil Unions Continues to Rise
9 Oct 09A 57% majority of Americans support civil unions, continuing a long-term trend of increasing support, but a majority still opposes same-sex marriage. The issue continues to sharply divide religious and political groups.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Mapping the Global Muslim Population
A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World's Muslim Population
8 Oct 09A comprehensive demographic study of more than 200 countries finds there are 1.57 billion Muslims of all ages living in the world today, representing 23% of an estimated 2009 world population of 6.8 billion. A series of interactive maps show the size and distribution of the worldwide Muslim population.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Health Care: Politics in the Pews
Religious Groups Weigh In on Health Care Reform
2 Oct 09Many religious organizations have taken on the look of political campaigns, as advocates for and against health care reform preach their politics.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Support for Abortion Slips
Issue Ranks Lower on the Agenda
1 Oct 09The election of President Obama may have moved the needle on abortion opinion. Opposition to abortion is up among Republicans, while opinion has changed little among the president’s strongest backers. As the importance of abortion as an issue has declined among liberals, opposition from conservatives has become more firm.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Salazar v. Buono: Can Government Give One Religion's Symbol Prominence in a Public Park?
24 Sep 09The Supreme Court will soon take up a case with the potential to determine the fate of a cross on display in the Mojave National Preserve, as well as similar religious displays across the country. The court's decision might also determine who may bring Establishment Clause lawsuits in federal court in the future.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Muslims Widely Seen As Facing Discrimination
Views of Religious Similarities and Differences
9 Sep 09Nearly six-in-ten say Muslims are subject to a lot of discrimination, far more than say the same about Jews, evangelical Christians, atheists or Mormons. A new survey also finds the public is more likely to see differences rather than similarities between their own religion and every other religion tested, with the sole exception of Protestantism.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Faith Healing on Trial
1 Sep 09Two of government's obligations -- enforcing child welfare laws and protecting religious freedom -- can clash when a parent chooses to rely on faith healing instead of standard medical care for a sick child. Robert W. Tuttle, a church-state scholar, explains.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Obama's Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships
18 Aug 09A new report by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life examines President Obama’s faith-based advisory council, including descriptions of their goals and profiles of members.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Measuring Media: Faith-Based Initiative
12 Aug 09While Obama adopted much of the program put into place by Bush, it has generated little of the contentious press coverage sparked by his predecessor's effort.
Project for Excellence in Journalism

A Portrait of Mormons in the U.S.
24 Jul 09Founded in 1830, Mormonism is now practiced by 1.7% of U.S. adults, comparable to the American Jewish population. Followers are concentrated in the West, and stand out for having exceptionally high levels of religious commitment and for very conservative political views.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Gay Marriage Debate: Where It Stands
10 Jul 09In recent years, the debate over same-sex marriage has grown from an issue that occasionally arose in a few states to a nationwide controversy. A special report by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life describes the various dimensions of the controversy.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Obama's Favorite Theologian? A Short Course on Reinhold Niebuhr
26 Jun 09What is it about the famous public theologian that prompted Obama to describe him as one of his "favorite philosophers"?
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

About One-in-Six Americans Are Baptist
23 Jun 09A graphical representation of America's denominational distribution.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Can Science and Religion Co-Exist in Harmony?
22 Jun 09Two experts -- a geneticist and a religion writer and correspondent -- discuss why they believe the current perceived conflict between evolution and faith is unnecessary and destructive.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Brides, Grooms Often Have Different Faiths
5 Jun 09Buddhists and the religiously unaffiliated are the most likely to have a spouse or partner with a different religious background, while Mormons and Hindus are the least likely to marry or live with a partner outside their own faith.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

A Clash of Rights? Gay Marriage and the Free Exercise of Religion
20 May 09Although churches and other religious organizations, including charities and schools, have typically been exempt from state and local laws prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation, it remains unclear how these institutions might be affected by new laws that require equal treatment for same-sex marriages.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Establishment Clause and Government Funding of Faith-Based Organizations
14 May 09Most legal scholars agree that the Establishment Clause in the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution limits at least some government funding of religion, but they disagree sharply on exactly what is permissible.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Prayer in America
7 May 09Nearly six-in-ten U.S. adults say they pray at least once a day although the frequency of prayer differs significantly by religious tradition, age, gender and income.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Catholics, Obama and Notre Dame
30 Apr 09Most Catholics aware of the controversy support the University of Notre Dame's decision to invite President Barack Obama to speak and receive an honorary degree at its May 17 commencement, even though he supports abortion rights and embryonic stem cell research. But a new poll also finds a deep division on this issue between the most observant Catholics and those who are less observant
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Religious Dimensions of the Torture Debate
30 Apr 09Analysis of a new Pew Research survey finds--along with other differences in attitudes toward the use of torture among the four major U.S. religious traditions--that white mainline Protestants are the most likely to say that the torture of suspected terrorists can never be justified.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Faith in Flux
Changes in Religious Affiliation in the U.S.
27 Apr 09Americans change religious affiliation early and often. A new survey documents the fluidity of religious affiliation in the U.S. and describes in detail the patterns and reasons for change.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religion in South Africa 15 Years After the End of Apartheid
23 Apr 09Data from a 10-country survey of Pentecostals in 2006 provide estimates of the religious affiliation of South Africa's urban population.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Faith in Global Warming
Religious Groups' Views on Earth Warming Evidence
16 Apr 09The unaffiliated (58%) are the most likely to say there is solid evidence the earth is warming because of human activity while white evangelical Protestants (34%) are the least likely to believe in man-made global warming.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

When Will Jesus Return?
Christians' Views of the Second Coming
9 Apr 09Fully 79% of U.S. Christians believe in the Second Coming of Christ. Only 17% don't -- fewer than the 20% who believe the Second Coming will occur in their lifetime.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Not All Nonbelievers Call Themselves Atheists
3 Apr 09About one-in-20 Americans say they do not believe in God, but that doesn't mean 5% of Americans are atheists. In fact, 14% of nonbelievers self-identify as Christian. Only a quarter of those who do not believe in God consider themselves atheists.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

