Politics and religion: A closer walk

Religion likely plays a bigger role in shaping social and political attitudes than people realize, according to the latest report on religion from the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life.

Although only 14 percent of people surveyed cite their religious beliefs as being the main influence on their general political thinking, when the focus shifts to specific issues, the survey "confirms that there are strong links between Americans' views on political issues and their religious affiliation, beliefs and practices."

Based on interviews that were conducted with 36,000 people last summer -- before the sermons of Rev. Jeremiah Wright became a national political issue -- half of the respondents thought that faith communities should be free to express views on political matters. This opinion was particularly prevalent among the members of historically black churches (69 percent in favor) and evangelical churches (64 percent).

On the other end of the spectrum were respondents who identified themselves as Jehovah's Witnesses, with 82 percent of them saying that churches should not be permitted to espouse political views.

Some political issues have a stronger religious component than others, said John Green, a senior Pew fellow who specializes in religion and politics. Opinions on abortion and gay rights, for instance, tend to correspond to the teachings of the respondents' respective religions.

"But for other things, like the economy, environment or foreign affairs, the religious identification is not as important," Green said.

The U.S. Religious Landscape Survey was released Monday, and although presented as a follow-up to a report that was issued in February, it actually is the second half of that report. Each of the reports runs about 300 pages.

• Nearly 70 percent of the respondents who identify themselves with a specific religion do not believe that their religion is the only way to salvation. In addition, a majority of the church-affiliated respondents believe that there is more than one way to interpret their religion's teachings.

"This discovery that most Americans do not consider theirs the only true faith was a bit of a surprise," Green said. "We hear mostly from the dogmatic part of society, but it turns out that we are a rather non-dogmatic society with fluid opinions about religion."

• Nearly 80 percent of those surveyed believe there are moral standards of right and wrong, but only 29 percent say they use their religious teachings to determine these standards. A majority said they rely more on practical experience and common sense.

• Nearly half of the Jewish respondents (49 percent) and more than half of the Buddhist (56 percent) and Hindu respondents (57 percent) said that religion causes more problems in society than it solves. Similar feelings weren't limited to the religious respondents.

"Interestingly, a substantial number of adults who are not affiliated with a religion also sense that there is conflict between religion and modern society -- except for them, the conflict involves being non-religious in a society where most people are religious," the report said.