{"id":70732,"date":"2021-10-28T09:47:09","date_gmt":"2021-10-28T14:47:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/2021\/10\/28\/in-u-s-far-more-support-than-oppose-separation-of-church-and-state\/"},"modified":"2024-07-12T14:58:33","modified_gmt":"2024-07-12T18:58:33","slug":"in-u-s-far-more-support-than-oppose-separation-of-church-and-state","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/in-u-s-far-more-support-than-oppose-separation-of-church-and-state\/","title":{"rendered":"In U.S., Far More Support Than Oppose Separation of Church and State"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-640-wide is-resized\"><img data-dominant-color=\"a8aaad\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" height=\"360\" width=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png?w=640\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-181038 not-transparent\" style=\"--dominant-color: #a8aaad; width:640px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png 1280w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png?resize=300,169 300w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png?resize=768,432 768w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png?resize=1024,576 1024w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png?resize=720,405 720w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png?resize=200,113 200w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png?resize=260,146 260w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png?resize=310,174 310w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png?resize=420,236 420w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png?resize=640,360 640w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png?resize=740,416 740w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png?resize=160,90 160w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png?resize=320,180 320w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png?resize=540,304 540w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png?resize=564,317 564w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png?resize=1128,634 1128w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png?resize=690,388 690w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png?resize=268,151 268w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png?resize=536,302 536w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png?resize=194,110 194w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png?resize=148,84 148w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2024\/07\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured.png?resize=296,168 296w\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Individuals set up a 15-foot-tall cross for an outdoor Good Friday service on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol on April 10, 2020. (Drew Angerer\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<div style=\"border-width:1px;padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20);padding-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30);padding-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30);padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20);--block-gap: inherit\" class=\"wp-block-prc-block-collapsible has-background has-ui-beige-very-light-background-color has-border-color has-ui-beige-dark-border-color\" id=\"how-we-did-this\" data-wp-interactive=\"{&quot;namespace&quot;:&quot;prc-block\\\/collapsible&quot;}\" data-wp-context=\"{&quot;collapsibleId&quot;:&quot;how-we-did-this&quot;,&quot;isOpen&quot;:false}\" data-wp-class--is-open=\"context.isOpen\" data-wp-init--scroll-into-view=\"callbacks.onInitScrollIntoView\"><div class=\"wp-block-prc-block-collapsible__title\" data-wp-on--click=\"actions.onClick\"><div>How we did this<\/div><button class=\"wp-block-prc-block-collapsible__icon\"><span data-wp-bind--hidden=\"context.isOpen\"><i class=\"icon icon-library__light icon__circle-plus\"><svg style=\"width: 1em; height: 1em;\"><use xlink:href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/plugins\/prc-icon-library\/build\/icons\/sprites\/light.svg#circle-plus\"><\/use><\/svg><\/i><\/span><span data-wp-bind--hidden=\"!context.isOpen\" hidden><i class=\"icon icon-library__light icon__circle-minus\"><svg style=\"width: 1em; height: 1em;\"><use xlink:href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/plugins\/prc-icon-library\/build\/icons\/sprites\/light.svg#circle-minus\"><\/use><\/svg><\/i><\/span><\/button><\/div><div class=\"wp-block-prc-block-collapsible__content\">\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Pew Research Center conducted this survey to help gauge Americans\u2019 views on the relationship between church and state. For this report, we surveyed 12,055 U.S. adults from March 1 to 7, 2021. All respondents to the survey are part of Pew Research Center\u2019s American Trends Panel (ATP), an online survey panel that is recruited through national random sampling of residential addresses. This way nearly all U.S. adults have a chance of selection. The survey is weighted to be representative of the U.S. adult population by gender, race, ethnicity, partisan affiliation, education, religious affiliation and other categories. For more, see the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/methods\/u-s-survey-research\/american-trends-panel\/\">ATP\u2019s methodology<\/a>&nbsp;and the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/methodology-44\">methodology<\/a>&nbsp;for this report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The questions used in this report can be found&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state_.topline.pdf\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright is-resized is-style-default\"><a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/in-u-s-far-more-support-than-oppose-separation-of-church-and-state\/pf_10-28-21_church-state-00-1-png\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-81897\"><img data-dominant-color=\"dfe7ea\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"620\" height=\"1500\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 310px) 100vw, 310px\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-1.png\" alt=\"Most Americans oppose declaring Christianity (or any other religion) as official faith of U.S.\" class=\"wp-image-81897 not-transparent\" style=\"--dominant-color: #dfe7ea; width:310px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-1.png 620w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-1.png?resize=124,300 124w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-1.png?resize=423,1024 423w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-1.png?resize=167,405 167w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-1.png?resize=200,484 200w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-1.png?resize=260,629 260w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-1.png?resize=310,750 310w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-1.png?resize=420,1016 420w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-1.png?resize=132,320 132w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-1.png?resize=265,640 265w\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The First Amendment to the United States Constitution states that the country shall have no official religion. At the same time, Christians continue to make up <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/01\/14\/measuring-religion-in-pew-research-centers-american-trends-panel\/\">a large majority<\/a> of U.S. adults \u2013 despite some <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2019\/10\/17\/in-u-s-decline-of-christianity-continues-at-rapid-pace\/\">rapid decline<\/a> in recent years \u2013 