Pew Study Reveals Nation Is Becoming More Tolerant

RELIGION  GENERAL NEWS 

By Katie Arrants

Portland, OR  June 24, 2008 4:13 p.m.

A report out this week on America’s religious landscape says people in the U.S. are becoming increasingly tolerant of other religions.  The trend holds true here in Oregon where 70 percent of the people surveyed said they believed that religions other than their own could lead to salvation.

About the same amount of people said they believe their own religion can be interpreted in many different ways.

Greg Smith is the lead author of the study conducted by the Pew Forum.

Greg Smith: “It’s not the case that this flexibility or this non-dogmatic approach to faith means that Americans aren’t serious about religion.  In fact, the survey shows that many Americans are quite serious about religion.”

Smith says Americans' changing approach to faith has a lot to do with a growing religious diversity in the U.S.

A portion of the study released earlier this year revealed that 4 of every 10 marriages in the U.S. are between people from different religious backgrounds.

Marilyn Sewell is the Senior Pastor at the First Unitarian Church of Portland.  She's encouraged by the study’s findings.

Marilyn Sewell: “I am very pleased to see that so many people are so tolerant these days. I suppose I am not surprised in that I believe that’s the way the country is going.  After all, people travel these days, people see films....”

The study shows most Americans still pray and attend a regular worship service, but it also shows the numbers of people in the U.S. not affiliated with a religious tradition are increasing.

That mirrors a trend seen in Oregon and Washington for some years -- that while people are spiritual, they aren't members of any particular church.

In Oregon, almost 30 percent of people surveyed identified as unaffiliated with an established religion.

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