Sad News: Minority of American Adults Believe in Absolute Truth When Determining Right and Wrong

Fewer than half (44%) of US adults say clear and absolute standards exist for determining moral decisions of what is right and what is wrong. A majority (55%) believe in circumstantial ethics, saying that whether something is right or wrong often depends on the situation, according to Pew Research Center’s 2023-24 Religious Landscape Study (RLS).

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Additionally, only 30% of American adults say it is necessary to believe in God in order to be moral and have good values, while 68% say it’s possible to be moral and have good values without believing in God.

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Only slightly more than half of Americans (53%) say religious teachings and beliefs are extremely important or very important when making decisions between right and wrong. But the percentage of US adults who say this is considerably lower than the shares who view practical experience and common sense (93%), logic and reason (92%), and scientific information (75%) as extremely or very important for moral decision-making.

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The vast majority of US adults at all levels of religiousness say that “practical experience and common sense” and “logic and reason” are extremely or very important for deciding between right and wrong.

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Other parts of the RLS look at trends in the size of US religious groups, the demographics of US religious groups, and US adults’ religious practices and beliefs.

The video below is of Dr. Erwin Lutzer, author, radio speaker, and pastor emeritus of The Moody Church in Chicago, who spoke at the Maranatha Bible Missionary Conference, Vacation, & Retreat Center, in Norton Shores, MI, on the topic of “Truth or Truthiness: Telling the Truth in an Age of Lies.” He says: All truth has its source in God. All truth is exclusive. All truth is objective. Truth can be offensive. Truth is very costly.

For further reading: What Does It Mean to Live in a Post-Truth World?: An Interview with Abdu Murray

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