Religion & Government

Although Catholicism has long been one of the largest U.S. religious groups, John F. Kennedy and Joe Biden are the only Catholic presidents.

When it comes to religious affiliation, the 117th U.S. Congress looks similar to the previous Congress but quite different from Americans overall.

Government restrictions in 2018 were at their highest level since 2007, when Pew Research Center began tracking these trends.

In 2018, the global median level of government restrictions on religion – that is, laws, policies and actions by officials that impinge on religious beliefs and practices – continued to climb, reaching an all-time high since Pew Research Center began tracking these trends in 2007.

When it comes to abortion, members of Congress are starkly divided by party. Yet the partisan divide among Americans themselves is less stark.

President Trump has called himself a defender of religious liberty. But how do Americans see his administration’s effect on religious groups?

Only 10 states are preventing in-person religious gatherings in any form, according to our analysis of recent state-level regulations.

About half of Americans say the Bible should have at least “some” influence on U.S. laws; 23% say it should have “a great deal” of influence.

Christians are more likely than religiously unaffiliated Americans to see the Supreme Court favorably (69% vs. 51%).

Teens in the South express their religion in school more often than teens in other parts of the United States.