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Christian

Explore Pew Forum publications—including public opinion polls, demographic reports, research studies, event transcripts and interviews—about the Christian religion and its members, as well as many of the religious groups that it encompasses: evangelical Protestants, mainline Protestants, members of historically black Protestant churches, Catholics, Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Orthodox Christians and other Christians.

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Global Christianity
A comprehensive demographic study finds that there are 2.18 billion Christians of all ages around the world, representing nearly a third of the estimated 2010 global population of 6.9 billion. Christians are also geographically widespread, and no single region can indisputably claim to be the center of global Christianity.
U.S. Christians’ Views on the Return of Christ
Easter is one of the most important religious holidays of the year for many Christians – a time to celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. According to a 2010 Pew Research Center survey, roughly half (48%) of Christians in the U.S. say they believe that Christ will definitely (27%) or probably (20%) return to earth in the next 40 years. Somewhat fewer (38%) say this definitely will not happen (10%) or probably will not happen (28%).
Conclave Elects Pope Francis
Pope Francis was elected on Wednesday as the new leader of the Roman Catholic Church. Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio hails from Argentina and becomes the first Latin American pontiff. According to Pew Research Center data on the distribution of the world's Catholic population, the largest share of the Catholic population (39%) lives in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Geography of the Conclave: Where Do the Cardinals Come From?
The conclave to elect the next pope will begin on Tuesday, March 12. Half of the cardinal electors gathering at the Vatican are European (52%), while 17% come from Latin America. Latin America has the largest share of the world's Catholic population (39%), while 24% of Catholics live in Europe. 
Religious Groups' Official Positions on Abortion
A breakdown of 17 major religious groups' views on the issue of abortion.  
Religious Groups' Official Positions on Same-Sex Marriage
In recent years, same-sex marriage has been a contentious subject within many religious groups in the U.S. Here is an overview of where 16 religious groups stand on this issue.  
Catholics’ Views of U.S. Bishops
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops will meet in Baltimore for their annual Fall General Assembly on Nov. 12-15. Seven-in-ten Catholics say they are very (24%) or somewhat satisfied (46%) with the leadership of the American bishops, according to a Pew Research Center Survey.
Mormonism in the 2012 Election
A new slideshow highlights recent Pew Research Center data on voters’ views of the Mormon religion and Mormons’ opinions on their place in society.
Catholics’ Views on U.S. Nuns
On Aug. 7, the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, an organization that represents U.S. nuns, will meet in St. Louis to discuss how to respond to recent criticism from the Vatican, the Associated Press reports.  A Pew Research Center survey finds that eight-in-ten American Catholics (83%) are satisfied with the leadership provided by Catholic nuns and sisters.
Catholics in Mexico and Cuba
Pope Benedict XVI will travel to Latin America March 23-28 for a much-anticipated visit to Mexico and Cuba. An infographic based on data from a 2011 demographic study by the Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion & Public Life explores information on Catholics in Latin America, with a particular focus on the Catholic population in Mexico and Cuba. 
Infographic: Mormons in America
A poster-style infographic highlights U.S. Mormons' political views and other key findings from the Pew Forum's new report, Mormons in America.
Global Survey of Evangelical Protestant Leaders
Evangelical Protestant leaders who live in the Global South generally are optimistic about the prospects for evangelicalism in their countries: 71% expect that five years from now the state of evangelicalism in their countries will be better than it is today. But those who live in the Global North expect that the state of evangelicalism in their countries will either stay about the same (21%) or worsen (33%) over the next five years.
National Day of Prayer
A federal appeals court recently overturned a lower court ruling that had declared the National Day of Prayer to be unconstitutional. The day of prayer, established by Congress in 1952, occurs annually on the first Thursday in May, which this year falls on May 5.
Hispanic Protestants Closely Divided Heading Into 2010 Elections; Hispanic Catholics Favor Democrats
A new survey by the Pew Hispanic Center, a project of the Pew Research Center, shows that Hispanic registered voters currently support Democratic candidates by a three-to-one margin in the upcoming midterm elections (65% vs. 22%). The survey data show, however, that there is a sharp divide between Hispanics who identify their religion as Catholic and those who identify as Protestant.
Global Restrictions on Religion
More than half a century ago, the United Nations affirmed the principle of religious freedom in the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, defining it as "the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion."
The Future of Evangelicals: A Conversation with Pastor Rick Warren
The evangelical Christian movement historically has been defined by its members' distinctive doctrinal standards and practices. Yet in recent years many Americans have come to understand evangelicals more by their political, rather than religious, identity. 
The "Zeal of the Convert": Is It the Real Deal?
A recent Pew Forum analysis finds that people who have switched faiths (or joined a faith after being raised unaffiliated with a religion) are indeed slightly more religious than those who have remained in their childhood faith.
Muslims Widely Seen As Facing Discrimination
Eight years after the terrorist attacks of 9/11, Americans see Muslims as facing more discrimination inside the U.S. than other major religious groups. Nearly six-in-ten adults (58%) say that Muslims are subject to a lot of discrimination, far more than say the same about Jews, evangelical Christians, atheists or Mormons.
Public Opinion on Gay Marriage: Opponents Consistently Outnumber Supporters
Based on an April 2009 poll, this report includes a discussion of public opinion on gay marriage, same-sex unions and adoption by same-sex couples.
About One-in-Six Americans Are Baptist
The U.S. Religious Landscape Survey, conducted by the Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion & Public Life, finds that Baptists represent the largest Protestant denominational family in the U.S., making up about one-sixth (17.2%) of the total U.S. adult population.
Most Latino Evangelicals Pray Every Day
The Pew Forum's U.S. Religious Landscape Survey finds that Hispanic evangelicals, like other evangelicals, are more likely to pray every day than the population overall. Hispanic evangelicals are also more likely to pray daily than Hispanics who belong to other major religious groups.
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