By Aaron Earls
In the 2020 State of Theology study, Lifeway Research found 66% of Americans believe the biblical accounts of the physical resurrection of Jesus are completely accurate.
One in 5 (20%) don’t believe the accounts are true, while 14% say they aren’t sure.
Knowing whether someone accepts Jesus’ resurrection as a historical fact can make a significant difference in how we evangelize them.
While 2 in 3 Americans believe the Easter accounts, there are some groups who are less likely to accept them as the gospel truth.
Men
Male adults are slightly less likely than females to agree with the biblical narratives surrounding Jesus’ resurrection (63% to 69%).
More wealthy
American adults who make more than $100,000 a year are the most likely to say they do not believe in the resurrection. A quarter (25%) disagree the accounts are accurate.
Northeast residents
There are no significant differences between the other three regions of the country, but those who live in the Northeast are less likely (60%).
Young adults
Those age 18-34 are the age demographic least likely to accept Jesus’ bodily resurrection (59%).
More educated
Though more than 64% of every education level believe the biblical accounts, those with a high school degree or less (71%) are the education level most likely to believe.
Ethnicities besides African American
African American adults are the most likely to believe the resurrection happened (77%) and least likely to disagree (10%).
Other ethnicities are more likely to say they do not believe the accounts are accurate, including Asian Americans (26%), whites (21%), Hispanic Americans (19%), and other ethnicities (30%).
Non-churchgoers
Those who do not attend religious services at least monthly are more than three times as likely as those who attend to say they do not believe the biblical accounts (29% to 8%).
Mainline Protestants and Catholics
More than 7 in 10 mainline Protestants and Catholics say they believe in Jesus’ physical resurrection, but that is fewer than the more than 9 in 10 evangelicals and Black Protestants who say they believe.
Large city residents
While around 2 in 3 Americans in cities with 100,000 or more in population are just as likely to believe in the resurrection as everyone else (65%), they are more likely than others to say they do not believe (21%).
AARON EARLS (@WardrobeDoor) is online editor of Facts & Trends.
