People who believe people have a soul or spirit in additi... | Religious Landscape Study (RLS)

People who believe people have a soul or spirit in addition to their physical body

Among adults who believe people have a soul or spirit in addition to their physical body …

Religious composition

2023-24

2014

2007

Evangelical Protestant

26%
- Baptist family (evangelical trad.)
  
  9%
  - Southern Baptist Convention
    
    5%
  - Independent Baptist (evangelical trad.)
    
    3%
  - Missionary Baptist (evangelical trad.)
    
    <1%
  - Conservative Baptist Association of America
    
    <1%
  - Free Will Baptist
    
    <1%
  - General Association of Regular Baptist Churches
    
    <1%
  - Other Baptist (evangelical trad.)
    
    1%
- Methodist family (evangelical trad.)
  
  <1%
  - Global Methodist Church
    
    <1%
  - Other Methodist (evangelical trad.)
    
    <1%
- Nondenominational family (evangelical trad.)
  
  7%
  - Nondenominational evangelical
    
    4%
  - Nondenominational fundamentalist
    
    1%
  - Nondenominational charismatic
    
    1%
  - Interdenominational (evangelical trad.)
    
    1%
  - Community Church (evangelical trad.)
    
    <1%
  - Other nondenominational (evangelical trad.)
    
    1%
- Lutheran family (evangelical trad.)
  
  1%
  - Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod
    
    1%
  - Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod
    
    <1%
  - Other Lutheran (evangelical trad.)
    
    <1%
- Presbyterian family (evangelical trad.)
  
  1%
  - Presbyterian Church in America
    
    1%
  - Other Presbyterian (evangelical trad.)
    
    <1%
- Pentecostal family (evangelical trad.)
  
  3%
  - Assemblies of God
    
    1%
  - Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee)
    
    <1%
  - Foursquare Church
    
    <1%
  - Pentecostal Church of God
    
    <1%
  - Pentecostal Holiness Church
    
    <1%
  - Calvary Chapel
    
    <1%
  - Apostolic Pentecostal (evangelical trad.)
    
    <1%
  - Nondenominational Pentecostal (evangelical trad.)
    
    <1%
  - United Pentecostal Church International
    
    <1%
  - Other Pentecostal (evangelical trad.)
    
    1%
- Episcopalian/Anglican family (evangelical trad.)
  
  <1%
- Restorationist family (evangelical trad.)
  
  1%
  - Churches of Christ
    
    1%
  - Christian Churches and Churches of Christ
    
    <1%
  - Other Restorationist (evangelical trad.)
    
    <1%
- Congregationalist family (evangelical trad.)
  
  <1%
  - Conservative Congregational Christian Conference
    
    <1%
  - Other Congregationalist (evangelical trad.)
    
    <1%
- Holiness family (evangelical trad.)
  
  1%
  - Church of the Nazarene
    
    <1%
  - Wesleyan Church
    
    <1%
  - Free Methodist Church
    
    <1%
  - Christian and Missionary Alliance
    
    <1%
  - Church of God (Anderson, Indiana)
    
    <1%
  - Other Holiness (evangelical trad.)
    
    <1%
- Reformed family (evangelical trad.)
  
  <1%
  - Christian Reformed Church
    
    <1%
  - Other Reformed (evangelical trad.)
    
    <1%
- Adventist family (evangelical trad.)
  
  <1%
  - Seventh-day Adventist
    
    <1%
  - Other Adventist (evangelical trad.)
    
    <1%
- Anabaptist family (evangelical trad.)
  
  <1%
- Pietist family (evangelical trad.)
  
  <1%
- Friends family (evangelical trad.)
  
  <1%
- Other evangelical/Fundamentalist family (evangelical trad.)
  
  <1%
- Nonspecific Protestant family (evangelical trad.)
  
  2%
  - Nonspecific/Other Protestant family (evangelical trad.)
    
    2%
Mainline Protestant

13%
- Baptist family (mainline trad.)
  
  1%
  - American Baptist Churches USA
    
    1%
  - Other Baptist (mainline trad.)
    
    <1%
- Methodist family (mainline trad.)
  
  3%
  - United Methodist Church
    
    3%
  - Other Methodist (mainline trad.)
    
    <1%
- Nondenominational family (mainline trad.)
  
  1%
  - Interdenominational (mainline trad.)
    
    1%
  - Other nondenominational (mainline trad.)
    