No Decline in Belief That Obama is a Muslim
Nearly One-in-Five White Evangelicals Think So
1 Apr 09More than two months into Barack Obama's presidency, as many people incorrectly identify him as a Muslim as did so during the 2008 campaign with white evangelicals and Republicans most likely to misidentify his religious affiliation.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

The Political Obligations of Catholics
A Conversation with the Archbishop of Denver
27 Mar 09The Most Rev. Charles J. Chaput argues that Catholics should take an active, vocal and morally consistent role in public debates, particularly on issues such as abortion, the death penalty and other matters they consider central to social justice.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Most Mainline Protestants Say Society Should Accept Homosexuality
19 Mar 09Most members of mainline denominations say society should accept homosexuality.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religion in the News: 2008
16 Mar 09Religion reporting in 2008 clustered around big events such as the pope's visit and stories tended to fade quickly from the headlines. Coverage gravitated toward controversies such as Obama's relationship with Jeremiah Wright and clergy sex-abuse scandals.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Losing Wealth, Finding God?
13 Mar 09Is the falling economy raising attendance at religious services?
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Why Surveys of Muslim Americans Differ
6 Mar 09Because Muslim Americans make up a very small percentage of the U.S. public, it is difficult to provide a reliable picture of their views and differences in survey design can crucially affect findings.
Pew Research Center

In Mammon We Trust? Religions Agree Economy is Issue Number One
4 Mar 09While members of all faiths see the economy as the top priority for 2009, they are not always in agreement on what issues the government should tackle. The divide is especially large on reducing crime and moral decline in America.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Stronger Sex -- Spiritually Speaking
27 Feb 09Analysis of survey data shows that women are more religious than men on a variety of measures.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Cupid's Arrow Often Hits People of Different Faiths
11 Feb 09More than one-in-four (27%) American adults who are married or living with a partner are in religiously mixed relationships.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

A Look at Religious Voters in the 2008 Election
10 Feb 09Two experts examine the role that religion played in the 2008 presidential election and discuss implications for the future.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

On Darwin's 200th Birthday, Americans Still Divided About Evolution
5 Feb 09Opinion polls over the past two decades have found the American public deeply divided -- and confused -- in its beliefs about the origins and development of life on earth.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Darwin Debated: Religion vs. Evolution
4 Feb 09Two hundred years after Charles Darwin’s birth, and 150 years after he published On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, Americans are still fighting over evolution. If anything, the controversy has recently grown in both size and intensity. In a multi-part package, the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life explores the many facets of the debate as it has evolved from its origins to the present day.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Higher Law: Faith-Based Hiring and the Obama Administration
3 Feb 09During his campaign, then-candidate Barack Obama said he would overturn the Bush administration's actions allowing religious groups that receive federal funds for providing social services to restrict hiring to those of the same faith. A scholar discusses the legal pros and cons of such a reversal.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

A Religious Portrait of African-Americans
30 Jan 09While the U.S. is generally considered a highly religious nation, African-Americans are markedly more religious on a variety of measures than the U.S. population as a whole, including level of affiliation with a religion, attendance at religious services, frequency of prayer and religion's importance in life.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religion, Race – and Obama
8 Jan 09A religious scholar discusses the president-elect’s place in the nation’s historical tension between religion and politics and examines the role of black churches as well as the controversy surrounding the Rev. Jeremiah Wright.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

After Bush, Islam's Real Challenge
29 Dec 08Scholar Va Nasr argues that the 2003 invasion of Iraq has fundamentally shifted the region's balance of power and that the most important conflicts of the Middle East now revolve around the Shia/Sunni sectarian divide.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Religious Makeup of Congress
19 Dec 08Although a majority of the members of the new, 111th Congress are Protestants, Congress -- like the nation as a whole -- is much more religiously diverse than it was 50 years ago.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Many Americans Say Other Faiths Can Lead to Eternal Life
Most Christians Say Non-Christian Faiths Can Lead to Salvation
18 Dec 08Most American Christians, including evangelicals, have more than just other Christian denominations in mind when they say there are many paths to salvation. Also, roughly one-third of Americans believe that whether one achieves eternal life is determined by what a person believes, with nearly as many saying eternal life depends on one's actions.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

How the Media Covered Religion
Obama Gets Most Coverage, Much of It on False Rumor He Is a Muslim
20 Nov 08Religion played a much more significant role in press treatment of Obama than of McCain during the 2008 campaign, but much of the coverage related to false yet persistent rumors that Obama is a Muslim.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

In Brief: Pleasant Grove City v. Summum
6 Nov 08May a locality that allows one religious group to erect a monument in a city park deny that privilege to another religious sect? On Nov. 12, the Supreme Court will hear arguments in the case of Pleasant Grove City v. Summum.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Voting Religiously
5 Nov 08President-elect Barack Obama made a concerted effort to reach out to people of faith during the 2008 presidential campaign, and early exit polls show that this outreach may have paid off on Election Day.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Will Obama Win the White Catholic Vote?
31 Oct 08White Catholics have traditionally been swing voters but their recent apparent shift from support for McCain to Obama was both sharp and swift. What explains it?
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Xenophobia on the Continent
30 Oct 08A growing minority of citizens in several European countries holds unfavorable opinions of Jews. Negative views of Israel, sympathy with the Palestinian cause, rising anti-Americanism, and a backlash against globalization and immigration all play a role in this trend.
Pew Global Attitudes Project