and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/posteverything\/wp\/2017\/07\/04\/what-politicians-mean-when-they-say-america-was-founded-as-a-christian-nation\/\">historians<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.newyorker.com\/news\/on-religion\/a-pennsylvania-lawmaker-and-the-resurgence-of-christian-nationalism\">politicians<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/america-christian-nation-religious-right\/\">religious leaders<\/a> continue to debate the role of religion in the founders\u2019 vision and of Christianity in the nation\u2019s identity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Some Americans clearly long for a more avowedly religious and explicitly Christian country, according to a March 2021 Pew Research Center survey. For instance, three-in-ten say public school teachers should be allowed to lead students in Christian prayers, a practice that the Supreme Court has ruled unconstitutional. Roughly one-in-five say that the federal government should stop enforcing the separation of church and state (19%) and that the U.S. Constitution was inspired by God (18%). And 15% go as far as to say the federal government should declare the U.S. a Christian nation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On the other hand, however, the clear majority of Americans do not accept these views. For example, two-thirds of U.S. adults (67%) say the Constitution was written by humans and reflects their vision, not necessarily God\u2019s vision. And a similar share (69%) says the government should never declare any official religion. (Respondents were offered the opportunity to reply \u201cneither\/no opinion\u201d in response to each question, and substantial shares chose this option or declined to answer in response to all of these questions, suggesting some ambivalence among a segment of the population.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Perhaps not surprisingly, the survey finds that Christians are much more likely than Jewish or religiously unaffiliated Americans to express support for the integration of church and state, with White evangelical Protestants foremost among Christian subgroups in this area. In addition, Christians who are highly religious are especially likely to say, for example, that the Constitution was inspired by God. But even among White evangelical Protestants and highly religious Christians, fewer than half say the U.S. should abandon its adherence to the separation of church and state (34% and 31%, respectively) or declare the country a Christian nation (35% and 29%).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter is-style-default\"><a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/in-u-s-far-more-support-than-oppose-separation-of-church-and-state\/pf_10-28-21_church-state-00-2-png\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-81902\"><img data-dominant-color=\"c9dbe5\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" style=\"--dominant-color: #c9dbe5;\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1194\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-2.png\" alt=\"Most highly religious Christians support allowing cities to put religious symbols on public property, but far fewer favor declaring U.S. a Christian nation\" class=\"wp-image-81902 not-transparent\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-2.png 1280w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-2.png?resize=300,280 300w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-2.png?resize=768,716 768w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-2.png?resize=1024,955 1024w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-2.png?resize=434,405 434w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-2.png?resize=200,187 200w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-2.png?resize=260,243 260w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-2.png?resize=310,289 310w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-2.png?resize=420,392 420w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-2.png?resize=640,597 640w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-2.png?resize=740,690 740w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-2.png?resize=160,149 160w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-2.png?resize=320,299 320w\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Politics also is a major factor. Republicans and those who lean toward the Republican Party are far more likely than Democrats and Democratic leaners to want to secure an official place for Christianity in the national identity. However, for the most part, Republicans do not directly voice a preference for the integration of church and state. For instance, 58% of Republicans and Republican leaners say the federal government should never declare any religion as the official religion of the United States, while a quarter of Republicans (26%) say that the government should declare the U.S. a Christian nation. By comparison, among Democrats and those who lean toward the Democratic Party, 80% say the government should never declare any official religion, and just 6% want the government to declare the U.S. a Christian nation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter is-style-default\"><a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/in-u-s-far-more-support-than-oppose-separation-of-church-and-state\/pf_10-28-21_church-state-00-3-png\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-81905\"><img data-dominant-color=\"e3dcdd\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" style=\"--dominant-color: #e3dcdd;\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1060\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-3.png\" alt=\"More Republicans than Democrats say they want prominent place for Christianity in U.S. national identity\" class=\"wp-image-81905 not-transparent\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-3.png 1280w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-3.png?resize=300,248 300w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-3.png?resize=768,636 768w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-3.png?resize=1024,848 1024w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-3.png?resize=489,405 489w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-3.png?resize=200,166 200w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-3.png?resize=260,215 260w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-3.png?resize=310,257 310w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-3.png?resize=420,348 420w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-3.png?resize=640,530 640w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-3.png?resize=740,613 740w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-3.png?resize=160,133 160w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-3.png?resize=320,265 320w\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While the above-average level of support for an overtly Christian government among Republicans and White evangelical Protestants may come as no surprise to close observers of American politics, some of the other patterns in the survey are perhaps more unexpected. For example, many Black and Hispanic Americans \u2013 groups that are heavily Democratic \u2013 are highly religious Christians, and on several of the questions in the survey, they are just as likely as White Americans, if not more likely, to say they see a special link between Christianity and America.