Most American Christians....

[funkStrat_97]

...do not beleive Satan or the Holy Spirt exist!  Granted that surveys are imperfect, how can we set American Christianity back on track?  Other points of the survey indicate that many Christians see other religions as being equal and a significant number do not believe that Jesus lived a perfect sinless life!  Wow.  What happend to the 'main and plain' things of our faith?

[under13]

Here we go

[Fenix]

I do not see how you can call yourself a Christian and not believe Jesus led a perfect life. Too many people take the bible as a metaphor and not literal. Once we start down that path, then we deny the infallibility of the Word and leave it open to whatever interpretation we care to apply to it.

[SirTJ]

Who do these people survey? I, in all of my years of Christendom, have NEVER been approached for one of these surveys. I guess they just discredit the Alabamians.

[nessalynn77]

What kind of christians were they surveying?  I don't know any christians who believe like that.  I think the flaw is in the fact that the term christian is somewhat loosely defined nowadays.  People say they are christians and have no idea what that really means... if they knew what it meant, they wouldn't have those beliefs, or they would keep their beliefs and drop the title of "christian", LOL.

[kodacolor]

Wow @ this article.  This bothers me so much. 

I want to do a study myself like this.  My first question will be, "What religion do you affiliate yourself with?"  If they say, "Christianity" then my next question will be "Did you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that He rose from the dead?"  If the answer is "Yes" I'll move on with questions similar to the ones asked in the article.  If the answer is "No" I'm going to find out what, in their definition, makes them a Christian.  Then I would end the survey because there's no point in asking a non-believer about things they don't believe in though they profess to be a Christian.

I found this part of the article to be interesting:

How Born Agains Differ

The study examined how one segment of the Christian population – those whose beliefs about salvation categorize them as “born again” – differ from the beliefs of people who describe themselves as Christian but do not base their view of salvation solely on confession of sin and God’s grace received through Jesus Christ. (The Barna Group has labeled the latter group “notional Christians.”) For each of the 13 questions examined in the study, there were statistically significant differences between these two segments of the Christian population. Among the most significant gaps in belief were the following:

    * Born again adults are at least twice as likely as notionals to strongly agree that the Bible is accurate in all the principles it teaches; that their life has been greatly transformed by their faith; that a person can be under the influence of spiritual forces such as demons; and to hold an unfavorable opinion of Wicca.

    * Born again adults are more than twice as likely as notionals to strongly disagree that Satan is just a symbol of evil, and that Jesus sinned while He lived on earth.

    * Born again adults are more than three times as likely as notionals to strongly disagree that the Holy Spirit is merely a symbol of God’s power or presence; that Mormons are Christians; and that the Bible, Koran and Book of Mormon teach the same truths.

    * Born again adults are one-third more likely than notionals to possess a definition of God as the omniscient, omnipotent creator and ruler of the world; nearly 60% more likely to believe that you either side with God or Satan because there is no in-between position; and slightly more than 50% more likely to say their chief purpose in life is to love God with all their heart, mind, strength and soul.

    * The smallest difference between the two segments related to the importance of having active relationships with people who reject the central tenets of the person’s faith. Born again adults were slightly more likely to strongly agree that such relationships were important to them (39% versus 31%).

[sjonathan02]

These surveys ALWAYS crack me up.


And, until I'm involved in one, I take no stock in any of 'em. 

[SavnBass]

What kind of christians were they surveying?  I don't know any christians who believe like that.  I think the flaw is in the fact that the term christian is somewhat loosely defined nowadays.  People say they are christians and have no idea what that really means... if they knew what it meant, they wouldn't have those beliefs, or they would keep their beliefs and drop the title of "christian", LOL.

+1...

I think that for many religion is the thing.. but for true Christians it is all about the salvation.. and the understanding of the what, hows and whys of that salvation.. and more importantly the who... How many times do you here people say.. "We all worship the same god anyway...? "

Wow... I didnt even see koda's post... 

[sistagurl]

These surveys ALWAYS crack me up.


And, until I'm involved in one, I take no stock in any of 'em. 

That's what I say.  Where are they finding these people for the surveys?

I believe it depends on the region and different factors that determine the outcome of these "so called" surveys.

[SavnBass]

I wonder if these were the same 85% of America that was perfectly satisfied with it's healthcare.. must be huh..

[churchyreal]

...do not beleive Satan or the Holy Spirt exist!  Granted that surveys are imperfect, how can we set American Christianity back on track?  Other points of the survey indicate that many Christians see other religions as being equal and a significant number do not believe that Jesus lived a perfect sinless life!  Wow.  What happend to the 'main and plain' things of our faith?

We are so far from the original model it's not even right funny and the sad part is that many people feel like it's ok. 

[sistagurl]

I wonder if these were the same 85% of America that was perfectly satisfied with it's healthcare.. must be huh..

Hmmmm, that's a thought..

[BigFoot_BigThumb]

It's quite amazing how just 1,871 Christians count as most Christians in America.  I guess the views of those of us that didn't take the survey don't matter because this is the end all, be all.  Some of this also comes down to what they're being taught by their respective leaders. 

[funkStrat_97]

It's quite amazing how just 1,871 Christians count as most Christians in America.  I guess the views of those of us that didn't take the survey don't matter because this is the end all, be all.  Some of this also comes down to what they're being taught by their respective leaders. 

I don't know that the results of this poll acutely reflect the views of "most" Christians in America, but I do think that the results do represent the beliefs of a "significant number".  The thing is, that for many people, Christianity (as well as other religions) is more of a said faith (or just a reflection of how the were raised) than a true relationship with Jesus.  But I do find the results of the survey somewhat disturbing because it means that churches are not doing a good job with equipping the saints to know the truth.

[B3Wannabe]

.... churches are not doing a good job with equipping the saints to know the truth.

This statement is subjective, because within Christianity, we all have what we call "the truth". I'll admit that there is only one real truth, but we, Christians, can't agree on what that is. This poll shows the result of that problem.

[churchyreal]

This statement is subjective, because within Christianity, we all have what we call "the truth". I'll admit that there is only one real truth, but we, Christians, can't agree on what that is. This poll shows the result of that problem.

Amen!