Brutalism v. Church: A Congregation Sues D.C. Over Historic Landmarking
27 Oct 08To the city of Washington DC, it’s a classic example of Brutalist architecture; to church members, it’s a costly concrete block that obstructs their ability to practice their Christian Science faith.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Ten Years of U.S. Efforts to Promote Religious Freedom
17 Oct 08A scholar describes the controversy surrounding the passage of the International Religious Freedom Act in 1998 and discusses its impact worldwide.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Religious Vote: Much like 2004, but Economic Concerns Now Top Social Issues
2 Oct 08A national survey finds remarkable stability in the candidate preferences of major religious groups compared with the last presidential campaign. But issue priorities among all religious groups have changed with possible implications in November.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Despite Pastors' Protest, Most Americans Are Wary of Church Involvement in Partisan Politics
1 Oct 08More than two dozen pastors recently challenged a tax code provision restricting political activities by houses of worship, but surveys show that substantial majorities of the public have consistently opposed such action.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Both McCain and Obama Favor Expanding Faith-Based Initiatives
29 Sep 08Two experts discuss how and why partnerships between governments and religious social service groups are likely to continue to grow no matter which party controls the White House.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

How the Media Has Handled Palin's Faith
22 Sep 08Coverage of her religious background and beliefs has often been a peripheral element in the story.
Project for Excellence in Journalism

Unfavorable Views of Both Jews and Muslims Increase in Europe
17 Sep 08Publics that view Jews unfavorably also tend to see Muslims in a negative light. However, the trend in negative views toward Muslims in Europe has occurred over a longer period of time than recently growing anti-Semitic sentiment.
Pew Global Attitudes Project

Slight but Steady Majority Favors Keeping Abortion Legal
Most Also Favor Restrictions
16 Sep 08A recent Pew survey finds U.S. opinion on this perennial campaign issue remains in line with the historical pattern.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Palin Nomination Puts Spotlight on Pentecostalism
12 Sep 08From the time she was a teenager until 2002, Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin attended a Pentecostal church , a denomination that emphasizes such practices as speaking in tongues, prophesying, divine healing and other miraculous signs of the Holy Spirit.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Survey Finds Alaskans Less Religious Than Other Americans
9 Sep 08GOP vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin is a self-described "Bible-believing Christian," but Pew surveys find that Alaskans are less devout on average than other Americans.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Public Support Falls for Religion’s Role in Politics
Some Social Conservative Disillusionment
21 Aug 08A new Pew Research survey finds a decline in the share of Americans who want churches and other houses of worship to be involved in political matters. Most of the drop in the past four years has come among political conservatives.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

The Purpose Driven Campaign: The Candidates' Forum with Rick Warren
14 Aug 08McCain and Obama will make their first joint appearance of the general election campaign at an event moderated by Pastor Rick Warren at his 22,000-member Saddleback Church. John Green discusses what the candidates stand to gain from speaking with Warren and the challenges that Warren will face as he attempts to broaden evangelicals’ political agenda.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Blaine Game: Controversy Over the Public Funding of Religion
24 Jul 08A scholar discusses challenges in Florida to its so-called Blaine Amendments that restrict state aid to religious schools. More than two-thirds of states have similar constitutional provisions.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Stem Cell Research: At the Crossroads of Religion and Politics
18 Jul 08An overview of the stem cell debate in America examines the science behind stem cell technology and looks at public opinion trends.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

McCain's Lead Among Evangelicals Smaller than Bush's in '04
Religiously Unaffiliated Voters Strongly Favor Democratic Candidate
17 Jul 08Many white evangelicals remain undecided and Obama has made few inroads into this key constituency. But the Democratic candidate enjoys strong support among the religiously unaffiliated.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Faith Factor in the Media's Primary Campaign Coverage
10 Jul 08Despite attention to Obama's former pastor, questions about McCain's relationship with the conservative religious base, interest in Romney's Mormon faith and Baptist preacher Huckabee's strong showing, only 2% of campaign stories directly focused on religion; still that was more than the attention devoted to race and gender combined.
Project for Excellence in Journalism

Organized Religion's Role in the Military
8 Jul 08In recent years, cadets, military officers and chaplains have asserted competing constitutional rights. Church-state scholar Robert W. Tuttle discusses the legal complications in an interview with Pew Forum.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

American Evangelicalism: New Leaders, New Faces, New Issues
30 Jun 08Scholar Michael Lindsay argues that the deep divisions in the movement are not between the political left and right, or the young and old, but between "cosmopolitan" and "populist" evangelicals.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religion in America: Non-Dogmatic, Diverse and Politically Relevant
Religious Beliefs & Practices / Social & Political Views: Report 2
23 Jun 08The second major report on the U.S. religious landscape finds that most Americans do not believe their religion is the only way to salvation. This openness to other religious viewpoints is in line with the nation's great diversity of affiliation, belief and practice as documented in a survey of more than 35,000 Americans.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Global Anglicanism at a Crossroads
19 Jun 08Leaders of the worldwide Anglican Communion, gathered this week at their decennial Lambeth Conference, will deliberate the future of a church experiencing deep internal conflicts.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

What Limits Remain on Government Funding of Religion?
Hein v. Freedom From Religion Foundation: In Brief
12 Jun 08A recent case permits executive agencies to fund religious groups and activities without fear of constitutional litigation.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Assessing a More Prominent 'Religious Left'
5 Jun 08Questions and answers about the various groups that make up the religious left movement and the implications for the “religious right” in the coming elections.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

What Brain Science Tells Us About Religious Belief
4 Jun 08Recent advances in neuroscience are offering researchers a look into the physiology of religious belief. In a transcript from a Pew Forum event, University of Pennsylvania radiologist, Dr. Andrew Newberg, discusses how measurable brain activity matches up with the religious experiences described by worshippers.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religion and Progressive Politics in 2008
20 May 08Directors of two progressive religious organizations and a political science professor discuss the origins of the "religious left" movement and how it might influence this year's election.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Plight of Iraq’s Religious Minorities
15 May 08Since 2003, sectarian violence, ambiguous legal protections for religious freedom, and other factors have contributed to a deteriorating situation for Christians and other small religious sects.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religion in China on the Eve of the 2008 Beijing Olympics
7 May 08A watching world may find religious belief unexpectedly widespread in a communist country.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Pope's Visit Draws Heavy Media Coverage
6 May 08The relationship between the relatively new pope and the hurting U.S. church was the primary story line in news reports of the pontiff's visit.
Project for Excellence in Journalism

