A significant majority of U.S. churchgoers report hearing their pastors discuss controversial topics like abortion, Israel, and homosexuality, with specific stances emerging on these issues.



A majority of U.S. churchgoers say their pastor has addressed hot-button political or social issues in recent months, with abortion, Israel, and homosexuality emerging as the most prominent topics, according to a Pew Research Center.

The poll of regular churchgoers found that 35 percent say their pastor has addressed abortion in recent months, with 34 percent saying the same about Israel, and 31 percent saying the pastor discussed homosexuality. By far, U.S. pastors are more likely to speak out against abortion and homosexuality and in support of Israel, according to the data.

A majority of regular churchgoers, 66 percent, say their pastor has addressed at least one political or social issue in recent months.

Pew defined regular churchgoers as those who attend at least once or twice a month.

“Fewer Americans say they’ve recently heard the clergy at their place of worship speak in favor of abortion rights, encourage acceptance of people who are gay or lesbian, or criticize Israel,” a Pew analysis said.

For example, among regular churchgoers, 30 percent say their pastor spoke out against abortion in recent months, while only 2 percent say the pastor expressed support for it. On homosexuality, 20 percent say their pastor spoke out against it, compared to 3 percent who say the pastor voiced support. Meanwhile, 15 percent say their pastor expressed support for Israel, while just 3 percent say the pastor spoke out critically against the Jewish state.

On abortion, churchgoers who attend Catholic churches (49 percent) and predominantly white evangelical Protestant churches (43 percent) are more likely than those who attend predominantly black Protestant churches (20 percent) and predominantly white non-evangelical Protestant churches (18 percent) to say their pastor addressed the controversial issue.

Meanwhile, about one-fourth of regular churchgoers say they’ve heard their pastor address immigration (27 percent), U.S. military action in Iran (25 percent), the environment (24 percent), or individuals who identify as transgender (23 percent).

Pew Research Center found that Americans who regularly attend religious services are more likely to hear sermons emphasizing the need to welcome and support immigrants (15 percent) than calls for stricter immigration enforcement (3 percent), support for protecting the environment (15 percent) than opposition to environmental regulations (3 percent), and opposition to transgender identity (15 percent) than messages affirming people who identify as transgender (3 percent).

“The messages from American pulpits appear to be more mixed when it comes to U.S. military action in Iran,” Pew said. “About one-in-ten regular attenders (8 percent)) say they have recently heard their clergy speak in opposition to the U.S. military action in Iran, while 4 percent say their religious leaders have spoken in support of it. An additional 9 percent report that their clergy have talked about the conflict without supporting or opposing it.”

Catholics are the religious subgroup most likely to say they’ve heard their pastor discuss immigration (41 percent) or environmental issues (28 percent), while white evangelical Protestants are the least likely to report hearing sermons on those topics – 18 percent on immigration and 13 percent on the environment.

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