Interpreting scripture among baby Boomers by religious group (2014) Switch to: Religious tradition among baby Boomers by interpretation of scripture

% of baby Boomers who say the holy scripture is…

Religious traditionWord of God; should be taken literallyWord of God; not everything taken literallyWord of God; other/don't knowNot the word of GodOther/don't knowSample size
Buddhist8%8%3%71%11%107
Catholic24%36%3%29%8%2,905
Evangelical Protestant60%24%4%7%4%3,416
Historically Black Protestant67%17%2%8%5%749
Jewish11%19%3%60%8%330
Mainline Protestant26%32%3%29%11%2,435
Mormon32%50%8%4%5%214
Unaffiliated (religious "nones")10%12%1%69%8%2,281
Sample sizes and margins of error vary from subgroup to subgroup, from year to year and from state to state. You can see the sample size for the estimates in this chart on rollover or in the last column of the table. And visit this table to see approximate margins of error for a group of a given size. Readers should always bear in mind the approximate margin of error for the group they are examining when making comparisons with other groups or assessing the significance of trends over time. For full question wording, see the survey questionnaire.

Learn More: Word of God; should be taken literally, Word of God; not everything taken literally, Not the word of God