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Nearly four-in-ten Black Americans (38%) say public school teachers should be allowed to lead students in Christian prayers, somewhat higher than the 31% of White Americans who say this. And about one-in-five U.S. Hispanics (22%) say the federal government should stop enforcing the separation of church and state, roughly on par with the 19% of White Americans who say this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter is-style-default\"><a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/in-u-s-far-more-support-than-oppose-separation-of-church-and-state\/pf_10-28-21_church-state-00-4-png\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-81910\"><img data-dominant-color=\"e0d8d2\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" style=\"--dominant-color: #e0d8d2;\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1278\" height=\"1250\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-4.png\" alt=\"Majorities of White, Black and Hispanic Americans oppose declaring U.S. a Christian nation\" class=\"wp-image-81910 not-transparent\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-4.png 1278w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-4.png?resize=300,293 300w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-4.png?resize=768,751 768w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-4.png?resize=1024,1002 1024w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-4.png?resize=414,405 414w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-4.png?resize=200,196 200w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-4.png?resize=260,254 260w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-4.png?resize=310,303 310w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-4.png?resize=420,411 420w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-4.png?resize=640,626 640w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-4.png?resize=740,724 740w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-4.png?resize=160,156 160w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-4.png?resize=320,313 320w\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">These are among the key findings of a Pew Research Center survey conducted March 1-7, 2021, among 12,055 U.S. adults on the Center\u2019s online, nationally representative American Trends Panel (ATP). These questions about the relationship between church and state can be combined into a scale that sorts respondents into one of four categories \u2013 \u201cChurch-state integrationists\u201d (who say they would favor the intermingling of religion with government and public life); \u201cchurch-state separationists\u201d (who favor a wall of separation between religion and state); those who express \u201cmixed\u201d views about these matters; and those who largely express no opinion. When the questions are scaled together this way, they show there is far more support for church-state separation than for church-state integration in the U.S. public at large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-style-callout has-beige-background-color has-ui-beige-very-light-background-color has-background is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"how-categories-on-church-state-separation-scale-were-defined\">How categories on church-state separation scale were defined<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">First, all respondents who said \u201cneither\/no opinion\u201d or refused to answer in response to four or more of the six items are placed in the \u201cno opinion\u201d category.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Next, all remaining respondents are sorted into one of three categories \u2013 \u201cchurch-state integrationists,\u201d \u201cchurch-state separationists,\u201d and \u201cmixed.\u201d Those who offered four or more church-state integrationist answers (e.g., \u201cCities and towns in the U.S. should be allowed to place religious symbols on public property\u201d or \u201cThe federal government should stop enforcing separation of church and state\u201d) are placed in the \u201cchurch-state integrationists\u201d category. Those who offered three church-state integrationist answers also are placed in this category if they offered only one or zero church-state separationist answers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Those who offered four or more church-state separationist answers (e.g., \u201cCities and towns in the U.S. should keep religious symbols off public property\u201d or \u201cThe federal government should enforce separation of church and state\u201d) are placed in the \u201cchurch-state separationist\u201d category. Those who offered three church-state separationist answers also are placed in this category if they offered only one or zero church-state integrationist answers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Respondents who offered three of one kind of answer and at least two of the other kind are placed in the \u201cmixed\u201d category, as are those who offered two of one kind of answer and two or one of the other kind of answer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Finally, because it is so large, the \u201cchurch-state separationist\u201d category is sometimes divided into two groups in this report. \u201cStrong\u201d church-state separationists are those who give five or six church-state separationist responses and zero church-state integrationist responses. All other respondents in the larger \u201cchurch-state separationist\u201d category are classified as \u201cmoderate\u201d separationists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">See <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/methodology-44\">Methodology<\/a> for additional details.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright is-resized is-style-default\"><a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/in-u-s-far-more-support-than-oppose-separation-of-church-and-state\/pf_10-28-21_church-state-00-5-png\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-81913\"><img data-dominant-color=\"e4e9eb\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"840\" height=\"560\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 420px) 100vw, 420px\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-5.png\" alt=\"Most Americans express support for separation of church and state\" class=\"wp-image-81913 not-transparent\" style=\"--dominant-color: #e4e9eb; width:420px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-5.png 840w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-5.png?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-5.png?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-5.png?resize=608,405 608w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-5.png?resize=200,133 200w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-5.png?resize=260,173 260w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-5.png?resize=310,207 310w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-5.png?resize=420,280 420w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-5.png?resize=640,427 640w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-5.png?resize=740,493 740w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-5.png?resize=160,107 160w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-5.png?resize=320,213 320w\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Overall, more than half of U.S. adults (55%) express clear support for the principle of separation of church and state when measured this way. This includes 28% who express a <em>strong<\/em> church-state separationist perspective (they prefer the church-state separationist view in five or six of the scale\u2019s questions and the church-state integrationist position in none) and an additional 27% who express more moderate support for the church-state separationist perspective. By contrast, roughly one-in-seven U.S. adults (14%) express support for a \u201cchurch-state integrationist\u201d perspective as measured by the survey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Slightly fewer than one-in-five U.S. adults (18%) have mixed views \u2013 expressing support for church-state separation on some of the survey\u2019s questions and support for increased church-state <em>integration<\/em> on about as many. And one-in-eight offer no opinion on a majority of these questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The survey shows, furthermore, that even in the groups that tend to express the most support for the intermingling of church and state, the \u201cchurch-state integrationist\u201d perspective is the exception, not the norm. Among White evangelical Protestants, for example, fewer than half (36%) express consistent support for a church-state integrationist perspective, although this is larger than the share of White evangelicals who favor the separation of church and state (26%). An additional 28% have mixed views.