Pope Benedict's Image Improves Following U.S. Visit
6 May 08Currently, 61% of Americans say they have a favorable impression of the pontiff, up from 52% in late March, while views of his outreach to other faiths have also shown substantial improvement.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Two Perspectives on Gay Marriage
5 May 08To explore the issues raised by same-sex marriage, the Pew Forum interviewed former Sen. Rick Santorum, who opposes gay marriage, and journalist Jonathan Rauch, who argues in its favor.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Obama's Catholic Voter Problem?
25 Apr 08Hillary Clinton won the Catholic vote in Pennsylvania's Democratic primary by more than a two-to-one margin, repeating a pattern among religious voters similar to those seen in other states. Does this have implications for the May 6 contests in Indiana and North Carolina?
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Courts Not Silent on Moments of Silence
24 Apr 08An Illinois statute, now on temporary hold by a U.S. District Court, has given rise to the latest in a long line of constitutional cases involving required moments-of-silence in public schools.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The 'Evidence for Belief': An Interview with Francis Collins
17 Apr 08In an interview, Francis Collins, head of the Human Genome Project and an evangelical Christian argues that advances in science present “an opportunity for worship,” rather than a catalyst for doubt.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religious Voters in Pennsylvania
11 Apr 08Connections that Clinton, Obama and McCain make -- or fail to make -- with the state's religious voters could have major consequences on April 22 and November 4.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

An Overview of the Same-Sex Marriage Debate
10 Apr 08The controversy ignited by the Massachusetts High Court ruling allowing gay and lesbian couples to marry continues to rage in state courts and legislatures as well as in churches across the nation.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

On Eve Of Visit, Pope Benedict Still Unknown to Many Americans
Pontiff's Outreach to Other Religions Draws Mixed Reactions
3 Apr 08A new poll finds 30% of Americans know little about the pontiff. The pope's efforts to reach out to other faiths receive mixed reviews overall but strong support among observant Catholics.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

America's Catholics Occupy a Unique Place in the World of Religion
1 Apr 08U.S. Catholics occupy something of a middle ground between their more religious fellow Catholics in the developing world, and the less devout of Europe.
Pew Global Attitudes Project

A Portrait of American Catholics on the Eve of Pope Benedict's Visit
27 Mar 08When Pope Benedict XVI arrives in the U.S. on April 15, he will be greeted by a flock that is undergoing rapid ethnic and demographic changes.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Voting Religiously
7 Mar 08Pew Forum's John Green discusses the role that religious and unaffiliated voters played on March 4 and could play in coming Democratic primaries and whether false rumors about Obama’s faith could hurt his chances.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Relativism vs. Fundamentalism: Is There a Middle Ground?
4 Mar 08In a Pew Forum event, eminent sociologist of religion Peter Berger sets forth his view that doubt is ultimately a key element of religious faith in liberal democracies.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The U.S. Religious Landscape Survey Reveals a Fluid and Diverse Pattern of Faith
25 Feb 08A new survey including interviews with more than 35,000 Americans finds that more than one-quarter of adults (28%) have left the faith in which they were raised in favor of another religion -- or no religion at all.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Evolution Battle Flares in States
14 Feb 08Evolution has won some recent battles, but its supporters are bracing against what they see as a growing effort to undermine the theory’s credibility.
Stateline.org

Does McCain Need Evangelical Voters?
Clinton Faces Challenge with Black Protestants; Obama Not Connecting With Jews
8 Feb 08Sizeable numbers of white evangelical Protestants are already part of McCain’s coalition despite opposition from some religious conservatives. On the Democratic side, Clinton will need to mobilize black Protestants while Obama has not connected with Jewish voters.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

What Americans Should But Don’t Know About Religion
6 Feb 08The U.S. is one of the most religious countries on earth, but Americans know little about their own religion, let along the religions of others. A scholar explains why that is dangerous for the nation.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Faith Factor at the Polls
Virtually every religious community is important in at least one of the states with a Super Tuesday election.
4 Feb 08John Green: “Virtually every religious community one can think of is important in at least one of the states with an election on Super Tuesday.”
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Will Evangelical Voters Rally Around a Single Candidate in 2008?
24 Jan 08As voting patterns and preferences among evangelicals have become more fluid, their electoral impact may extend beyond the primaries and affect both parties in November. Two experts from the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life discuss this critical voting bloc.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religion and Secularism: The American Experience
8 Jan 08Professor Wilfred McClay argues that America’s particular brand of secularism, together with some features of Christianity, have produced a unique if imperfect mingling of religion and government in the country’s public life.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Death Penalty in America
19 Dec 07Religious communities have been deeply involved on both sides of the capital punishment issue. As the Supreme Court prepares to hear arguments in a case challenging use of lethal injection, a Pew Forum special report examines the history of the death penalty, arguments before the court and public opinion.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Science in America: Religious Belief and Public Attitudes
18 Dec 07The combination of widespread religious commitment and leadership in science and technology greatly enlarges the potential for conflict between faith and science in the U.S.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

South Korea's Coming Election Highlights Christian Community
12 Dec 07The fact that the presidential frontrunner is a Protestant Church leader highlights the growing numbers, influence and religious intensity of South Korea's Christians.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Public Opinion About Mormons
Mitt Romney Discusses His Religion
4 Dec 07Mitt Romney's speech discussing the role of religion in American politics addressed a public among which many harbor doubts about his Mormon faith.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Lebanon's Precarious Politics
Many of the Country's Sectarian Differences Do Not Run along a Straight Muslim-Christian Fault Line
15 Nov 07Behind the delayed selection of a new president, now scheduled for next week, lie complicated sectarian struggles, many of which do not run along a straight Muslim/Christian fault line.
Pew Global Attitudes Project

