Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
Global Restrictions on Religion, a new study by the Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life, finds that 64 nations – about one-third of the countries in the world – have high or very high restrictions on religion.
Aug. 20-27 Survey Results for this survey are based on telephone interviews conducted under the direction of Princeton Survey Research Associates International among a nationwide sample of 2,003 adults, 18 years of age or older, from August 20-27, 2009 (1,502 respondents were interviewed on a landline telephone, and 501 were interviewed on a cell phone, […]
More than eight years after former President George W. Bush unveiled his faith-based initiative to make it easier for religious groups to receive government funding to provide social services, the policy continues to draw broad public support. But as was the case when Bush first announced the initiative, many Americans express concerns about blurring the […]
Navigate this Report: Accounting for Differences in Coverage Scope and Timing of the Coverage Response to the Initiative Becomes the Narrative Faith Traditions Highlighted in 2001 and 2009 An Inside-the-Beltway Story Methodology When he took over the White House in January 2009, President Barack Obama quickly adopted much of the “faith-based initiative” put into place […]
The White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, established by President Barack Obama, plans to expand partnerships between the government and faith-based and community organizations for the delivery of social services. What lessons can be learned from the preceding eight years of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives under President George […]
School children utter the phrase “one nation under God” as part of the Pledge of Allegiance. The national motto, “In God We Trust,” appears on U.S. currency. Congress and many state legislatures start their sessions with prayers, and the U.S. Supreme Court opens oral arguments with the invocation “God save the United States and this […]
Washington, D.C. In the Hein v. Freedom From Religion Foundation decision in June 2007, the U.S. Supreme Court made it more difficult for courts to enforce the Establishment Clause’s restrictions on government funding of religion. In Hein, the high court ruled that unless a legislative body has specifically directed funding to a religious organization or […]
by David Masci, Senior Research Fellow Oct. 1 marks the 50th anniversary of the appearance of “In God We Trust” on the paper currency of the United States. The phrase, which is the nation’s official motto as well, has been caught in a broader debate over just how high the wall separating church and state […]