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Hispanic Protestants (26%) are among the other groups whose sympathy for church-state integration is higher than average. By contrast, a desire for church-state integration is almost nonexistent among U.S. Jews (1%) and the religiously unaffiliated (2%), who consist of those describing their religious identity as atheist, agnostic or \u201cnothing in particular.\u201d Among self-identified atheists and agnostics, fully 96% fall into the church-state separationist category.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Most Democrats and those who lean toward the Democratic Party (72%) prefer church-state separation, compared with 38% of Republicans \u2013 although even Republicans are more likely to express this view than to consistently favor the integration of church and state (25%).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter is-style-default\"><a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/in-u-s-far-more-support-than-oppose-separation-of-church-and-state\/pf_10-28-21_church-state-00-6-png\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-81918\"><img data-dominant-color=\"bed9e3\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" style=\"--dominant-color: #bed9e3;\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1228\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-6.png\" alt=\"Support for church-state integrationist perspective peaks at 36% among White evangelical Protestants\" class=\"wp-image-81918 not-transparent\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-6.png 1280w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-6.png?resize=300,288 300w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-6.png?resize=768,737 768w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-6.png?resize=1024,982 1024w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-6.png?resize=422,405 422w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-6.png?resize=200,192 200w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-6.png?resize=260,249 260w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-6.png?resize=310,297 310w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-6.png?resize=420,403 420w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-6.png?resize=640,614 640w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-6.png?resize=740,710 740w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-6.png?resize=160,154 160w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-6.png?resize=320,307 320w\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The survey finds support for church-state integration is slightly higher among White respondents (16%) than among Hispanic Americans (11%). But at the same time, White people also are most likely to voice support for church-state <em>separation<\/em>, whereas Hispanic and Black Americans are more inclined than White adults to express no opinion on these questions. The survey finds little difference on these questions between U.S.-born adults and those born outside the U.S.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Support for separation of church and state is slightly higher among men than women; women are more likely than men to be in the \u201cno opinion\u201d category. College graduates are far more supportive of church-state separation than are those with lower levels of education. Similarly, young adults (ages 18 to 29) are more likely than their elders to consistently favor the separation of church and state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Support for separation of church and state is lower in the South than in other parts of the country. Still, even in the South, fewer than one-in-five people consistently express a desire for the integration of church and state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter is-style-default\"><a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/in-u-s-far-more-support-than-oppose-separation-of-church-and-state\/pf_10-28-21_church-state-00-7-png\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-81924\"><img data-dominant-color=\"c1dbe5\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" style=\"--dominant-color: #c1dbe5;\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1340\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-7.png\" alt=\"Across demographic groups, one-in-five or fewer want church-state integration\" class=\"wp-image-81924 not-transparent\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-7.png 1280w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-7.png?resize=287,300 287w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-7.png?resize=768,804 768w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-7.png?resize=978,1024 978w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-7.png?resize=387,405 387w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-7.png?resize=200,209 200w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-7.png?resize=260,272 260w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-7.png?resize=310,325 310w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-7.png?resize=420,440 420w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-7.png?resize=640,670 640w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-7.png?resize=740,775 740w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-7.png?resize=160,168 160w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-7.png?resize=320,335 320w\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"a-closer-look-at-the-church-state-scale\">A closer look at the church-state scale<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What, specifically, do people in each category desire in terms of the relationship between church and state? On each of the six scale items, majorities of those in the church-state integrationist category express support for the intermingling of religion and government, ranging from 60% who say the federal government should advocate Christian religious values to 88% who favor allowing towns to exhibit religious displays and public school teachers to lead Christian prayers. By contrast, most church-state separationists take the opposite position on all six questions, ranging from 58% who say religious displays should be kept off public property to 95% who say the federal government should never declare any official religion. These patterns are unsurprising, given the criteria for the categories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But those in the \u201cmixed\u201d category are perhaps more interesting. Most people in this group say they think religious displays should be permitted on public property (71%) and are comfortable with public school teachers leading Christian prayers (60%). But far fewer think the government should stop enforcing separation of church and state (39%) or that the U.S. Constitution was divinely inspired (29%). And clear majorities say the federal government should never declare an official religion (62%) and should advocate moral values shared by many faiths (61%) rather than Christian values.