While the number of Christians has decreased in the U.S. overall, some new trends indicate an 'emerging picture of stability'
While the overall population of Christians in America has shrunk since 2007, polling indicates the decline has paused.
Pew Research released its findings from the 2023-24 Religious Landscape Study in a report headlined, "Decline of Christianity in the U.S. Has Slowed, May Have Leveled Off." The massive study polled 36,908 U.S. adults across the United States. This is the third of its kind in 17 years, each of which spoke to more than 35,000 respondents.
"After many years of steady decline, the share of Americans who identify as Christians shows signs of leveling off – at least temporarily – at slightly above six-in-ten," the Pew report said.
The first RLS, performed in 2007, found that 78% of U.S. adults identified as various denominations of Christianity. That number declined to 71% in the second RLS in 2014 and now 62%, a 16-point drop since 2007.
A woman prays at St. Brendan Catholic Church's Adoration Chapel September 21, 2007, in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) (Getty Images)
Nonetheless, "for the last five years, between 2019 and 2024, the Christian share of the adult population has been relatively stable, hovering between 60% and 64%," Pew reported. "The 62% figure in the new Religious Landscape Study is smack in the middle of that recent range."
The report observed further that other statistics about these denominations of Christianity in America "contribute to this emerging picture of stability, such as how "33% say they go to religious services at least once a month" and how "the share of Americans who say they pray daily has consistently held between 44% and 46% since 2021."
The report offered theories as to why, overall, America has become less Christian since 2007.
"One driver of the long-term trend is ‘generational replacement.’ Older, highly religious, heavily Christian generations are passing away. The younger generations succeeding them are much less religious, with smaller percentages of Christians and more ‘nones,’" the report said.
It added further, "the landscape surveys show that between 2007 and 2023-24, each birth cohort has become less religious, by several measures, as it has aged."
Image of an old-time prairie church. (Joanna McCarthy via Getty Images)
CLICK HERE FOR MORE COVERAGE OF MEDIA AND CULTURE
Nonetheless, while young people are less religious overall than previous generations, one key point of stability is that "Americans born in 2000 through 2006 (those ages 18 to 24 in the 2023-24 RLS) are just as likely as those born in the 1990s (now ages 24 to 34) to identify as Christians, to say religion is very important in their lives, and to report that they attend religious services at least monthly."
One particular point of differentiation is political affiliation, as "Today, 37% of self-described liberals identify with Christianity, down from 62% in 2007, a 25-point decline. Meanwhile, 51% of liberals now say they have no religion, up from 27% in 2007, a 24-point increase. There are now more religious ‘nones’ than Christians among liberals, a reversal since 2007."
Conservative demographics paint a similar picture.
"There also are fewer Christians and more ‘nones’ among conservatives," the report noted. "But the changes in the religious composition of conservatives have been much less pronounced than among liberals, and a large majority of conservatives continue to identify with Christianity."
In short, the report summarized that the "decline of Christianity and rise of religious ‘nones’ has been much more pronounced among Democrats than Republicans."