Believers OK with Many Paths
But Is God?
By Randy Blackaby

"Religion today in the USA is a salad bar where people heap on upbeat beliefs they like and often leave the veggie-like strict doctrines behind," begins the cover story of the Life section of the June 24, issue of USA Today.

The article's main focus was the uncertainty about how the religious vote will affect this year's presidential election, but the first paragraph contains more truth than one typically would expect from a secular media.

The conclusions about American religious belief emerge from a Pew Forum on Religion, and Public Life's U.S. Religious Landscape Survey of 35,000 Americans. At first examination, Americans remain much more religious than their European counterparts. An astonishing 92 percent in the USA say they believe in God, and 58 percent say they pray at least once a day.

But there, the good news abruptly ends. The survey findings document a stunning lack of correlation between people's professed beliefs, or faith, and their actions. The Pew study found that most Americans have a non-dogmatic approach to faith.

Following are a few illustrative examples:

Half believe homosexuality should be accepted:

Of those surveyed, 50% believe homosexuality is a way of life that should be accepted. However, majorities of Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, Muslims, and Evangelicals called for society to discourage it. (The Church of Christ would probably be lumped into the Evangelical category, though that is not necessarily an apt category for the Lord's church-rb)

American view of God is varied:

As seen earlier, 92% believe in God. But that figure needs explanation, and the survey provides some. Of those believers, only 51% have a certain belief in a personal God. Another 27% are far less certain about a personal God. What does that mean? Well, 14% refer to God as an impersonal force. "People say 'God,' and no one knows who they mean," says Barry Kosmin, director of the Institute for the Study of Secularism in Society and Culture at Trinity College in Hartford, Conn.

Americans believe in everything:

"Americans believe in everything. It's a spiritual salad bar," concludes Michael Lindsay, a sociologist at Rice University. He says Oprah Winfrey has more to do with setting the cultural agenda in America than do religious leaders. Folks like Winfrey use biblical language but mix it with other traditions to create what the USA Today writer called a "hodgepodge personalized faith." Kosmin is quoted as saying, "Exclusivism (one religion has the exclusive and absolute truth) has gotten a bad name in America today."

Americans biblically illiterate:

Most Americans, despite their feelings about being religious, "have no command of theology, doctrine or history, so it's an empty religiosity," says Alan Wolfe, director of the Boise Center for American and Public Life at Boston University.

"Every religious group has a major challenge on its hands from all directions. When the factors in Pew's February findings that 44 percent of adults say they've switched to another religion or none at all, you have to wonder: How do you guarantee the integrity of a religious tradition when so many people are coming or going or following ideas that don't match up?" says Luis Lugo, director of the Pew Forum.

Frank Page, past president of the Southern Baptist Convention, said he wasn't surprised by the Pew findings. "The number (of churches that) teach a clear doctrinal Christianity is a minority today. How would people know it when they never hear about how to be saved?" he said.

But the Baptist spokesman was right on another count also. He said, "Jesus predicted all this." He quoted Jesus' words, recorded in Matthew 15:8: "People honor me with their lips but their hearts are far from me."

Where does the hodgepodgery come from?

Beyond the ignorance of Bible teaching already noted, the Pew Forum also attributes the confusion to life in a pluralistic society where friends, co-workers, even family members come from a variety of faiths. It noted that 37% of couples are comprised of people who have different faiths. "No one wants to think their spouse, friends, or co-workers are mad or bad," says Wolfe.

So, the researchers and social/religious commentators believe the wishy-washiness of American religious beliefs can be traced more to the home than to the church. Duke University sociologist Mark Chaves attributes the changing religious landscape to changes in the family--rising divorce, increased cohabitation, smaller families, and steady increases in religiously mixed marriages. He says, "Don't look at the church; look at the home!"

Future doesn't look good right now:

The study also found that prospects for positive change in the future do not look great. Regarding adherence to religious principles, adults under 30 are much less strict than their parents. These young people, other studies have shown, tend to cycle back to their religious roots at key times, such as when they get married, have children, and the like. But when perceived needs pass, they again drift away.

Unsurprising political connections:

One of the realities of politics in the U.S. today is that people who regularly attend worship services and hold traditional religious views are much more likely to hold conservative political views, while those who are less connected to religious institutions and more secular in their outlooks are more likely to hold liberal political views. This is particularly true with regard to such issues as abortion and homosexuality.

Sadly, many people have bought into the notion that having many choices is one of the benefits of freedom. While this is true, when considering which religion to follow, the first concern should be: "Which ONE will please and be acceptable to God?" He made his desires known (Ephesians 4:4-6). (KMG)


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