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter is-style-default\"><a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/in-u-s-far-more-support-than-oppose-separation-of-church-and-state\/pf_10-28-21_church-state-00-8-png\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-81932\"><img data-dominant-color=\"eceeeb\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" style=\"--dominant-color: #eceeeb;\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1342\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-8.png\" alt=\"Those with \u2018mixed\u2019 church-state views mostly favor prayer in schools, religious displays on public property but oppose declaring U.S. a \u2018Christian nation\u2019\" class=\"wp-image-81932 not-transparent\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-8.png 1280w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-8.png?resize=286,300 286w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-8.png?resize=768,805 768w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-8.png?resize=977,1024 977w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-8.png?resize=386,405 386w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-8.png?resize=200,210 200w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-8.png?resize=260,273 260w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-8.png?resize=310,325 310w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-8.png?resize=420,440 420w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-8.png?resize=640,671 640w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-8.png?resize=740,776 740w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-8.png?resize=160,168 160w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-8.png?resize=320,336 320w\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"church-state-views-or-white-christian-nationalism\">Church-state views, or White Christian nationalism?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The questions in the new survey gauging American attitudes on church-state issues are similar (but not identical) to questions used by other scholars to measure what they call \u201cChristian nationalism.\u201d[1. Indeed, for this study, Pew Research Center designed a series of questions modeled on items from the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.baylor.edu\/baylorreligionsurvey\/\">Baylor Religion Surveys<\/a> and identified by Andrew L. Whitehead and Samuel L. Perry, authors of \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/oxford.universitypressscholarship.com\/view\/10.1093\/oso\/9780190057886.001.0001\/oso-9780190057886\">Taking America Back for God: Christian Nationalism in the United States<\/a>,\u201d as good indicators of Christian nationalism. The original questions in the Baylor Religion Surveys are agree\/disagree questions, in which respondents are presented with a series of statements (e.g., \u201cThe federal government should advocate Christian values\u201d and \u201cThe federal government should allow the display of religious symbols in public spaces\u201d) and then asked whether they agree or disagree with each. After exploratory testing, the Center\u2019s researchers modified the Baylor questions in a variety of ways. Perhaps most importantly, the Center decided not to ask agree\/disagree questions, which leave the alternative position unstated and, in some cases, ambiguous. Instead, the Center\u2019s questions present respondents with two contrasting statements, asking which comes closest to the respondent\u2019s own view. The Pew Research Center survey also gave respondents the option of answering with \u201cneither\/no opinion,\u201d just as the Baylor Religion Surveys offered respondents the chance to say \u201cundecided.\u201d In addition to switching from an agree\/disagree to a forced-choice\/balanced alternative format, the Center also modified the wording of many of the questions, and took some of the focus off of \u201cthe federal government.\u201d Five of the six original Baylor items refer explicitly to \u201cthe federal government,\u201d but in the Center\u2019s questionnaire, just three of the six items refer explicitly to \u201cthe federal government.\u201d]&nbsp;Research on Christian nationalism shows that it is correlated with attitudes about race, immigration, gender roles, the place of the U.S. in the world, and much more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The new survey also finds a clear connection between views on church-state issues and attitudes on many other social and political topics, including matters of race and immigration. Most people who support separation of church and state are Democrats or lean toward the Democratic Party, think Donald Trump was a \u201cpoor\u201d or \u201cterrible\u201d president, say immigrants strengthen American society, and reject the notion that society is better off if people prioritize getting married and having children. More than half of people with a church-state separationist perspective say it is \u201ca lot\u201d more difficult to be a Black person than a White person in the U.S., and that while the U.S. is one of the greatest countries in the world, there are other countries that are also great.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">By comparison, people who favor church-state integration are mostly Republicans and Republican leaners, think Trump was a \u201cgood\u201d or \u201cgreat\u201d president, say the growing numbers of immigrants in the U.S. threaten traditional American values, and feel that society would be better off if more people prioritized getting married and having children. Church-state integrationists are far more inclined than church-state separationists to say that it is \u201cno more difficult\u201d to be Black than White in American society (42% vs. 13%), and that the U.S. \u201cstands above\u201d all other countries (40% vs. 15%).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">These are just a few examples of the connection between church-state views and attitudes about social and political issues. Similar correlations exist between church-state views and responses to many other questions about race, immigration, gender, and the place of the U.S. in the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter is-style-default\"><a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/in-u-s-far-more-support-than-oppose-separation-of-church-and-state\/pf_10-28-21_church-state-00-9-png\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-81937\"><img data-dominant-color=\"f1f1f1\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" style=\"--dominant-color: #f1f1f1;\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1548\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-9.png\" alt=\"Close connection between church-state attitudes and other social, political views\" class=\"wp-image-81937 not-transparent\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-9.png 1280w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-9.png?resize=248,300 248w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-9.png?resize=768,929 768w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-9.png?resize=847,1024 847w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-9.png?resize=1270,1536 1270w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-9.png?resize=335,405 335w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-9.png?resize=200,242 200w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-9.png?resize=260,314 260w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-9.png?resize=310,375 310w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-9.png?resize=420,508 