PRRI Survey on Pluralism in a Divided Nation

A recent article by Paul Brandeis Raushenbush at Religion News Service brought an important survey to my attention. The survey is titled “American Democracy in Crisis: The Fate of Pluralism in a Divided Nation”.One of the statistics that jumped out at me is summarized by Raushenbush:

”According to a startling Pluralism Survey completed this year by Public Religion Research Institute, only 50% of Americans say they have meaningful interactions with religious groups outside of their own more than once a week. One in 10 Americans, PRRI found, say they never have any interactions with people whose religious backgrounds or worldviews differ from their own.   

“For Americans ages 19-29, the numbers are even lower. Despite their connectedness online, younger generations are actually worse at interacting with people of other backgrounds. Instead of weaving together a unified tapestry of a nation, we are creating a ragged quilt with only the loosest of strings holding together our proximate, discrete parts.” 

Our lack of interaction with people who differ from us on religion and politics is polarizing the nation even further. Multi-faith Matters works to bring Evangelical Christians into conversation and relationship with those in other religions as a way of not only fulfilling the Great Commission and Great Commandments, but also as a way of overcoming our national fracturing.