Faith and the Public Dialogue: A Conversation with Sen. John Kerry
1 Nov 07At a Pew Forum event, the Massachusetts Democrat candidly discusses the propriety of public inquiry into politicians' religious beliefs and lessons learned from his 2004 presidential bid.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Widespread Negativity: Muslims Distrust Westerners More than Vice Versa
30 Oct 07Muslims and non-Muslims associate a wide array of negative characteristics with one another. But there is generally more antagonism in Muslim countries toward the West than vice versa.
Pew Global Attitudes Project

A Delicate Balance: The Free Exercise Clause and the Supreme Court
24 Oct 07More than a century of court decisions in this area have forged a ragged path from one extreme to the other, with permutations in between.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Free Exercise Clause and the Parameters of Religious Liberty
24 Oct 07An expert on law and religion discusses concrete examples of protected religious expression – must the sheik remove his turban when boarding a plane?
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

A Portrait of Republican Social-Issue Voters
Though Much Courted by GOP candidates, Their Impact on the Nominating Process Is Still Unclear
15 Oct 07Though much courted by GOP candidates, the impact of this voting bloc on the presidential nominating process remains unclear.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Right-to-Die Debate and the Tenth Anniversary of Oregon's Death with Dignity Act
10 Oct 07Similar measures considered in several other states have failed in the state legislature or at the ballot box, while polls show the country still divided on the issue.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Young White Evangelicals: Less Republican, Still Conservative
28 Sep 07An analysis of Pew Research Center surveys conducted between 2001 and 2007 suggests that young white evangelicals have become increasingly dissatisfied with Bush and are moving away from the GOP. How will these changes affect the vote in 2008 and beyond?
Pew Research Center

Public Expresses Mixed Views of Islam, Mormonism
Benedict XVI Viewed Favorably But Faulted on Religious Outreach
25 Sep 07The Muslim and Mormon religions have gained increasing national visibility in recent years. Yet most Americans say they know little or nothing about either religion's practices, and large majorities say that their own religion is very different from Islam and the Mormon religion. At the same time, overall evaluations of Mormons and Muslim Americans are on balance positive.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Case the Candidates for '08
The Pew Forum Database Covers Presidential Contenders' Positions on Issues of Special Religious Significance and Other Domestic and Foreign Policies
17 Sep 07The Pew Forum database covers presidential contenders' positions on issues of special religious significance as well as their stands on other domestic and foreign policies.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

A Half Century After It First Appeared on the Dollar Bill, "In God We Trust" Still Stirs Opposition
12 Sep 07Oct. 1 marks the 50th anniversary of the appearance of the words on U.S. paper currency. The phrase, which is also the nation's official motto, has been caught in a broader controversy over just how high the wall separating church and state should stand.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religion in Campaign '08
Clinton and Guiliani Seen as Not Highly Religious; Romney's Religion Raises Concerns
6 Sep 07Religion is not currently proving to be a clear-cut positive in the 2008 presidential race. Candidates viewed by voters as the least religious are the current frontrunners for the Democratic and Republican nominations – Hillary Clinton and Rudy Giuliani, respectively. And the candidate seen as far and away the most religious – Mitt Romney – appears handicapped by this perception because of voter concerns about Mormonism.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

How the Public Resolves Conflicts Between Faith and Science
On Subjects such as Evolution, Many Americans Are Aware of -- but Reject -- the Scientific Consensus
27 Aug 07Polls show that Americans have a healthy respect for science. But what happens when scientific findings conflict with religious beliefs? In the case of evolution, religious people, who make up a majority of Americans, rely primarily on their faith for answers.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religion and the Presidential Vote: A Tale of Two Gaps
21 Aug 07An analysis of national exit polls from 2004 shows there is not one but two religion gaps -- one based on religious affiliation and the other based on frequency of attendance at worship services. How did the gaps manifest themselves in the 2004 election and what are the possible implications for 2008?
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religion and International Diplomacy: A Ten-Year Progress Report
7 Aug 07Experts discuss the successes and shortcomings of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998. Are U.S. national interests advanced by the act, and should they be?
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

In Search of a Way Out: Rethinking the Arab-Israeli Conflict
A Palestinian Scholar Discusses How a Solution Could Help Resolve the Larger Clash Between Islam and Christianity
12 Jul 07In an interview with the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, Palestinian scholar Sari Nusseibeh discusses ways in which a settlement could help resolve the larger tensions between Islam and other faiths.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Same-Sex Marriage: Redefining Legal Unions Around the World
11 Jul 07In many countries around the globe, gay and lesbian couples are seeking the right to marry or enter into other legally recognized forms of domestic partnerships. The legal definition of marriage is in flux, particularly in the developed world.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

How Muslims Compare With Other Religious Americans
In Intensity of Religious Identity, Not Unlike Evangelicals
6 Jul 07Although Muslims constitute a small minority in the United States, in many ways, they stand out not so much for their differences as for their similarities with other religious groups, especially evangelicals.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

"Frequently Asked Questions" about Pew's Muslim American Survey
The Facts behind the Design, Conduct and Analysis of a High-Profile Study
2 Jul 07A recent report, "Muslim Americans: Middle Class and Mostly Mainstream," attracted a great deal of attention but also raised a number of questions about the research. Here are answers to some of the most frequently asked questions.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

From the Ten Commandments to Christmas Trees: Public Religious Displays and the Courts
27 Jun 07As a supplement to a Pew Forum legal backgrounder, Prof. Robert W. Tuttle discusses how current law might apply in circumstances such as a recent religious display controversy in Louisiana.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religious Republicans: Hanging Tough with Bush
GOP Presidential Candidates May Still Need Strong Backing from Church-Going Conservatives
22 Jun 07A dilemma for GOP Presidential Candidates: They're distancing themselves from Bush, but may still need strong backing from his faithful church-going supporters.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

A Spiritual Network in Cyberspace
Beliefnet.com Proves a Successful Model for Combining Journalism and Networking
11 Jun 07If Beliefnet is not exactly a household name, it is an interesting experiment in online journalism. For one thing, its own turbulent history in some ways reflects the trajectory of the internet itself. For another, the strategy it has settled on -- a subject specific site that offers interactivity, networking and journalistic even-handedness -- may offer one working blueprint for the rapidly evolving field of Web information.
Project for Excellence in Journalism

