{"id":8762,"date":"2021-12-21T11:59:32","date_gmt":"2021-12-21T16:59:32","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2025-04-23T23:56:15","modified_gmt":"2025-04-24T03:56:15","slug":"christians-religiously-unaffiliated-differ-on-whether-most-things-in-society-can-be-divided-into-good-evil","status":"publish","type":"short-read","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2021\/12\/21\/christians-religiously-unaffiliated-differ-on-whether-most-things-in-society-can-be-divided-into-good-evil\/","title":{"rendered":"Christians, religiously unaffiliated differ on whether most things in society can be divided into good, evil"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Many major religions have clear teachings about good and evil in the world. For example, the Abrahamic traditions \u2013 Judaism, Christianity and Islam \u2013 use concepts such as God and the devil or heaven and hell to illustrate this dichotomy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignright size-420-wide\"><a rel=\"attachment wp-att-13194\" href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2021\/12\/21\/christians-religiously-unaffiliated-differ-on-whether-most-things-in-society-can-be-divided-into-good-evil\/ft_2021-12-21_goodandevil_01-png\/\"><img data-dominant-color=\"eaebe9\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" style=\"--dominant-color: #eaebe9;\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\"  srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/12\/ft_2021.12.21_goodandevil_01.png?resize=480,649 480w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/12\/ft_2021.12.21_goodandevil_01.png?resize=782,1058 782w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/12\/ft_2021.12.21_goodandevil_01.png?resize=840,1136 840w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 480px) 480px, (max-width: 782px) 782px, 640px\" height=\"568\" width=\"420\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/12\/ft_2021.12.21_goodandevil_01.png?w=420\" alt=\"A bar chart showing that more than half of U.S. Christians say most things in society can be clearly divided into good and evil\" class=\"wp-image-13194 not-transparent\" \/><\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It may be somewhat unsurprising, then, that highly religious Americans are much more likely to see society in those terms, while nonreligious people tend to see more ambiguity, according to a recent <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/politics\/2021\/11\/09\/beyond-red-vs-blue-the-political-typology-2\/\">Pew Research Center survey<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Overall, about half of U.S. adults (48%) say that most things in society can be clearly divided into good and evil, while the other half (50%) say that most things in society are too complicated to be categorized this way. However, there are stark differences in opinion based on respondents\u2019 religious affiliation and how religious they are.<\/p>\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=\"is-style-alternate 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 analysis to understand the public\u2019s views on good and evil in society. For this analysis, we surveyed 10,221 U.S. adults in July 2021. Everyone who took part in this survey is a member of the 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, and other categories. Read more about the <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/our-methods\/u-s-surveys\/the-american-trends-panel\/\">ATP\u2019s methodology<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here are <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/politics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/11\/PP_2021.11.09_political-typology_TOPLINE.pdf\">the questions used<\/a> for this report, along with responses, and <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/politics\/2021\/11\/09\/political-typology-appendix-a\/\">its methodology<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For example, U.S. Christians are much more likely than religiously unaffiliated Americans to say that most things in society can be clearly divided into good and evil (54% vs. 37%). Nearly two-thirds of White evangelical Protestants (64%) say this, as do 57% of Black Protestants. Members of these two groups also <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/religion\/2021\/12\/14\/about-three-in-ten-u-s-adults-are-now-religiously-unaffiliated\/\">attend religious services and pray<\/a> at higher rates than other U.S. adults.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">By comparison, only around half of U.S. Catholics (49%) and White Protestants who do not identify as evangelical (47%) say that most things in society can be clearly divided into good and evil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Among those who identify their religion as \u201cnothing in particular,\u201d 43% say that most things in society can be clearly divided into good and evil. But far fewer atheists (22%) and agnostics (29%) say the same. Combined, these three groups make up the nation\u2019s religiously unaffiliated population, also known as religious \u201cnones\u201d; overall, a majority of these unaffiliated Americans (62%) say most things in society are too complicated to be divided into good and evil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Due to sample size limitations, this analysis does not include some smaller religious groups who were asked this question, such as Jewish and Muslim Americans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Differences over whether most things in society can be divided into good and evil also are apparent when looking at various measures of religious observance. Highly religious Americans \u2013 regardless of their religious affiliation \u2013 are more likely to see society in terms of good and evil. For instance, U.S. adults who say they attend religious services at least once a week are more likely than those who seldom or never attend services to give this response (59% vs. 42%). And there are similar patterns when it comes to the self-professed importance of religion in people\u2019s lives and their prayer habits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Previous Pew Research Center surveys have found that many highly religious people look to God as a marker of good and evil and say that it is <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2017\/10\/16\/a-growing-share-of-americans-say-its-not-necessary-to-believe-in-god-to-be-moral\/\">necessary to believe in God in order to be a moral person<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"even-within-religious-groups-democrats-and-republicans-have-different-attitudes-about-good-and-evil\">Even within religious groups, Democrats and Republicans have different attitudes about good and evil<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Views about good and evil also vary by political party. Roughly six-in-ten Republicans and independents who lean toward the Republican Party (59%) say that most things in society can be clearly divided into good and evil, compared with 38% of Democrats and Democratic leaners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignright size-310-wide\"><a rel=\"attachment wp-att-13198\" href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2021\/12\/21\/christians-religiously-unaffiliated-differ-on-whether-most-things-in-society-can-be-divided-into-good-evil\/ft_2021-12-21_goodandevil_02-png\/\"><img data-dominant-color=\"e1d5d5\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" style=\"--dominant-color: #e1d5d5;\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\"  srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/12\/ft_2021.12.21_goodandevil_02.png?resize=480,1014 480w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/12\/ft_2021.12.21_goodandevil_02.png?resize=620,1310 620w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 480px) 480px, (max-width: 782px) 782px, 640px\" height=\"655\" width=\"310\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/12\/ft_2021.12.21_goodandevil_02.png?w=310\" alt=\"A bar chart showing that Republicans differ by religious affiliation over whether most things in society can be divided into good, evil\" class=\"wp-image-13198 not-transparent\" \/><\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Religious groups <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2020\/10\/26\/what-the-2020-electorate-looks-like-by-party-race-and-ethnicity-age-education-and-religion\/\">differ from one another<\/a> in their political makeup. For example, White evangelical Protestants are more likely to be Republicans, while atheists and agnostics tend to align with the Democratic Party. Still, party identification does not fully explain the religious differences described in this analysis; within both parties, there are large differences across religious groups.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For instance, Republican Christians are more likely than Republican \u201cnones\u201d to say that most things in society can be clearly divided into good and evil (63% vs. 48%). Similarly, Democratic Christians are more likely than Democratic \u201cnones\u201d to give that response (43% vs. 31%).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The reverse pattern is also true: Religious differences do not entirely account for the political gaps in views of good and evil. This is evidenced by the fact that Catholic Republicans are more likely than Catholic Democrats to see clear distinctions between good and evil (57% vs. 43%), a pattern that also holds true among Protestants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Note: Here are <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/politics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/11\/PP_2021.11.09_political-typology_TOPLINE.pdf\">the questions used<\/a> for this report, along with responses, and <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/politics\/2021\/11\/09\/political-typology-appendix-a\/\">its methodology<\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Highly religious Americans are much more likely to see society in those terms, while nonreligious people tend to see more 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