420w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-9.png?resize=640,774 640w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-9.png?resize=740,895 740w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-9.png?resize=160,194 160w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-9.png?resize=320,387 320w\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The data shows, furthermore, that these connections are <em>at least<\/em> as pronounced \u2013 if not more so \u2013 among White Americans as among the public as a whole. White adults with church-state integrationist views are much more likely than White church-state separationists to say Trump was a good or great president (by a margin of 59 percentage points), to identify with or lean toward the Republican Party (by 54 points), to say that immigrants threaten traditional American customs and values (47 points), and to say that society is better when people prioritize getting married and having children (42 points). They also are 35 points more likely to say that being Black is no more difficult than being White in the U.S. today, and 32 points more likely to say the U.S. has a unique place above all other countries in the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">These results are consistent with much of the existing research on Christian nationalism, which demonstrates that among White people, Christian nationalism is linked with support for the Republican Party, enthusiasm for Trump, hostility toward immigrants and denial that racism is pervasive or systemic in America. But the survey also shows that White church-state integrationists are far from alone in their attitudes on these matters. Indeed, <em>majorities<\/em> of White people with \u201cmixed\u201d church-state views, as well as of those with a \u201cmoderate\u201d church-state separationist perspective, also identify with or lean toward the Republican Party and view Trump as an average or better-than-average president. And majorities of White adults in all three categories (church-state integrationists, moderate church-state separationists, and holders of mixed views on church-state questions) reject the idea that being a Black person is a lot more difficult than being a White person in the U.S. today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In fact, strong church-state separationists are the <em>only<\/em> group of White respondents who are mostly Democrats, who mostly think Trump was a below average president, and among whom a majority say being a Black person in the U.S. today is a lot more difficult than being a White person. In other words, to the extent that church-state views are connected with other social and political attitudes among White respondents, those with the strongest church-state <em>separationist<\/em> viewpoint are in some ways more distinctive from other White people than are those with church-state integrationist views.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter is-resized is-style-default\"><a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/in-u-s-far-more-support-than-oppose-separation-of-church-and-state\/pf_10-28-21_church-state-00-10-png\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-81944\"><img data-dominant-color=\"f0f0f0\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1282\" height=\"1588\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-10.png\" alt=\"Among White adults, church-state integrationists much more likely to be Republican than strict separationists\" class=\"wp-image-81944 not-transparent\" style=\"--dominant-color: #f0f0f0; width:640px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-10.png 1282w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-10.png?resize=242,300 242w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-10.png?resize=768,951 768w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-10.png?resize=827,1024 827w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-10.png?resize=1240,1536 1240w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-10.png?resize=327,405 327w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-10.png?resize=200,248 200w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-10.png?resize=260,322 260w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-10.png?resize=310,384 310w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-10.png?resize=420,520 420w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-10.png?resize=640,793 640w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-10.png?resize=740,917 740w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-10.png?resize=160,198 160w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-10.png?resize=320,396 320w\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"a-closer-look-at-those-with-no-opinion-on-church-state-matters\">A closer look at those with \u2018no opinion\u2019 on church-state matters<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright is-resized is-style-default\"><a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/in-u-s-far-more-support-than-oppose-separation-of-church-and-state\/pf_10-28-21_church-state-00-11-png\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-81947\"><img data-dominant-color=\"f4f4f4\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"840\" height=\"1198\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 420px) 100vw, 420px\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-11.png\" alt=\"Profile of those with \u2018no opinion\u2019 on church-state scale\" class=\"wp-image-81947 not-transparent\" style=\"--dominant-color: #f4f4f4; width:420px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-11.png 840w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-11.png?resize=210,300 210w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-11.png?resize=768,1095 768w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-11.png?resize=718,1024 718w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-11.png?resize=284,405 284w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-11.png?resize=200,285 200w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-11.png?resize=260,371 260w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-11.png?resize=310,442 310w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-11.png?resize=420,599 420w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-11.png?resize=640,913 640w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-11.png?resize=740,1055 740w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-11.png?resize=160,228 160w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-11.png?resize=320,456 320w\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Roughly one-in-eight survey respondents (12% of all U.S. adults) are categorized as having \u201cno opinion\u201d on the church-state scale, because they say \u201cneither\/no opinion\u201d or refuse to answer four (39%), five (30%) or all six (31%) of the questions used to create the scale. This means the size of the \u201cno opinion\u201d group is close to the size of the \u201cchurch-state integrationist\u201d group (12% and 14%, respectively).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So, who are the respondents in the \u201cno opinion\u201d category? Are they really church-state integrationists but reluctant to express that point of view in response to these questions? Are they church-state separationists who are hesitant to share that opinion? Or are they people who are genuinely uncertain about, unfamiliar with or uninterested in church-state issues?