Legal Backgrounder: The Supreme Court Charts a New Direction on Abortion Jurisprudence in Gonzales v. Carhart
11 Jun 07A Pew Forum legal backgrounder examines the new direction in jurisprudence charted by the Supreme Court's April 2007 ruling that the Federal Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act does not violate the constitutional right to abortion.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

¡Here Come 'Los Evangélicos'!
6 Jun 07Next week's National Hispanic Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C. illustrates the growing presence and increasing political influence of Latino evangelicals. If Republicans have a prayer of making deep inroads into the Hispanic community, evangelicals may well provide their most direct route.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

A Six-Day War: Its Aftermath in American Public Opinion
For 40 years, public opinion has consistently favored Israel over the Palestinians
30 May 07For 40 years since the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, the U.S. public has sympathized more with Israel than with the Palestinians almost regardless of the news of the day, through the making and collapse of peace agreements and attacks and reprisals by all sides.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Muslim Americans: Middle Class and Mostly Mainstream
22 May 07The first-ever, nationwide, random sample survey of Muslim Americans finds them to be largely assimilated, happy with their lives, and moderate with respect to many of the issues that have divided Muslims and Westerners around the world.
Pew Research Center

Rev. Falwell's Moral Majority: Mission Accomplished?
17 May 07When the late Rev. Jerry Falwell disbanded the Moral Majority in 1989, he declared that "our mission is accomplished." If Falwell meant that evangelical Christians had come to accept the idea that organized religion should play an activist role in the political process, his claim of success is well-supported by public opinion surveys.
Pew Research Center

An Evolving Debate about Evolution
Long a Source of Controversy in States and Localities, Darwin's Theory Has Moved to the National Level
16 May 07The evolution controversy, traditionally a state and local issue, has vaulted into the national political arena, making a surprise appearance at the first Republican presidential candidate debate on May 3 and garnering a large amount of press attention
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

In Focus: Mormonism in Modern America
Two Leaders in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Discuss The Tenets of Their Faith and its Role in Today's Political Life
16 May 07Thanks in part to a Republican presidential hopeful, a TV documentary and Hollywood movies, the Mormon church is in the spotlight. Two senior authorities discuss the church's role in American society and political life.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Presidential Politics and Mormon Faith
16 May 07Surveys show strong public misgivings about the religion and some 30% of the public say they are less likely to support a Mormon presidential candidate.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Global Schism: Is the Anglican Divide the First Stage in a Wider Christian Split?
14 May 07At the Pew Forum's biannual Faith Angle Conference in Key West, Prof. Philip Jenkins argued that the current fracture in the Episcopal church over attitudes toward homosexuality may be the first battle in a much larger war and that churches worldwide may face a North-South schism.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

God at Graduation
What Courts Have Ruled about Prayers and Other Religious Expressions at School Commencements
9 May 07Spring is the season for school graduations, and graduation ceremonies play a featured role in the national debate over the place of religion in public education. Is a clergyman's benediction at a public school event a violation of the separation of church and state? Can students lead a prayer at their school commencement?
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Can Secular Democracy Survive in Turkey?
Turmoil over a Presidential Choice Highlights Turks' Concerns about Religious Influence in Political Life
4 May 07By nominating an observant Muslim for the Turkish presidency, Prime Minister Erdogan inadvertently highlighted deep-rooted tensions about the role of religion in the nation's political life.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Changing Faiths: Latinos and the Transformation of American Religion
25 Apr 07Hispanics are altering the profile of American religion by their growing numbers and by their distinctive practice of Christianity. A new study by the Pew Hispanic Center and the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life also finds Latinos' influence on U.S. politics and public affairs is strongly affected by the particular characteristics of their faith.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Pope to Visit 'Pentecostalized' Brazil
Survey Shows Growing Movement Threatens Catholic Dominance
19 Apr 07When Benedict XVI arrives in Sao Paolo, he will encounter a country where, a Pew survey finds, the rapid growth of pentecostal sects along with increasing secularism are threatening Catholicism's historic dominance.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

