Chapter 4: Religious Beliefs
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At
first glance, Asian Americans appear to place less importance on religion than
does the U.S. public overall. As discussed in the previous chapter, Asian
Americans are less likely than Americans as a whole to say religion is very
important in their lives. Asian Americans are also somewhat less likely to be
affiliated with a religious tradition.
These
apparent differences, however, largely reflect the religious composition of the
Asian American population—including the relatively large share of Buddhists,
Hindus and the unaffiliated. When it comes to questions about specific
religious beliefs—including belief in God and views of Scripture—Asian-American
Christians tend to resemble Christians in the general public.
Asian-American
Protestants—especially those who are born-again or evangelical—are more strict
in their religious beliefs on some measures than Protestants in the general
public. For example, Asian-American Protestants are much more likely than U.S.
Protestants overall to say theirs is the one, true faith leading to eternal
life and to say there is only one true way to interpret the teachings of their
faith.
Asian-American
Hindus and Buddhists, by contrast, tend to be very inclusive in their
understanding of their own faith. Strong majorities of both groups reject the
notion that their religion is the one, true faith leading to eternal life (or
enlightenment) and say instead that many religions can lead to eternal life (or
enlightenment). The vast majority of Hindus and Buddhists also say there is
more than one true way to interpret the teachings of their religion.
The
distinctive religious composition of the Asian-American population also helps
explain why U.S. Asians are less likely than the public overall to believe in
God, as well as more likely to believe in reincarnation and to view yoga not
just as exercise but as a spiritual practice.
Belief in God
About
eight-in-ten Asian Americans (79%) say they believe in God or a universal
spirit. Among the general public, 92% express this view.
There
is near consensus among both Asian-American Christians and Christians in the
general public on belief in God. Fully 95% of Asian-American Protestants
express belief in God, as do 99% of Protestants overall. The same is true among
Catholics: 97% of Asian-American Catholics and 98% of U.S. Catholics overall
say they believe in God.
Nine-in-ten
Asian-American Hindus (91%) also profess belief in God.
Because
Buddhists often view their religion in non-theistic terms—simply put, many see
Buddhism as a path toward spiritual awakening or enlightenment rather than as a
path to God—it is not surprising that the proportion of Asian-American
Buddhists who say they believe in God or a universal spirit is significantly
lower (71%) than among Asian-American Christians and Hindus.36
Among
Asian Americans who are religiously unaffiliated, about half say they believe
in God (49%). The proportion of unaffiliated adults in the general public who
believe in God is considerably higher (67%).
Younger
Asian Americans (ages 18 to 34) are less likely than older Asian Americans to
believe in God. But there are no significant differences on this question by
gender or nativity group (foreign born vs. native born).
Views of Sacred
Scripture
Asian
Americans are less likely than the U.S. public overall to say the Bible and
other works of Scripture are the word of God and should be taken literally,
word for word.37
But here again, Asian-American Christians tend to resemble Christians in the
general public. For example, Asian-American Catholics’ views of the Bible are
nearly identical to the views of U.S. Catholics as a whole. Seven-in-ten
Asian-American Catholics (72%) say the Bible is the word of God, as do the same
number of Catholics overall. And 29% of Asian-American Catholics say the Bible
should be interpreted literally, as do 27% of Catholics in the general public.
Among
Asian-American Protestants, 86% view the Bible as the word of God, as do 82% of
Protestants overall. But there are some differences among subgroups of
Protestants. Asian-American mainline Protestants are more
likely than white mainline Protestants to say the Bible is the word of God (75%
vs. 64%), and they are also more likely than white mainline Protestants to
interpret the Bible literally (26% vs. 17%).
About
nine-in-ten Asian-American evangelicals (94%) view the Bible as the word of
God, as do a similar number of white evangelicals in the general public (92%).
However, Asian-American evangelicals are less likely
than white evangelicals to interpret the Bible literally. About half of
Asian-American evangelicals (52%) say the Bible should be interpreted
literally, compared with two-thirds of white evangelicals (65%).
Compared
with Asian-American Christians, fewer Hindus and Buddhists say that their
religion’s sacred texts are the word of God. Roughly a third of Asian-American
Hindus (36%) say that Hinduism’s Holy Scripture is the word of God, including
9% who say these writings should be interpreted literally. Among Asian-American
Buddhists, about one-in-four (24%) say their religion’s Holy Scripture is the
word of God, including 10% who say their sacred texts should be taken
literally. While the question asked of Asian-American Buddhists and Hindus
closely paralleled that asked of Christians, differences in responses among
these groups may reflect different understandings of “Holy Scripture” as a collective
term for multiple texts.