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Of course, the survey cannot provide a direct answer because, by definition, these respondents did not express a point of view \u2013 one way or the other \u2013 on the church-state questions. However, those in the \u201cno opinion\u201d category are distinctive in certain ways. Perhaps most obviously, they are far less likely than the full sample of respondents to be college graduates (15% vs. 33%), and far more likely to have a high school education or less (56% vs. 36%). This is expected, since past research on patterns of survey response has revealed that people with lower levels of educational attainment are more inclined than those with higher levels of education to express no opinion on many kinds of survey questions. Indeed, in addition to the questions about church-state issues, the survey included 36 other questions that were asked of the full sample of respondents; those in the \u201cno opinion\u201d category decline to provide a substantive response to 3.9 of the 36 questions, on average, compared with 1.6 questions left with no substantive response by respondents in other categories, on average.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Compared with the full sample of respondents, those with \u201cno opinion\u201d on the church-state scale also are less likely to be White, non-Hispanic adults, and more likely to be Black or Hispanic. People in the \u201cno opinion\u201d category also are a bit more likely to be under age 65 than are the full sample of respondents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In terms of their political and religious profile, there is little evidence to suggest that the \u201cno opinion\u201d category harbors a disproportionate share of either \u201cchurch-state integrationists\u201d or \u201cchurch-state separationists.\u201d Compared with the full sample of respondents, those in the \u201cno opinion\u201d group are more likely than the full sample to identify as political independents or with a third party and to decline to lean toward either major party (15% vs. 5%), and also to describe themselves as ideological moderates (50% vs. 38%). The religious profile of those in the \u201cno opinion\u201d group closely resembles the religious profile of the full sample of respondents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"god-s-favor-for-the-u-s\">God\u2019s favor for the U.S.<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright is-resized is-style-default\"><a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/in-u-s-far-more-support-than-oppose-separation-of-church-and-state\/pf_10-28-21_church-state-00-12-png\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-81951\"><img data-dominant-color=\"efefef\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"840\" height=\"826\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 420px) 100vw, 420px\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-12.png\" alt=\"One-in-twenty Americans say God favors the U.S. over all other countries\" class=\"wp-image-81951 not-transparent\" style=\"--dominant-color: #efefef; width:420px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-12.png 840w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-12.png?resize=300,295 300w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-12.png?resize=768,755 768w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-12.png?resize=412,405 412w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-12.png?resize=200,197 200w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-12.png?resize=260,256 260w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-12.png?resize=310,305 310w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-12.png?resize=420,413 420w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-12.png?resize=640,629 640w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-12.png?resize=740,728 740w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-12.png?resize=75,75 75w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-12.png?resize=160,157 160w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state-00-12.png?resize=320,315 320w\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In addition to the six questions that make up the church-state issues scale, the survey included a question that asked Americans which of two statements comes closer to their own view: \u201cGod favors the United States over all other countries,\u201d or \u201cGod does not favor any one country over all the others.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Overall, seven-in-ten U.S. adults choose the latter option: God does not favor any one country. Just 5% of U.S. adults say they think God favors the U.S. over all other countries, while 25% say neither, express no opinion or decline to answer.[2. This question was not included in the scale of church-state views for two reasons. First, unlike the other items, it does not explicitly address matters of church-state separation\/integration. Second, it is not as highly correlated with the items in the scale as they are with each other. If this item were added to the scale, Cronbach\u2019s alpha for the scale would drop from 0.759 to 0.745.]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The accompanying <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/detailed-tables\">detailed tables<\/a> provide additional information about how social and demographic groups answered the questions about church-state issues.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Some Americans clearly long for a more avowedly religious and explicitly Christian country, a March survey finds. However, a clear majority of Americans do not accept these views. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":367,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_crdt_document":"","sub_headline":"But there are pockets of support for increased church-state integration, more Christianity in public life","sub_title":"","_prc_public_revisions":[],"_ppp_expiration_hours":0,"_ppp_enabled":false,"ai_generated_summary":"","bylines":[],"acknowledgements":[],"displayBylines":false,"relatedPosts":[],"reportMaterials":[{"key":"c61212d7-4da5-4721-b9f7-73ec2ee82911","type":"report","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.21.21_fullreport.pdf","attachmentId":81972},{"key":"e3ddca8f-9752-4fe0-be51-4717a45369ad","type":"topline","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state_.topline.pdf","attachmentId":81971}],"multiSectionReport":[{"key":"_migrate_0","postId":70768},{"key":"_migrate_1","postId":86531},{"key":"_migrate_2","postId":70754}],"package_parts__enabled":false,"package_parts":[],"_prc_fork_parent":0,"_prc_fork_status":"","_prc_active_fork":0,"datacite_doi":"","datacite_doi_citation":"","_prc_seo_qr_attachment_id":0,"spoken_article_player_enabled":true,"footnotes":""},"categories":[179,171],"tags":[],"bylines":[],"collection":[],"datasets":[1117],"level_of_effort":[],"primary_audience":[],"information_type":[],"_post_visibility":[],"formats":[458],"_fund_pool":[],"languages":[],"regions-countries":[499,507,506,516,504,514,501,513,502,509,510,505,512,500,508,503,511,496,515],"research-teams":[517],"class_list":["post-70732","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-christianity","category-religion-government-1","datasets-american-trends-panel-wave-84","formats-report","regions-countries-afghanistan","regions-countries-asia-pacific","regions-countries-china","regions-countries-europe-russia","regions-countries-germany","regions-countries-international","regions-countries-iran","regions-countries-latin-america","regions-countries-metro-level-data","regions-countries-mexico","regions-countries-middle-east-north-africa","regions-countries-multiple-regions-worldwide","regions-countries-north-america","regions-countries-north-korea","regions-countries-russia","regions-countries-state-level-data","regions-countries-sub-saharan-africa","regions-countries-syria","regions-countries-united-states","research-teams-religion"],"label":false,"post_parent":