Christians Face Increasing Intolerance? Poll Reveals Americans' Stunning Take on Faith and Religious Liberty

Billy Hallowell
07-16-2022

Share This article

Are Christians in America facing increased intolerance for their beliefs? That question at the center of a new Lifeway Research survey yielded some noteworthy results.

Listen to CBN News’ brand new morning podcast, Quick Start:

Not only do the majority of Americans believe religious liberty is on the decline (54%), but nearly six-in-10 (59%) say religious tolerance for Christians in the U.S. is on the decline. This latter proportion believes Christians are “increasingly confronted with intolerance,” according to Lifeway.

Just 24% disagree with this contention, and an additional 18% aren’t sure where they stand.

Notably, the majority of people in every religious group — Catholics (59%), Protestants (69%), and those of other religious beliefs (52%) — agree that Christians face ramped-up intolerance.

This viewpoint is even held by 41% of people who are not affiliated with any faith.

In a world in which progressive and secular ideals are on the increase, it’s not surprising to see Christianity — which once held a more sweeping cultural sway — draw mounting rebuke.

Scott McConnell, executive director of Lifeway Research, said this intolerance surrounds “cultural pushback.”

“In the American marketplace of ideas, not all systems of thought are welcomed,” McConnell said. “The majority of all religions notice this pushback against Christians today.”

Meanwhile, 36% of respondents agreed with the notion Christians “complain too much about how they are treated,” though 49% disagreed with this claim.

The survey results come as Christianity continues to decline, with the Pew Research Center finding that 63% of Americans identify as Christians, down from 78% in 2007.

At the same time, the growth of the “nones” — those individuals who are either atheist, agnostic, or unaffiliated — continues to swell, expanding from 16% in 2007 to 29% in 2021.

“The secularizing shifts evident in American society so far in the 21st-century show no signs of slowing,” Pew noted in a December analysis.

Lifeway’s survey was conducted among 1,005 Americans from September 2-14, 2021, and has a sampling error that doesn’t exceed +/- 3.3%. Read all of the results here.

***As the number of voices facing big-tech censorship continues to grow, please sign up for Faithwire’s daily newsletter and download the CBN News app to stay up-to-date with the latest news from a distinctly Christian perspective.***

Share This article

About The Author

Billy Hallowell writes for CBN's Faithwire.com. He has been working in journalism and media for more than a decade. His writings have appeared in CBN News, Faithwire, Deseret News, TheBlaze, Human Events, Mediaite, PureFlix, and Fox News, among other outlets. He is the author of several books, including Playing with Fire: A Modern Investigation Into Demons, Exorcism, and Ghosts Hallowell has a B.A. in journalism and broadcasting from the College of Mount Saint Vincent in Riverdale, New York and an M.S. in social research from Hunter College in Manhattan, New York.
More