    1%
- Lutheran family (mainline trad.)
  
  2%
  - Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA)
    
    2%
  - Other Lutheran (mainline trad.)
    
    <1%
- Presbyterian family (mainline trad.)
  
  1%
  - Presbyterian Church (USA)
    
    1%
  - Other Presbyterian (mainline trad.)
    
    <1%
- Episcopalian/Anglican family (mainline trad.)
  
  1%
  - Episcopal Church
    
    1%
  - Anglican Church
    
    <1%
  - Other Episcopalian/Anglican (mainline trad.)
    
    <1%
- Restorationist family (mainline trad.)
  
  <1%
  - Disciples of Christ
    
    <1%
  - Other Restorationist (mainline trad.)
    
    <1%
- Congregationalist family (mainline trad.)
  
  1%
  - United Church of Christ
    
    <1%
  - Other Congregationalist (mainline trad.)
    
    <1%
- Reformed family (mainline trad.)
  
  <1%
  - Reformed Church in America
    
    <1%
  - Other Reformed (mainline trad.)
    
    <1%
- Anabaptist family (mainline trad.)
  
  <1%
- Friends family (mainline trad.)
  
  <1%
- Nonspecific Protestant family (mainline trad.)
  
  2%
  - Nonspecific/Other Protestant family (mainline trad.)
    
    2%
Historically Black Protestant

6%
- Baptist family (historically Black Protestant trad.)
  
  3%
  - National Baptist Convention of America
    
    <1%
  - National Baptist Convention, USA
    
    1%
  - Progressive National Baptist Convention
    
    <1%
  - Independent Baptist (historically Black Protestant trad.)
    
    <1%
  - Missionary Baptist (historically Black Protestant trad.)
    
    <1%
  - Other Baptist (historically Black Protestant trad.)
    
    1%
- Methodist family (historically Black Protestant trad.)
  
  <1%
  - African Methodist Episcopal Church
    
    <1%
  - African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church
    
    <1%
  - Christian Methodist Episcopal Church
    
    <1%
  - Other Methodist (historically Black Protestant trad.)
    
    <1%
- Pentecostal family (historically Black Protestant trad.)
  
  1%
  - Church of God in Christ
    
    1%
  - Apostolic Pentecostal (historically Black Protestant trad.)
    
    <1%
  - Other Pentecostal (historically Black Protestant trad.)
    
    <1%
- Holiness family (historically Black Protestant trad.)
  
  <1%
- Nondenominational family (historically Black Protestant trad.)
  
  <1%
- Nonspecific Protestant family (historically Black Protestant trad.)
  
  1%
  - Nonspecific/Other Protestant family (historically Black Protestant trad.)
    
    1%
Catholic

21%
Latter-day Saint (Mormon)

2%
Orthodox Christian

1%
Jehovah's Witness

<1%
Other Christian

1%
- Metaphysical family
  
  <1%
  - Spiritualist
    
    <1%
  - Unity Church
    
    <1%
  - Other metaphysical Christian ("Other Christian" trad.)
    
    <1%
- Others in the "Other Christian" tradition
  
  1%

Jewish

1%
Muslim

1%
Buddhist

1%
Hindu

1%
Other world religions

<1%
Something else

2%
- Unitarians and other liberal faiths
  
  1%
  - Unitarian
    
    <1%
  - Humanist
    
    <1%
  - Deist
    
    <1%
  - Spiritual but not religious
    
    1%
  - Eclectic/A bit of everything/"I have my own beliefs"
    
    <1%
  - Other in the "Unitarian and other liberal faiths" family
    
    <1%
- New Age
  
  1%
  - Pagan or Wiccan
    
    <1%
  - Other in the New Age family
    
    <1%
- Native American religions
  
  <1%

Atheist

2%
Agnostic

4%
Nothing in particular

17%

Note: 1% did not answer the question. Figures may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
Margin of error for 2023-24 figures based on adults who believe people have a soul or spirit in addition to their physical body is ±0.8 percentage points.

Religious Landscape Study

People who believe people have a soul or spirit in addition to their physical body

Religious composition

Christians

Other religions

Religiously unaffiliated

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Demographics

Beliefs & practices

Decline of Christianity in the U.S. Has Slowed, May Have Leveled Off

Methodology for the 2023-24 Religious Landscape Study

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People who believe people have a soul or spirit in addition to their physical body

Religious composition

Tab Contents

Demographics

Beliefs & practices

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