Americans believe in miracles

2008-06-24 10:42

Washington - Around three-quarters of Americans believe in miracles, more Americans believe in heaven than in hell, and nearly six in 10 pray every day, a report based on a survey of 35 000 US adults showed on Monday.

Of those who pray regularly, around a third - 31% - say God answers their prayers at least once a month, and one in five Americans said they receive direct answers to specific prayer requests at least once a week, the report by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life said.

Seventy-four percent of those surveyed for the report, the US Religious Landscape Survey, said they believed in heaven as a place where people who have led good lives are rewarded, while only around six in 10 believed in hell, where unrepentant evil-doers are eternally punished.

The report reflected the changing face of the US religious landscape and also the diversity of belief among Americans.

"Once upon a time, belief in heaven and hell were very closely related and in many people's views were two sides of the same coin," John Greene, a senior research fellow at Pew told a telephone news conference.

"That does not seem to be the case any more. Many more people believe in heaven than believe in hell," he said, surmising that Americans today view God as "someone who is merciful, generous and forgiving" rather than as "a judge who punishes people".

Nearly eight in 10 American adults (79%) believe that miracles occur, the survey, which was conducted between May and August last year, showed.

Belief in God

But perhaps most striking was the near unanimous belief in God: more than nine out of 10 Americans held that belief.

But they held it in ways as diverse as the varied religious landscape of the United States, the study showed.

"While this survey finds that more than nine in 10 Americans believe in the existence of God or a universal spirit, the survey also shows that there are considerable differences in the nature of this belief," Pew research fellow Greg Smith said.

"Six in ten adults believe God is a person with whom people can have a relationship but one in four, including about half of Jews and Hindus, see God as an impersonal force," he said.

- AFP