High Court Decision Could Raise Abortion's Profile in Campaign
19 Apr 07Although the court did not entirely eliminate the health exception, Wednesday's 5-4 Supreme Court decision upholding a federal law banning a controversial abortion procedure probably made the waiver less meaningful. This will almost certainly energize both sides in the abortion debate and put pressure on presidential contenders to take clearer positions on the issue.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Culture War and the Coming Election
At the moment no hot-button issue looms but events could change that quickly
11 Apr 07No hot-button issue currently dominates in the presidential campaigns, but court decisions and other events could change that quickly.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Giuliani, McCain Lead Among Evangelical Republicans
23% Still Undecided
2 Apr 07The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life debuts its newly redesigned website with an early look at white evangelical Republicans and their candidate preferences for the 2008 presidential campaign. White evangelicals who are Republicans or Republican leaners divide their support between Rudolph Giuliani and John McCain.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Strange Bedfellows: Why Are Some Religious Groups Defending 'Bong Hits 4 Jesus'?
26 Mar 07A recent Supreme Court case involving the free speech rights of students is producing some very unusual alliances. Christian conservative groups, such as the American Center for Law and Justice and the Christian Legal Society, are defending a student who was punished by his high school principal for holding up a sign that read "Bong Hits 4 Jesus."
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Trends in Attitudes Toward Religion and Social Issues: 1987-2007
22 Mar 07As the '08 elections approach, what are the views of Republicans, Democrats and the general public on "social values" issues? And how have they changed over time?
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Nigeria's Presidential Election: The Christian-Muslim Divide
22 Mar 07The campaign leading up to the election is a reminder of the sharp Christian-Muslim divide in Africa's most populous country.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Trends in Political Values and Core Attitudes: 1987-2007
Political Landscape More Favorable To Democrats
22 Mar 07Increased public support for the social safety net, signs of growing public concern about income inequality, and a diminished appetite for assertive national security policies have improved the political landscape for the Democrats as the 2008 presidential campaign gets underway.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Same-Sex Marriage in California: Legal and Political Prospects
28 Feb 07Experts debate a pending state Supreme Court decision and the larger societal issues involved.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Christmas Wars: Religion in the American Public Square
12 Dec 06Every year as the holiday season gets underway, debates break out across the country over the appropriateness of religious displays in public spaces. But the so-called "Christmas Wars" are only a small part of a much larger debate concerning the proper place of religion in public life, a debate that began at the nation's founding.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religion's Role in the 2006 Election
The "God Gap" Persists, but Other Gaps Are Much Larger
5 Dec 06Pew Forum Senior Fellow John Green and American Enterprise Institute Resident Fellow Karlyn Bowman analyze polling data to address such issues as whether Democrats closed the "God gap," which religious groups were "in play" this election, and whether or not religion polarizes voters.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Religion in a Globalizing World
Pluralism, not Secularism is the Dominant Trend in an 'Age of Explosive, Pervasive Religiosity.'
4 Dec 06Scholar Peter Berger argues that the peaceful coexistence of different racial, ethnic and religious groups has become a global phenomenon and the resulting emergence of religious choice is the best model for understanding religion in a today's world.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Israel and the Future of Zionism
Is the 20th century revolution of Jewish life an astounding success or a colossal failure?
4 Dec 06An American scholar and an Israeli journalist discuss the origins and evolution of Zionism and its implications for the future of the Israeli state.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Turkey: Troubled Terrain for Pope Benedict
The Pontiff Visits a Country Where Negative Views of Christians and the West Are on the Rise
27 Nov 06The Pontiff's diplomatic skills may well be tested as he visits a country where negative views of Christians and the West are on the rise.
Pew Global Attitudes Project

Religious Groups React to the 2006 Election
Most are Happy with the Democratic Victory but Want the Two Parties to Work Together
27 Nov 06The religious divide in voting that has characterized American politics over the last several elections largely persisted in the 2006 election. But people in most religious groups say they are happy that the Democrats won.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Legislating International Religious Freedom
20 Nov 06In a Pew Forum roundtable event, four experts discuss the wisdom and success of U.S. legislation that makes the promotion of religious freedom an explicit goal of America's foreign policy and ways to make that policy more effective.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Europeans Debate the Scarf and the Veil
Except in France, most Muslim women choose to cover their heads -- but many among the general public disapprove
20 Nov 06Government leaders in the Netherlands reignited the debate over veils and head scarves when they announced plans for legislation that would ban the full-face veil. A Pew survey found that European publics are divided on head scarf bans.
Pew Global Attitudes Project

Election '06: Big Changes in Some Key Groups
16 Nov 06In the aftermath of the 2006 election, the shifting allegiance of some important voter groups has gotten relatively little attention. One of the biggest stories is about young people. Another is what really happened to "The God Gap." And a third is about the one-fifth of voters who aren't white.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

U.S. Supreme Court to Hear Partial Birth Abortion Cases
1 Nov 06Revisiting a set of issues it last considered in 2000, a U.S. Supreme Court that has since become more conservative will hear oral arguments next week in two partial birth abortion cases. The changes in the court's composition raise the possibility of a different outcome this time.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Evangelicals and the GOP: An Update
Strongly Republican Group Not Immune to Party's Troubles
18 Oct 06White evangelical Protestants have become the most important part of the Republican Party's electoral base, making up nearly one-in-four of those who identify with the GOP and vote for its candidates. This analysis examines the current state of evangelical support for the GOP, in light of the approaching 2006 elections.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

In Pursuit of Values Voters: Religion's Role in the 2006 Election
A round table discussion
11 Oct 06In a Pew Forum roundtable conversation, Forum senior fellow John Green and two prominent journalists speculate that it will be difficult for the Republican Party to mobilize evangelicals to go to the polls in great numbers next month. They also discuss challenges faced by the Democratic Party in appealing to this segment of the electorate.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Pentecostal Power
A new poll sheds light on this fast-growing global religious movement
5 Oct 06A Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life survey examines one of the fastest-growing segments of global Christianity, Pentecostalism.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Vatican and Islam
Pope Benedict XVI Prepares to Visit Turkey
4 Oct 06Pope Benedict XVI is scheduled to visit Turkey on Nov. 28-30, a trip that has already attracted exceptionally close attention because of the pope's use of an inflammatory 14th-century quote about Islam during a September speech in Regensburg, Germany. Pew Forum Senior Editor Robert Ruby examines the issues and challenges in interviews with George Weigel, an expert on Catholicism, and John Esposito, a scholar of Islam.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

God's Country?
Evangelicals & U.S. Foreign Policy
26 Sep 06In recent years, evangelicals have helped to put conservatives at the helm of U.S. foreign policy, while focusing their energies on a few issues including support for Israel and promotion of religious freedom abroad. Now, they are showing interest in global warming and other issues traditionally seen as liberal.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Devil's New Playground: The Shopping Mall
14 Sep 06Has the repeal of Sunday blue laws given the Devil a new playground? A pair of economists think so.
Pew Research Center

Emergency Contraception and Moral Misgivings
FDA ruling puts pharmacists in crossfire
6 Sep 06The FDA's recent decision to let women over age 18 buy the morning-after pill without a doctor's prescription won't end heated disputes in state capitols over emergency contraception and thrusts pharmacists - more than ever - into the middle of the fray.
Stateline.org

