In U.S., religion holding steady

Are we getting more religious? Perhaps a wee bit, but overall things have held steady for a while, according to the latest Gallup poll. Currently, 41.4 percent of Americans are "very religious" (make that 47 percent in Idaho), compared with 40.1 percent in 2012, and 40.9 percent in 2008.

Seven in 10 Americans still identify themselves as at least "moderately" religious. Less than a third (29 percent) of Americans say they're "very" religious.

What's very religious? Church attendance at least weekly, and considering or treating religion as highly important in daily life. "Moderately" was defined as considering religion "important," but without regular church attendance.

The figures at the high and low ends are the same. Twenty-nine percent of Americans now consider themselves "nonreligious." That's one percent fewer than in 2008.

Those figures are nationwide averages. Take a closer look, and you see regional trends, with the deep south (east of Texas, not including Florida) and Utah as the most religious areas of the country. Even within concentrated regions there are differences. Protestants in the south (where there are more of them), for example, are more religious (as self-described) than are Protestants in New England.

The least religious state in the union is Vermont, where only 22 percent of the population consider themselves at least moderately religious. Also at less than a third are D.C., Hawaii, Connecticut, Washington, Nevada, Oregon, Massachusetts, Maine, and New Hampshire.

Which is the most religious state? Mississippi, still at the top with 61 percent of the population identifying themselves as very religious. Close behind is Utah at 60 percent, followed by Alabama at 57. Mississippi's "very religious" are up 3 percent from 2012; for that matter, so are Vermont's.

Where does Idaho fall? At mid-range, with 41 to 50 percent identifying themselves as moderately to very religious. With the exception of Utah, Idaho is otherwise centered in the next lowest category of religiosity, with a 31 to 40 percent religious population in all other neighboring states. One might say we belong in the Midwest, where much of the other 41 to 50 percenters reside.

All of this looks much the same as it did in Gallup's poll six years ago, 3 percent shifts at both ends notwithstanding. In its annual poll Gallup interviews up to 348,000 Americans about their religious identities. Little has changed in the last decade or so; Vermont took last places held before by Hawaii and New York, but all remain similarly low in religious population. The deep south remains at the high end with those "very religious" comprising about 50 to 60 percent.

And how do we compare worldwide? We buck the trend, although those averages can look skewed. Globally, the median for "very religious" is above 80 percent; however, high concentrations (in the 90s) are focused in the world's poorest countries, which still outnumber the affluent in number and population totals.

Religiosity decreases as per capita income (corresponding with average education, employment, and economic health) increases. When income reaches $25,000 or more annually, "very religious" averages 47 percent worldwide. Compared with Europe and other industrialized nations, Americans are more religious (e.g., Sweden 17 percent and France 30 percent).

For more data and state-by-state information, see Gallup.com.

Sholeh Patrick is a columnist for the Hagadone News Network. Contact her at [email protected].