Belief in Creationism Falling

Religion and Secularism
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A New Study Shows Americans May Not Be As Confident in Creationism, but There’s Still Reason to Worry
Over the summer, when Gallup released its biennial Creation vs. Evolution survey, we learned that 42% of Americans believed in Creationism (God created humans in our present form), 31% of Americans believed in God-guided evolution, and 19% of Americans were actually right:
Read the article at

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Thanks for the link Lois. Interesting numbers. If there is one positive trend its that the percentage who believe in evolution shows a very definite positive trend over the past 15 years. Also if you combine the other two groups (creationists and “god guided evolution”) that line would have a consistent downward trend over the last six years (although this is not as significant in time or degree).

The other survey questions are less encouraging but it stands to reason that if the current trend continues over time there will be far fewer people who believe that Adam and Ever were real people or that creationism deserves to be taught in school.

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Thanks for the link Lois. Interesting numbers. If there is one positive trend its that the percentage who believe in evolution shows a very definite positive trend over the past 15 years. Also if you combine the other two groups (creationists and "god guided evolution") that line would have a consistent downward trend over the last six years (although this is not as significant in time or degree). The other survey questions are less encouraging but it stands to reason that if the current trend continues over time there will be far fewer people who believe that Adam and Ever were real people or that creationism deserves to be taught in school.
Hope springs eternal! Lois
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I don’t know. That glass looks half empty to me.
I mean, 40% plus of the population have consistently believed something like the Bible story as the literal true story of creation… and still do???
That seems rather insane.

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I don't know. That glass looks half empty to me. I mean, 40% plus of the population have consistently believed something like the Bible story as the literal true story of creation... and still do!!?? That seems rather insane.
The idea that as much as 70% of Americans don't actually take the time to really think about it, would not surprise me at all.
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I don't know. That glass looks half empty to me. I mean, 40% plus of the population have consistently believed something like the Bible story as the literal true story of creation... and still do!!?? That seems rather insane.
The idea that as much as 70% of Americans don't actually take the time to really think about it, would not surprise me at all. Nor me. Most people don't think about their beliefs. Lois
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I think that there are also many, intelligent, church going people, (who are otherwise capable of critical thinking) who identify with a religion, primarily for, very powerful, social reasons. But in doing so, they must compartmentalize, and resolve any cognitive dissonance by buying into the dogma, at least superficially, while avoiding anything approaching a real critical analysis of their beliefs.

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I think that there are also many, intelligent, church going people, (who are otherwise capable of critical thinking) who identify with a religion, primarily for, very powerful, social reasons. But in doing so, they must compartmentalize, and resolve any cognitive dissonance by buying into the dogma, at least superficially, while avoiding anything approaching a real critical analysis of their beliefs.
What percentage of church going people would you define this way? Just as a guess of course, there is not much data on the issue that I'm aware of.
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I think that there are also many, intelligent, church going people, (who are otherwise capable of critical thinking) who identify with a religion, primarily for, very powerful, social reasons. But in doing so, they must compartmentalize, and resolve any cognitive dissonance by buying into the dogma, at least superficially, while avoiding anything approaching a real critical analysis of their beliefs.
What percentage of church going people would you define this way? Just as a guess of course, there is not much data on the issue that I'm aware of. I don't have a clue about the percentage. Honestly I was thinking of an acquaintance who is a very bright man, does not seem to have any in depth religious motivation, but is a professional and a family man. I suspect that a solid façade of having a well accepted religion, helps him in some ways, professionally, and I suspect that his family's identification with the religion is core to their functioning. I suspect that this is not uncommon.
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I think that there are also many, intelligent, church going people, (who are otherwise capable of critical thinking) who identify with a religion, primarily for, very powerful, social reasons. But in doing so, they must compartmentalize, and resolve any cognitive dissonance by buying into the dogma, at least superficially, while avoiding anything approaching a real critical analysis of their beliefs.
What percentage of church going people would you define this way? Just as a guess of course, there is not much data on the issue that I'm aware of. I don't have a clue about the percentage. Honestly I was thinking of an acquaintance who is a very bright man, does not seem to have any in depth religious motivation, but is a professional and a family man. I suspect that a solid façade of having a well accepted religion, helps him in some ways, professionally, and I suspect that his family's identification with the religion is core to their functioning. I suspect that this is not uncommon. I think that's true. Most people don't want to make waves in the family. They just put up and shut up. Lois