A new Barna report on the self-image of Americans revealed that the small minority of evangelicals stand out from the rest of the Christian community as more spiritual and active in faith, at least in their own perspective.
Compared to non-evangelical born-again Christians, evangelicals – which constitute 8 percent of the American adult population, according to The Barna Group's criteria – were more likely to see themselves as fulltime servants of God; deeply spiritual; and more likely to seek to persuade others to adopt their views. Evangelicals were also less likely than non-evangelical born-agains to have an open mind toward alternative moral views or to admit to adapting easily to change, according to the study released Monday.
The only other faith group demonstrating similar consistency between faith and practice were atheists, whose fundamental dismissal of social conventions and participation in favor of more self-centered views and behaviors helped them to stand out from the crowd in a different way.
The study further found a gap between Catholics and Protestants and the way they view themselves. Protestants were more likely to see themselves as fulltime servants of God, slightly more likely to say they are deeply spiritual, and a bit more likely to say they are clear about the meaning and purpose of their life. Catholics were somewhat more likely to be very open to alternative moral perspectives.
While 75 percent of Americans say they are "very open" to alternative moral views, 92 percent support traditional family values and 86 percent claim to be concerned about the moral state of the nation. At the same time, only one out of four adults is concerned enough to try to convince other people to change their views on such issues.
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