I have heard speculation recently that the economic downturn is increasing the interest of the American population in religion (in a way parallel to the increase observed after 9/11). A new study released this week by Gallup (March 23, 2009) shows that church attendance and the importance of religion in our daily lives has not changed over the past year, despite the speculation that the economic situation would generate a return to God.
The Gallup research, based on over 425,000 interviews shows that:
- Sixty-five percent of the population say that religion is important in their daily lives (64% in February 2008).
- Forty-two percent say they attend church, synagogue or mosque weekly or almost weekly (41% in February 2008).
- The percentage of Democrats, Republicans and independents who say they attend church, synagogue or mosque weekly or almost weekly has also remained constant over the past year.
You can view the complete report with charts at
http://www.gallup.com/tag/Religion.aspx.