A survey of American religious and political ideology released by Pew Research a few weeks ago was widely reported by corporate media as indicating that the rapid decline in Christianity observed over the last few decades appears to have plateaued last year. What was not reported on at all by any large news outlet was what the survey revealed about the stark divide between pro-social moral values and American Christianity.
The survey indicated that American Christians in general – not just Christian Nationalists – have become politically and morally radicalized.
The survey found that the more religious an American is, the more likely they are to identify with the Republican Party of Donald Trump. This finding confirms the results of exit polls from the 2024 presidential election. In the survey, 61% of highly religious Americans support the Republican Party of Donald Trump. In contrast, only 27% of Americans who are not very religious support Donald Trump and the GOP.
Atheists are the least likely group in America to support Trump Republicans. Only 15% of atheists do so. The majority of Christians, according to the survey, support Republicans and Donald Trump.
Donald Trump represents a particularly Christian issue for America, rather than a generally religious phenomenon. Only 31% of Jews, 29% of Hindus, and 42% of Muslims support Donald Trump’s Republican Party. However, the majority of Christians do.
Many people have wondered why liberal Christians aren’t speaking out more against Donald Trump. The answer appears to be that there simply aren’t very many liberal Christians in America. Pew Research found that 67% of atheists identify as liberal, while only 14% of Christians do.
Acceptance of other people across social differences is a moral value that’s strongest amongst atheists. Only 27% of highly religious Americans in the survey believe that immigrants make America better. In contrast, twice as many Americans with a low level of religious identity believe that immigrants strengthen America. Furthermore, a significant 89% of atheists say that America’s openness to people from around the world is essential to the national identity of the United States, a much higher level of acceptance of strangers than is found in any religious group in the USA.
When it comes to compassion, the survey reveals a similar gulf. Two-thirds of Christians believe that the government should not do more to help people in need. Conversely, two-thirds of atheists believe that the government should do more to help those in need.
In the United States of America, it seems that Christianity acts a toxic force against the the common good.