Five Years After 9/11
6 Sep 06In exclusive interviews, Samuel P. Huntington says the current conflict between the Muslim world and the West could be far worse and Akbar Ahmed says current U.S. policies tend to strengthen the most radical Muslim leaders.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Many Americans Uneasy with Mix of Religion and Politics
69% Say Liberals Too Secular, 49% Say Conservatives Too Assertive
24 Aug 06Many Americans are uneasy with the mix of religion and public life. Some 69% say liberals have gone too far to keep religion out of schools, but 49% say conservatives are too eager to project their religious values into the public sphere.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The French-Muslim Connection
Is France Doing a Better Job of Integration than Its Critics?
17 Aug 06When Muslim youths rioted in French suburbs last year, critics were quick to fault the French assimilation model. But recent findings suggest that the French can claim some success.
Pew Research Center

In Great Britain, Muslims Worry About Islamic Extremism
Concerns Pre-Date Airplane Plot
10 Aug 06Even before British authorities announced they had thwarted a terrorist plot to blow up airplanes, many people in Britain - including Muslims - were very concerned about Islamic extremism.
Pew Global Attitudes Project

Americans' Support for Israel Unchanged by Recent Hostilities
Domestic Political Distemper Continues
26 Jul 06A new Pew poll conducted July 6-19 finds little change in public sympathy for Israel in its dispute with the Palestinians, while Americans remain dissatisfied with the state of the nation and with the president's performance.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Lebanon's Muslims: Relatively Secular and Pro-Christian
But Support for Terrorism and Anti-Semitism are Widespread
26 Jul 06But on many issues, including terrorism, Lebanon's Muslim majority shares the views of other Muslims in the Middle East. In particular, Lebanon's Muslims -- as well as its Christians -- are strongly anti-Israel.
Pew Global Attitudes Project

Wedge Issues on the Ballot
Can State Initiatives on Gay Marriage, Minimum Wage Affect Candidate Races?
26 Jul 06Democratic leaders, impressed by the purported success of GOP-backed ballot initiatives to ban same sex marriage in the 2004 election are pushing their own wedge initiatives to increase the minimum wage. But are such ballot measures really as potent as claimed?
Pew Research Center

The Rise of Shia Islam - and Iran
A Conversation with Vali Nasr
24 Jul 06The recent violence in Lebanon and Israel, together with the sectarian strife in Iraq and escalating tensions around Iran's nuclear ambitions, has drawn urgent attention to the resurgence and politicization of Shia Islam in the Middle East.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Death Penalty Today: Defend It, Mend It or End It?
21 Jul 06In recent years, the nation has debated the proper application, morality and constitutionality of the death penalty. In this Pew Forum event transcript, four legal experts candidly debate the death penalty.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The U.S. Public's Pro-Israel History
In Mid-East Conflicts, Americans Consistently Side with Israel
19 Jul 06A substantial plurality of the American public has been steadfast in its support for Israel as the intensity of armed conflict in the Middle East has waxed and waned through the years.
Pew Research Center

Muslims in Europe
Economic - Not Religious - Worries Top Their Concerns
6 Jul 06Muslims living in Europe worry about their future, and many say they have had a bad experience as a result of their religion or ethnicity. But Muslims there do not generally believe most Europeans are hostile toward people of their faith.
Pew Global Attitudes Project

Do the Democrats Have a 'God Problem'?
How Public Perceptions May Spell Trouble for the Party
6 Jul 06Religion's Political Power
Pew Research Center

Imperialism, Anti-Americanism and Anti-Semitism
A Conversation with Josef Joffe
28 Jun 06Has U.S. power stoked both anti-Semitism and anti-Americanism?
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Moved by the Spirit
Pentecostal Power & Politics after 100 Years
28 Jun 06What does the global rise of Pentecostalism mean for U.S. foreign policy?
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

The Great Divide
How Westerners and Muslims View Each Other
22 Jun 06After a year marked by riots over cartoon portrayals of Muhammad, a major terrorist attack in London, and continuing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, most Muslims and Westerners see relations between them as generally bad.
Pew Global Attitudes Project

America's Image Slips
But Allies Share U.S. Concerns about Iran, Hamas
13 Jun 06The 2006 Pew Global Attitudes survey finds that America's image has again slipped in most of the 15 countries surveyed and support for the U.S.-led war on terrorism has declined even among close U.S. allies such as Japan.
Pew Global Attitudes Project

Islam and the West
A Conversation with Bernard Lewis
6 Jun 06The well-known scholar and supporter of the Iraq invasion gives his views on progress of the war, confrontation with Iran and democracy in the Muslim world.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Will White Evangelicals Desert the GOP?
So Far, This Most Republican of Groups is Staying Loyal
2 May 06Although President Bush's approval rating has declined as much among white evangelicals as among the public as a whole, so far evangelicals don't seem likely to abandon the GOP this fall.
Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

Attitudes Toward Immigration: In the Pulpit and the Pew
26 Apr 06Church leaders and members don't always agree about undocumented migrants.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

A Pentecostal Primer
19 Apr 06More than half a billion people worldwide now belong to "spirit-filled" or renewalist faiths. Find out more about the past, present and future of the world's fastest growing religious movement.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

God is Alive and Well in America
4 Apr 06Forty years after a Time cover famously asked, "Is God Dead?" polls find the Almighty thriving in the nation's collective consciousness.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Mixed Trends in Religious Tolerance
22 Mar 06Will Muslims and Evangelicals gain the public acceptance that Jews and Catholics now enjoy?
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Supreme Court's Decision in Gonzales v. Oregon
High Court Rejects Federal Regulation of Physician-Assisted Suicide
31 Jan 06The Pew Forum analyzes the Supreme Court's January 17 decision that the 1970 Controlled Substances Act (CSA) does not give the U.S. attorney general the authority to prohibit Oregon doctors from prescribing lethal doses of drugs to certain terminally ill patients who want to end their own lives.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life

Mapping the Political Landscape 2005
1 Sep 05The Center's report offers a richly textured portrait of the American electorate, including a new analysis of 2004 election returns that reveals the congruence between where people live and how they vote.
Pew Research Center

Trends 2005
20 Jan 05The first publication of the Pew Research Center explores American public opinion and values, religion and public life, media, the Internet, Hispanics, the states and global opinion.
Pew Research Center