{"id":73483,"date":"2011-11-23T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2011-11-23T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/2011\/11\/23\/romneys-mormon-faith-views-of-the-mormon-religion\/"},"modified":"2024-04-14T04:13:34","modified_gmt":"2024-04-14T09:13:34","slug":"romneys-mormon-faith-views-of-the-mormon-religion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2011\/11\/23\/romneys-mormon-faith-views-of-the-mormon-religion\/","title":{"rendered":"Views of the Mormon Religion"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure><a href=\"https:\/\/projects.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/rp2012\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.pewresearch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2012\/07\/RP2012-report-short28.png\"><\/a><\/figure>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Navigate this page:<\/p>\n\n<ul class=\"navigate_this wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"#stable\">Stable Opinions About Mormon Religion<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#oneword\">One-Word Descriptions of Mormon Religion<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Roughly half of non-Mormons say that they know a great deal (13%) or some (37%) about the Mormon religion, with the other half saying they know not very much (29%) or nothing at all (21%). Similarly, half of non-Mormons (49%) say they know someone who is Mormon, while 50% say they do not know any Mormons. The public\u2019s assessment of its own knowledge of Mormonism and the percentage saying they know a Mormon is virtually unchanged from 2007.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"text-align: center\">\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" title=\"Little Change in Familiarity with Mormon Religion\" alt=\"Little Change in Familiarity with Mormon Religion\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.pewresearch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2012\/07\/mormon-faith-16.jpg\" width=\"300\" height=\"301\"><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Familiarity with Mormonism is most common in the western United States, where 73% of non-Mormons say they know someone who is Mormon, and 58% say they know a great deal or some about the Mormon religion. Knowing a Mormon and knowledge of Mormonism is significantly less common in other parts of the country.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"text-align: center\">\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" title=\"Westerners More Likely to Know a Mormon\" alt=\"Westerners More Likely to Know a Mormon\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.pewresearch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2012\/07\/mormon-faith-17.jpg\" width=\"299\" height=\"393\"><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Among religious groups, nearly six-in-ten white evangelicals (57%) say they know someone who is Mormon, and 62% say they know at least some about the Mormon religion. Roughly half of white mainline Protestants (52%) and the religiously unaffiliated (51%) say they know a Mormon. Among Catholics, 44% say they know someone who is a Mormon and 40% say they know a great deal or some about Mormonism. Compared with other religious groups, far fewer black Protestants know someone who is Mormon (21%) or say they know a great deal or some about the Mormon religion (34%). These views are little changed from 2007.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a name=\"stable\"><\/a><strong>Stable Opinions About Mormon Religion<\/strong><\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Similarly, attitudes toward the Mormon religion have remained stable. About half (51%) of non-Mormons say that, based on what they have read or heard, they think the Mormon religion is a Christian religion; 32% say it is not a Christian religion. And most non-Mormons (65%) continue to say that the Mormon religion is very different from their own religion or beliefs.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Compared with other religious groups, far more white evangelical Protestants say that Mormons are not Christian. Nearly half of white evangelicals (47%) say that the Mormon religion is not a Christian religion, while 39% say it is. By contrast, majorities of white mainline Protestants (62%), white Catholics (59%) and the religiously unaffiliated (56%) express the view that the Mormon religion is a Christian religion.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"text-align: center\">\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" title=\"Half Continue To Say Mormon Religion Is Christian \" alt=\"Half Continue To Say Mormon Religion Is Christian \" src=\"https:\/\/assets.pewresearch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2012\/07\/mormon-faith-18.jpg\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\"><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">College graduates, by almost two-to-one (59% to 30%) say that the Mormon religion is Christian. Fewer than half of those with no more than a high school education (46%) say the Mormon religion is Christian, but they are no more likely than those with more education to say that Mormonism is not Christian.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"text-align: center\">\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" title=\"Far More White Evangelicals Say Mormon Religion Is Not Christian\" alt=\"Far More White Evangelicals Say Mormon Religion Is Not Christian\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.pewresearch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2012\/07\/mormon-faith-19.jpg\" width=\"302\" height=\"480\"><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The survey finds little connection between familiarity with Mormons and Mormonism and views of the religion. About a third (35%) of those who say they know at least some about Mormonism say it is not a Christian religion, as do 29% of those who describe themselves as knowing little or nothing about Mormonism. One-third of those who know a Mormon say that Mormonism is not a Christian religion (34%), as do 30% of those who do not know a Mormon.<\/p>\n\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright\" title=\"Mormon Religion in a Word\" alt=\"Mormon Religion in a Word\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.pewresearch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2012\/07\/mormon-faith-20.jpg\" width=\"194\" height=\"597\"><\/figure>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Majorities across all religious groups say that the Mormon religion is very different from their own. Roughly seven-in-ten white evangelical Protestants (70%) and white Catholics (68%) say the Mormon religion is very different from their own; smaller majorities of black Protestants (59%) and white mainline Protestants (56%) agree.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a name=\"oneword\"><\/a><strong>One-Word Descriptions of Mormon Religion<\/strong><\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When asked in an open-ended question what one word best describes the Mormon religion, the most common response is <em>cult<\/em>, offered by 100 respondents in this survey, or about 5% of the public. Other commonly offered responses include <em>family<\/em> or <em>family values<\/em> (57 responses), <em>different<\/em> (55 responses), <em>polygamy<\/em> (49 responses) and <em>good<\/em> or <em>good people<\/em> (45 responses).<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">White evangelical Protestants are more likely than members of other religions to use the word <em>cult<\/em> to describe the Mormon religion, with 11% offering this word. By comparison, <em>cult<\/em> is offered as the single best descriptor by 5% of white mainline Protestants, 5% of black Protestants, 2% of the religiously unaffiliated and 1% of white Catholics.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Many of the positive words used to describe the Mormon religion focus on the devotion of its adherents: 28 respondents use the word <em>dedicated<\/em>, 19 respondents offer the words <em>devout<\/em> or <em>devoted<\/em> and 19 say <em>faith<\/em> or <em>faithful<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The public\u2019s lack of familiarity with the Mormon religion also is reflected in the one-word descriptions. While 55 respondents use the word <em>different<\/em>, 24 use the words <em>confused<\/em> or <em>confusing<\/em>, 18 say <em>strange<\/em> and 10 use the word <em>odd<\/em> to describe the religion.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Navigate this page: Stable Opinions About Mormon Religion One-Word Descriptions of Mormon Religion Roughly half of non-Mormons say that they know a great deal (13%) or some (37%) about the Mormon religion, with the other half saying they know not very much (29%) or nothing at all (21%). Similarly, half of non-Mormons (49%) say they 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