Most
Asian Americans who are religiously unaffiliated describe the Bible as written
by men (68%). This is somewhat higher than among the unaffiliated in the
general public (57%).
Beliefs
about Scripture are linked to age. Younger Asian Americans (ages 18 to 34) are
more likely than older generations to see Scripture as written by men, and
younger Asian Americans are less likely than older generations to say Scripture
should be interpreted literally.
Many Ways to Reach
Eternal Life, Interpret Faith
Among
Asian Americans who are affiliated with a religious tradition, most (63%)
believe that many religions can lead to eternal life. Far fewer say that their
religion is the one, true faith leading to eternal life (29%).
Overall,
Asian Americans closely resemble the general public on this question. There are
striking differences, however, between Asian-American Protestants and
Protestants in the general public.
Among
Asian-American evangelicals, 72% believe their religion is the one, true faith
leading to eternal life. By contrast, only about half of white evangelicals in
the general public (49%) express this point of view. Compared with
Asian-American evangelicals, the percentage of Asian-American mainline
Protestants who say their religion is the one, true faith leading to eternal
life is much lower (36%). However, this group is almost three times as likely
as white mainline Protestants (13%) in the general public to say theirs is the
one, true faith.
Compared
with Asian-American Protestants (especially evangelicals), far fewer
Asian-American Catholics (23%) say their religion is the one, true faith;
nearly three-quarters of Asian-American Catholics (73%) say many religions can
lead to eternal life. Asian-American Catholics closely resemble Catholics in
the general public on this question.
Just
4% of Asian-American Hindus say their faith is the only one leading to eternal
life, while about nine-in-ten (91%) say many religions can lead to eternal
life. Similarly, just 11% of Asian-American Buddhists say their faith is the
one true path leading to enlightenment; roughly eight-in-ten say many religions
can lead to enlightenment (79%).
Most
religiously affiliated Asian Americans believe the teachings of their religion
can be interpreted in many ways. Two-thirds believe there is more than one true
way to interpret the teachings of their faith (67%), while about a quarter
believe there is only one true way (24%).
Here
again, the beliefs of Asian Americans closely resemble the views of the public
overall. But Asian-American Protestants are more inclined than Protestants in
the general public to say there is only one correct way to interpret their
faith (42% and 32%, respectively).
The
belief that there is only one true way to interpret their faith is most common
among Asian-American evangelicals, with 53% expressing this view. Far fewer
Asian-American mainline Protestants (28%) and Catholics (23%) take this
position. And even fewer Buddhists (11%) and Hindus (5%) say there is only one
true way to interpret their faith.
Among
those with a religious affiliation, younger Asian Americans are more likely
than older generations to say there are many ways to interpret their faith. Men
with a religious affiliation are a bit more inclined than women to say there
are many ways to interpret their faith.
Heaven and Hell
Asian
Americans are somewhat less likely than the general public to believe in heaven
and hell. Six-in-ten Asian Americans (60%) say they believe in heaven, defined
in the survey as a place where people who have led good lives are eternally
rewarded. Half say they believe in hell (50%), where people who have led bad
lives and die without repentance are eternally punished. Among the U.S. general
public, 74% believe in heaven and 59% believe in hell.
Asian-American
Christians tend to resemble Christians in the general public in their views of
heaven and hell. Among Asian Americans, about nine-in-ten evangelical
Protestants (91%) and Catholics (89%) believe in heaven, as do three-quarters
of mainline Protestants. Eight-in-ten Asian-American evangelicals (81%) believe
in hell, as do 71% of Catholics. Fewer Asian-American mainline Protestants
believe in hell (57%). These figures are roughly comparable with or even
slightly higher than those seen among white evangelicals, Catholics and white
mainline Protestants in the general public.
Belief
in heaven and hell tends to be less common among Asian-American Buddhists,
Hindus and the religiously unaffiliated than among Asian-American Christians.
About half of Asian-American Buddhists believe in heaven (52%) and hell (51%).
Among Asian-American Hindus, nearly half believe in heaven (45%) and about a
third believe in hell (34%).
Roughly
three-in-ten religiously unaffiliated Asian Americans believe in heaven (27%),
and one-in-five believe in hell (21%). These numbers are lower than among the
overall unaffiliated public (41% believe in heaven, 30% believe in hell).
