The United States began as a devoutly Christian nation, but over the past two centuries, and particularly in the twentieth century, adherence to institutional Christianity has declined. Is this your perception of American history? Roger Finke and Rodney Stark analyze the historical record in The Churching of America 1776-2005: Winners and Losers in Our Religious Economy. Here are the percentages of people they believe identified themselves with a particular religious affiliation at various times in American history.
Some historians believe that the late 1700s, far from being a time of widely held Christian values, were a low ebb in religious adherence in America. The perception that religious affiliation has been in decline is usually fostered by mainstream intellectuals and academics who have seen their brand of mainline denominational Christianity in decline while steadfastly ignoring the upstart movements from the holiness, Pentecostal, and independent church groups. As the chart shows, the percentage of people with a religious adherence has grown over the nation's history until the most recent generation, when the percentage has remained constant.
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