Millions More Americans Are Reading the Bible
There is encouraging news from the results of the latest American Bible Society/Barna Group “State of the Bible” survey of Americans’ reading relationship, or lack thereof, with the single most influential book ever written.
Screenshot from “State of the Bible-2021.”
Among the highlights of the survey of more than 3,350 American adults and Gen Zers are these:
- Over half of U.S. adults (54 percent) believe that America would be worse off without the Bible, which is actually a 5-percent increase since last year (49 percent in 2020). One in seven Americans (14 percent) believes the nation would be better without the Bible, essentially the same as last year’s 13 percent. While the proportion with a more negative view remained about the same, there has been a shift from last year for those in the middle. One in three American adults (33 percent) believe America would be the same with or without the Bible. Five percent of those who were ambivalent last year have moved to a more Bible-affirming view in 2021.
- Over half of American adults (55 percent) hold what is known to be a “high” view of Scripture, which deems the Bible without error. That is, 26 percent agree that the Bible is the literal word of God and 29 percent agree that it is the word of God, with some verses being intended to be understood symbolically.
- An estimated 181 million Americans opened a Bible in the past year. This number is up significantly (7.1 percent ) from 2020, when 169 million adults used the Bible at least occasionally. In 2021, we estimate that 128 million American adults reach for the Bible with regularity.
- The survey found that 87 percent of Americans said their Bible reading either remained steady (63 percent) or increased (24 percent) in 2020. The notable percentage of increased readers is at least partially explained by the Covid-19 pandemic.
- As of January 2021, the proportion of American adults who never use the Bible has fallen to 29 percent, its lowest point since 2016. Along with the drop in nevers, we observed a modest rise in Bible Users.
For more information from the survey, go here.