According to new data from LifeWay Research, only 37 percent of Americans believe that homosexual behavior is a sin—down 7 percent from similar data collected just over a year earlier.
The new statistics come just hours after Pastor Louie Gigliowithdrew from giving the benediction at President Barack Obama’s inaugural address over his previous remarks on homosexuality.
LifeWay president Ed Stetzer says President Barack Obama’s “evolution on homosexuality probably impacted the evolution of cultural values–there is a real and substantive shift, surprisingly large for a one-year timeframe%mdash;though this was hardly a normal year on this issue.”
LifeWay’s previous research showed that 44 percent of those surveyed said they believe homosexual behavior is sinful. And while the results from the organization’s November 2012 survey of nearly 1,200 people show the overall percentage of those who approve of homosexuality has more or less remained the same, the percentage of Americans who are unsure of what they believe is on the rise. LifeWay noted that 17 percent now say, ‘I don’t know;’ an increase of 4 percent over the September 2011 survey.
The new survey also shows that people who identify as “born-again, evangelical, or fundamentalist Christian” (73 percent), as well as those who attend religious services at least once a week (61 percent), are most likely to indicate that they believe homosexuality is a sin. In contrast, only 29 percent of non-attenders say homosexuality was sinful.
Stetzer pointed out in a blog post this morning that views regarding homosexuality as a sin “(which were mainstream just a few decades ago) are now a minority position–and a view that many in society find unacceptable.”
