Geography of Religion In USA
Chap 6 Religion
Envs 204
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Objectives
• Spatial Distribution of Religion in USA
– Sources of Data and Trends
– Regional Distributions
• Explanations for Differential Distribution
– Immigration into the USA
– Internal Migration
• Speculation on Consequences
– Political Behavior
– Community Stability
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Background
• Americanisms – Founders
came for Religious Freedom
(ignores what pull factor?)
• Religious differences &
disputes are central to our
history
– Enshrined in Bill of Rights
– Greater diversity then
anywhere else in world
– Recent elections raise new
religious issues
Signing Mayflower Compact
41 of the 102 passengers
were Puritan others were
called “strangers”
• Gay marriage
• Abortion
• “Correct” religious background3
Introduction
• Conclusion – Religion has important role
• However in US it is more complex and
less uniform then many believe
– Historical – who was on the Mayflower, what
was the complete purpose of Plymouth
Plantation?
– What happened to non-Puritans in Boston?
• Quakers
• King’s Chapel 1686
King’s
Chapel
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Religious Make up
• Data – what is available
– Census? – Not available
– Where else available?
• Religious body data
– Different groups different rules
– Practicing?
» Protestants
» Catholics
» Others
– Problem – data not uniform, unsatisfactory
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Self reported data
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Polls
• Pew, Harris, National Survey of Religious
Identification (NSRI), American Religious
Identity Survey (ARIS),…
• Source http://www.pewforum.org/religiouslandscape-study/
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Recent Harris Poll Results
http://www.gallup.com/poll/1690/religion.aspx
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Top Twenty Religions in the United States, 2001
(self-identification, ARIS)
American Religious Self-Identification Survey
Religion
Christianity
1990 Est.
2001 Est.
2004 Est.
Adult Pop.
ADULT Pop.
Total Pop.
% of U.S.
%
Pop.,
Change
1990 2000
2000
151,225,000
159,030,000
224,437,959
76.50%
5%
13,116,000
27,539,000
38,865,604
13.20%
110%
3,137,000
2,831,000
3,995,371
1.30%
-10%
Islam
527,000
1,104,000
1,558,068
0.50%
109%
Buddhism
401,000
1,082,000
1,527,019
0.50%
170%
1,186,000
991,000
1,398,592
0.50%
-16%
902,000
1,272,986
0.40%
Nonreligious/Secular
Judaism
Agnostic
Atheist
Hinduism
227,000
766,000
1,081,051
0.40%
237%
Unitarian Universalist
502,000
629,000
887,703
0.30%
25%
Wiccan/Pagan/Druid
307,000
433,267
0.10%
Spiritualist
116,000
163,710
0.05%
Native American Religion
47,000
103,000
145,363
0.05%
119%
Baha'i
28,000
84,000
118,549
0.04%
200%
New Age
20,000
68,000
95,968
0.03%
240%
Sikhism
13,000
57,000
80,444
0.03%
338%
Scientology
45,000
55,000
77,621
0.02%
22%
Humanist
29,000
49,000
69,153
0.02%
69%
6,000
49,000
69,153
0.02%
717%
23,000
18,000
40,000
26,000
56,452
36,694
0.02%
0.01%
74%
44%
Deity (Deist)
Taoist
Eckankar
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/metro/documents/aris030609.pdf
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The politics of race and religion — in two pie charts
By Chris Cillizza, Published: September 10, 2012 Washington Post
washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/wp/2012/09/10/the-politics-of-race-and-religion-in-two-pie-charts/
Fully 87% … are white in 2012 Pew polling while just 5 percent are
Hispanic and four percent are black.
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Sixty-one percent of Democrats and Democratic-leaners are white while 21
percent are black and 10 percent are Hispanic.
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Summary
• Great variation in estimates of percentage
and numbers of Christians (82% vs. 71%)
• Note the growing importance of NonChristians and Non-religious
• Thus we can only make broad statements
– use with caution
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Church or Synagog Attendance shows slightly differerent pattern
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Regional Concentrations
From Religious Atlas of USA
http://www.valpo.edu/geomet/geo/courses/geo200/religion.html
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Includes groups like: Churches of Christ, unaffiliated Christian
Church/Church of Christ congregations, and the Christian
Church (Disciples of Christ)
The Restoration Movement (also known as the American
Restoration Movement or the Stone-Campbell
Movement, and pejoratively as Campbellism) is a
Christian movement that began on the United States frontier
during the Second Great Awakening (1790–1840) of the
early 19th century. The pioneers of this movement were
seeking to reform the church from within [1] and sought "the
unification of all Christians in a single body patterned after
the church of the New Testament."[2]:54 It has been described
as the "oldest ecumenical movement in America":[3]
Local Example Bellingham:
First Christian Church
495 E Bakerview Rd
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Urban & Rural Patterns
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Patterns
• Largest Group varies by Region
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Clear Spatial Patterns for Religious
Groups
Processes
• Urban vs Rural
• East vs West/ or North vs South
• East to West Migration
• Largest regional groups and causes
• Politically split religions
• The frozen north? Or Garrison Keller’s
buddies. Initial immigration pattern
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Let’s Explore WA State
• http://www.pewforum.org/religiouslandscape-study/state/washington/
• http://www.pewforum.org/religiouslandscape-study/#geography
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Speculation
• Religious Affiliation will continue to effect
nation and Religious history
• Regional differences will change
– More merging of older groups
– Current Expansion of Evangelicals
– Continued increase of internal migration
– New immigrants bring religion to borders
– Increase of religiously non-affiliated
• Greater diversity of electorate in the future,
more difficult to play the religion card?
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