pewforum.org Topics

Religious Affiliation

Individuals identify with particular religious traditions for theological, doctrinal, cultural or other reasons. Explore Pew Forum publications—including public opinion polls, demographic reports, research studies, event transcripts and interviews—about various faiths and their members.

RLS_small
Featured Content
The Global Religious Landscape
A country-by-country analysis of data from more than 2,500 censuses, surveys and population registers finds that 84% of adults and children around the globe are religiously affiliated. The study also finds that the median age of two major groups – Muslims (23 years) and Hindus (26) – is younger than the world’s overall population (28), while Jews have the highest median age (36).

 

Affiliations: 

Christian  Muslim  Unaffiliated 
Jewish  Other Affiliations   

Filters

reset filters
POLL December 18, 2008
Many Americans Say Other Faiths Can Lead to Eternal Life
A majority of all American Christians (52%) think that at least some non-Christian faiths can lead to eternal life. Indeed, among Christians who believe many religions can lead to eternal life, 80% name at least one non-Christian faith that can do so.
EVENT TRANSCRIPT December 8, 2008
America and Islam After Bush
Some of the nation's leading journalists gathered in Key West, Fla., in December, 2008, for the Pew Forum's biannual Faith Angle Conference on religion, politics and public life.
EVENT TRANSCRIPT December 8, 2008
A Post-Election Look at Religious Voters in the 2008 Election
Some of the nation's leading journalists gathered in Key West, Fla., in December 2008 for the Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion and Public Life's biannual Faith Angle Conference on religion, politics and public life to look at the impact of religious voters in the 2008 election. 
POLL December 4, 2008
The Importance of Pilgrimage to Muslim Americans
The Pew Research Center's 2007 Muslim American survey found that nearly two-thirds of U.S. Muslims say that taking a pilgrimage to Mecca is very important to them.
POLL November 5, 2008
How the Faithful Voted
President-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.
POLL November 3, 2008
Trends in Candidate Preferences Among Religious Groups
The latest survey by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press includes analysis of the candidate preferences of major religious groups.
INTERVIEW October 30, 2008
Will Obama Win the White Catholic Vote?
Surveys by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press show that white, non-Hispanic Catholic support for Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama has grown, taking him from a 13-percentage-point deficit in late September to an 8-point lead in late October.
POLL October 23, 2008
How Church Attendance Affects Religious Voting Patterns
The latest report from the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press shows that, as in previous elections, differences in voting patterns by religion are amplified when church attendance is taken into account
INTERVIEW October 16, 2008
Ten Years of Promoting Religious Freedom Through U.S. Foreign Policy
Oct. 27 marks the 10th anniversary of the signing of the International Religious Freedom Act, a law that made the promotion of religious freedom a basic aim of U.S. foreign policy.
INTERVIEW September 30, 2008
Candidate Preferences of Religious Voters Similar to 2004, But Economy a Higher Priority
A recently published national survey finds remarkable stability in the candidate preferences of major religious groups when compared with those at a similar stage in the 2004 campaign.
LEGAL REPORT September 30, 2008
Pro-Choice Does Not Mean Pro-Abortion: An Argument for Abortion Rights Featuring the Rev. Carlton Veazey
To explore the case for abortion rights, the Pew Forum turns to the Rev. Carlton W. Veazey, who for more than a decade has been president of the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice.
LEGAL REPORT September 30, 2008
Fundamental Dignity at Every Stage of Life: An Argument Against Abortion Rights Featuring the Rev. J. Daniel Mindling
To explore the case against abortion rights, the Pew Forum turns to the Rev. J. Daniel Mindling, a professor of moral philosophy and academic dean at Mount St. Mary's Seminary in Emmetsburg, Md.
POLL September 12, 2008
Palin V.P. Nomination Puts Pentecostalism in the Spotlight
From the time she was a teenager until 2002, Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin attended a church affiliated with the Assemblies of God, the largest Pentecostal Christian denomination in the U.S.
EVENT TRANSCRIPT September 9, 2008
Analyzing the Fall Campaign: Religion and the Presidential Election
With less than two months before the presidential election in November, the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life invited two senior researchers and a group of leading journalists to discuss recent findings on the role religion is playing in the presidential race.
POLL September 4, 2008
Survey Finds Alaskans Less Religious Than Other Americans
GOP vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin is a self-described  "Bible-believing Christian," but statistics show that compared with the nation as a whole, Alaska is home to a higher-than-average number of people who are unaffiliated with any particular religion.
POLL August 20, 2008
The Demographics of Faith
A Pew Forum report written for the U.S. State Department describes the diversity of religious practice in the United States.
INTERVIEW August 14, 2008
The Purpose-Driven Campaign: The Candidates' Forum With Rick Warren
Given the increased discussion of faith and values in the 2008 presidential campaign, it is perhaps fitting that candidates John McCain and Barack Obama are scheduled to make their first joint appearance of the general election season at an event moderated by Pastor Rick Warren.
EVENT TRANSCRIPT August 8, 2008
Targeting the Faithful
In the 2008 presidential campaign, both Democrats and Republicans have frequently spoken about the concept of faith and, in many cases, their own religious beliefs. 
POLL July 17, 2008
McCain's Lead Among Evangelicals Smaller than Bush's in '04
Republican presidential candidate John McCain has a smaller lead among white evangelical Protestants than Republican George W. Bush had at a similar point in the 2004 campaign.
ANALYSIS July 17, 2008
Religious Groups' Official Positions on Stem Cell Research
Where 17 religious groups stand on the issue of stem cell research.
Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10