Angels and Evil
Spirits
About
six-in-ten Asian Americans (58%) believe in angels. Belief in angels is most
common among Asian-American evangelicals (91%) and Catholics (86%), followed by
mainline Protestants (74%). Far fewer Asian-American Buddhists (49%), Hindus
(38%) and the religiously unaffiliated (25%) believe in angels.
More
Asian-American women than men believe in angels (63% and 53%, respectively).
And Asian Americans who are ages 55 and older are more likely than younger
adults (ages 18 to 34) to believe in angels.
Half
of Asian Americans (51%) say they believe in evil spirits. Eight-in-ten
Asian-American evangelicals (81%) believe in evil spirits, as do two-thirds of
Catholics (67%) and nearly six-in-ten mainline Protestants (58%). About half of
Asian-American Buddhists (54%) say they believe in evil spirits. Belief in evil
spirits is much less common, however, among Asian-American Hindus (28%) and
those who are religiously unaffiliated (29%).
Comparisons
with the general public are not available on these beliefs.
Ancestral Spirits,
Spiritual Energy, Yoga, Reincarnation and Astrology
Roughly
four-in-ten Asian Americans believe in ancestral spirits (41%), and the same
proportion believes in yoga not just as exercise but as a spiritual practice.
About a third of Asian Americans (35%) believe in spiritual energy located in
physical things such as mountains, trees or crystals. Roughly as many believe
in reincarnation (34%), that people will be reborn in this world again and
again. And three-in-ten believe in astrology, that the position of the stars
and planets can affect people’s lives.
While
a significant minority of the general public shares these beliefs, they tend to
be more widely embraced by Asian Americans.38
For instance, 23% of the general public expresses belief in yoga as a spiritual
practice, compared with 41% of Asian Americans overall.
Buddhists
stand out from other Asian-American religious groups for high levels of belief
in ancestral spirits (67%) and spiritual energy located in physical things
(58%). Hindus stand out from other Asian-American religious groups for their
high level of belief in yoga as a spiritual practice (73%). Buddhists and
Hindus are also more likely than other Asian-American religious groups to
believe in reincarnation and astrology.
Compared
with Buddhists and Hindus, fewer Asian-American Christians share these
spiritual beliefs. Asian-American Christians tend to resemble Christians in the
general public on these measures. For example, three-in-ten Asian-American
Catholics (31%) believe in yoga as a spiritual practice, about the same
proportion as among Catholics in the general public (27%). A similar share of Asian-American Catholics (32%) and Catholics in the general
public (28%) believe in reincarnation.
However,
Asian-American Buddhists and Catholics are more likely than other
Asian-American religious groups to believe in ancestral spirits. About
two-thirds of Asian-American Buddhists (67%) believe in ancestral spirits as do
about half of Asian-American Catholics (49%). Fewer Asian-American Protestants
(27%), Hindus (34%) and unaffiliated (37%) believe in ancestral spirits.
Comparisons with the general public are not available on this question.
More
foreign-born than native-born Asian Americans express a belief in astrology,
spiritual energy and reincarnation. A third of Asian immigrants (33%) believe
in astrology, compared with one-in-five Asians born in the U.S. (20%). Asian
immigrants are also more likely than U.S.-born Asians to believe in spiritual
energy (37% vs. 27%) and reincarnation (36% vs. 28%). Asian immigrants are about as inclined as U.S.-born Asians to believe in ancestral spirits and in yoga as a spiritual practice.
The
survey also asked Buddhists whether they believe in nirvana and Hindus whether
they believe in moksha. These concepts refer to the ultimate state in which
suffering is transcended and individual consciousness ends. About half of
Asian-American Buddhists (51%) say they believe in nirvana, while six-in-ten
Asian-American Hindus (59%) say they believe in moksha.
Footnotes:
36 For more on Buddhism, see Richard Hughes Seager, “Buddhism in America,”
Columbia University Press, 1999; and Charles S. Prebish and Kenneth K. Tanaka,
editors, “The Faces of Buddhism in America,” University of California Press,
1998. (return to text)
37 The wording of this question varied depending on the religious affiliation of
the respondent. Christians and the unaffiliated were asked about “the Bible”; Jews
were asked about “the Torah”; Muslims were asked about “the Koran”; and Buddhists,
Hindus and those of other faiths were asked about “the Holy Scripture.” (return to text)
38 See Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life. 2009. “Many
Americans Mix Multiple Faiths.” Washington, D.C.: December. The question
about belief in ancestral spirits was not asked of the general public. (return to text)
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