… Some of the most enthusiastic endorsements of the new immigration bill have come from traditional evangelicals, who insist that reform “respects the God-given dignity of every person.” … Evangelicals’ growing support for immigration reform suggests an important shift in how conservative Protestants — who policed the boundaries of our [...] Read more »
After Boston, Little Change in Views of Islam and Violence
The public’s views of whether Islam is more likely than other religions to encourage violence have changed little in the aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombings. Currently, 42% say Islam is more likely than other religions to encourage violence among its believers, while 46% say Islam does not encourage violence [...] Read more »
The World’s Muslims: Religion, Politics and Society
A new Pew Research Center survey of Muslims around the globe finds that most adherents of the world’s second-largest religion are deeply committed to their faith and want its teachings to shape not only their personal lives but also their societies and politics. In all but a handful of the [...] Read more »
Will the Boston bombing change American attitudes about Muslims and immigration reform?
The revelation that the two leading suspects in Boston bombing were Chechen Muslim immigrants to the U.S.—one a U.S. citizen since 2011 and one a lawful permanent legal resident—spurred a round of discussion about the link between the terrorist bombings in Boston and the recently introduced immigration reform bill, sparking [...] Read more »
Americans who distrust Muslims are likelier to back the war on terror
… Americans may not know enough to stereotype Chechens, but many know enough to stereotype Muslims …. In two different surveys conducted in 2006 and 2007, Kimberly Gross and I asked respondents to rate whites, blacks, Latinos, Asians and “Muslims” or “Muslim-Americans” on a series of seven-point scales. … Put in [...] Read more »
Hispanic Voters: Rethinking the Faith & Family Paradigm
Republicans have become fond of saying in various forms: Hispanic voters should be with us because of our shared social values, or, we are the party of faith and family which are important to Hispanic voters. In our Hispanic voter focus groups, the value of family was center stage. It [...] Read more »
Mawwiage
… Over the last two decades America has been fencing with the issue of how we as a society should interact with our gay and lesbian fellow citizens. Well, we’ve actually been fencing with it for a heck of a lot longer than that, but there is a good chunk [...] Read more »
American Catholics approve of new pope
American Catholics are very enthusiastic about the choice of Pope Francis to head the Roman Catholic Church, according to a new national survey. But a CNN/ORC International survey also indicates that you shouldn’t expect them to pay any more attention to the new pope’s teachings on issues like birth control [...] Read more »
Catholic schism
With the resignation of Pope Benedict and election of a new pope, amidst what seems an unending turmoil over sex abuse by priests, pollsters have understandably thought this a good moment to inquire about American Catholics’ attitudes on religious matters. The results describe a major disconnection between the Roman Catholic [...] Read more »
‘Strong’ Catholic Identity at a Four-Decade Low in U.S.
The percentage of U.S. Catholics who consider themselves “strong” members of the Roman Catholic Church has never been lower than it was in 2012, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of new data from the General Social Survey. … The decline among U.S. Catholics is even starker when they [...] Read more »