0,"word_count":3482,"canonical_url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/in-u-s-far-more-support-than-oppose-separation-of-church-and-state\/","art_direction":{"A1":{"id":81953,"rawUrl":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured-jpg.webp","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured-jpg.webp?w=564&h=317&crop=1","width":564,"height":317,"chartArt":false},"A2":{"id":81953,"rawUrl":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured-jpg.webp","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured-jpg.webp?w=268&h=151&crop=1","width":268,"height":151,"chartArt":false},"A3":{"id":81953,"rawUrl":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured-jpg.webp","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured-jpg.webp?w=194&h=110&crop=1","width":194,"height":110,"chartArt":false},"A4":{"id":81953,"rawUrl":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured-jpg.webp","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured-jpg.webp?w=268&h=151&crop=1","width":268,"height":151,"chartArt":false},"XL":{"id":81953,"rawUrl":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured-jpg.webp","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured-jpg.webp?w=720&h=405&crop=1","width":720,"height":405,"chartArt":false},"social":{"id":81953,"rawUrl":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured-jpg.webp","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_2021.10.27_christianNationalism_featured-jpg.webp?w=1200&h=628&crop=1","width":1200,"height":628,"chartArt":false}},"_embeds":[],"table_of_contents":[{"id":70732,"title":"In U.S., Far More Support Than Oppose Separation of Church and State","slug":"in-u-s-far-more-support-than-oppose-separation-of-church-and-state","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/in-u-s-far-more-support-than-oppose-separation-of-church-and-state\/","is_active":true},{"id":70768,"title":"Detailed tables","slug":"detailed-tables","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/detailed-tables\/","is_active":false},{"id":86531,"title":"Acknowledgments","slug":"acknowledgments-59-2","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/acknowledgments-59-2\/","is_active":false},{"id":70754,"title":"Methodology","slug":"methodology-44-4","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/methodology-44-4\/","is_active":false}],"report_materials":[{"key":"c61212d7-4da5-4721-b9f7-73ec2ee82911","type":"report","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.21.21_fullreport.pdf","label":"","icon":"","attachmentId":81972},{"key":"e3ddca8f-9752-4fe0-be51-4717a45369ad","type":"topline","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state_.topline.pdf","label":"","icon":"","attachmentId":81971},{"type":"dataset","id":1117,"label":"American Trends Panel Wave 84","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/dataset\/american-trends-panel-wave-84\/"}],"report_pagination":{"current_post":{"id":70732,"title":"In U.S., Far More Support Than Oppose Separation of Church and State","slug":"in-u-s-far-more-support-than-oppose-separation-of-church-and-state","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/in-u-s-far-more-support-than-oppose-separation-of-church-and-state\/","is_active":true,"page_num":1},"next_post":{"id":70768,"title":"Detailed tables","slug":"detailed-tables","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/detailed-tables\/","is_active":false,"page_num":2},"previous_post":null,"pagination_items":[{"id":70732,"title":"In U.S., Far More Support Than Oppose Separation of Church and State","slug":"in-u-s-far-more-support-than-oppose-separation-of-church-and-state","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/in-u-s-far-more-support-than-oppose-separation-of-church-and-state\/","is_active":true,"page_num":1},{"id":70768,"title":"Detailed tables","slug":"detailed-tables","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/detailed-tables\/","is_active":false,"page_num":2},{"id":86531,"title":"Acknowledgments","slug":"acknowledgments-59-2","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/acknowledgments-59-2\/","is_active":false,"page_num":3},{"id":70754,"title":"Methodology","slug":"methodology-44-4","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/10\/28\/methodology-44-4\/","is_active":false,"page_num":4}]},"parent_info":{"parent_title":"In U.S., Far More Support Than Oppose Separation of Church and State","parent_id":70732},"materialsOrdered":[{"key":"c61212d7-4da5-4721-b9f7-73ec2ee82911","type":"report","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.21.21_fullreport.pdf","label":"","attachmentId":81972,"icon":""},{"key":"e3ddca8f-9752-4fe0-be51-4717a45369ad","type":"topline","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/10\/PF_10.28.21_church.state_.topline.pdf","label":"","attachmentId":81971,"icon":""}],"chaptersOrdered":[{"key":"_migrate_0","postId":70768},{"key":"_migrate_1","postId":86531},{"key":"_migrate_2","postId":70754}],"partsOrdered":[],"partsEnabled":false,"datacite_doi":"","prc_seo_data":{"title":"In U.S., Far More Support Than Oppose Separation of Church and State","description":"Some Americans clearly long for a more avowedly religious and explicitly Christian country, a March survey finds. However, a clear majority of Americans do not accept these views. ","og_title":"In U.S., Far More Support Than Oppose Separation of Church and State","og_description":"Some Americans clearly long for a more avowedly religious and explicitly Christian country, a March survey finds. However, a clear majority of Americans do not accept these views. ","schema_type":"Article","noindex":false,"canonical_url":"","primary_terms":{"category":171},"custom_schema":[],"og_image":81953,"indexnow_submitted_at":null,"gsc_index_status":null},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"relatedPostsOrdered":[],"bylinesOrdered":[],"acknowledgementsOrdered":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70732","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/367"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=70732"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70732\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":181043,"href":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70732\/revisions\/181043"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=70732"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=70732"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=70732"},{"taxonomy":"bylines","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bylines?post=70732"},{"taxonomy":"collection","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/collection?post=70732"},{"taxonomy":"datasets","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/datasets?post=70732"},{"taxonomy":"level_of_effort","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/level_of_effort?post=70732"},{"taxonomy":"primary_audience","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/primary_audience?post=70732"},{"taxonomy":"information_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/information_type?post=70732"},{"taxonomy":"_post_visibility","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/_post_visibility?post=70732"},{"taxonomy":"formats","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/formats?post=70732"},{"taxonomy":"_fund_pool","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/_fund_pool?post=70732"},{"taxonomy":"languages","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/languages?post=70732"},{"taxonomy":"regions-countries","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/regions-countries?post=70732"},{"taxonomy":"research-teams","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/research-teams?post=70732"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}