Record-low number of Americans believe Bible is the literal Word of God
by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent
(Worthy News) – A Gallup poll published Wednesday shows that the number of Americans who believe the Bible is literally true is at an all-time low, the Washington Times reports. The poll found that, for the first time ever, there are more Bible doubters than believers in the US, the Times reports.
According to the Gallup poll, just 20% of US adults believe the Bible is the literal Word of God, the Times said. Almost half (49%) of those surveyed – said the Bible is “inspired by God” but not “to be taken literally.”
Among US adults who identify as Christian, 25% said it is the literal word of God; 58% said it is inspired; 16% said the Scriptures are just ancient stories.
The poll found that 30% of Protestants believe the Bible is “literally true” compared to 15% of Roman Catholics who believe so. “Almost two-thirds of Catholics choose the alternative that the Bible is the inspired word of God, but every word should not be taken literally,” Gallup said in its report.
“The shift in attitudes about the Bible is not an isolated phenomenon,” Gallup’s Frank Newport wrote in a website statement. “It comes even as a number of indicators show a decline in overall religiosity in the US adult population,” Newport said.
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