This Halloween, millions of Americans will carve pumpkins, dress up in costumes, decorate their yards, and gobble down the candy they get while trick-or-treating. America’s preachers also hope they’ll consider coming to church, according to a new phone survey of 1,000 Protestant senior pastors from Nashville-based Lifeway Research.
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2016 Election Exposes Evangelical Divides
Americans with evangelical beliefs share a great deal in common. They trust in Jesus alone, evangelize their neighbors, and believe the Bible is the final authority in their lives. But when it comes to voting, race and political affiliation still divide evangelicals, according to a survey from Nashville-based Lifeway Research taken before the second presidential debate.
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Pastors Prefer ‘Undecided’ to Clinton or Trump
Political endorsements by preachers have been few and far between this election season. That may be because the most popular candidate among preachers is “I don’t know.”
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Americans Love God and the Bible, Are Fuzzy on the Details
Americans don’t know much about theology. Most say God wrote the Bible. But they’re not sure everything in it is true. Six in 10 say everyone eventually goes to heaven, but half say only those who believe in Jesus will be saved. And while 7 in 10 say there’s only one true God—Father, Son and Holy Spirit—two-thirds say God accepts worship of all faiths.
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Skip the Endorsements in Church, Say Most Americans
Since the 1950s, the IRS has banned preachers from endorsing candidates during church services. Most Americans seem to like it that way. Eight in 10 (79 percent) say it is inappropriate for pastors to endorse a candidate in church. Three-quarters say churches should steer clear of endorsements.
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Research: Few Pastors Asked to Perform Same-Sex Weddings, Less Than Half Allow LGBT to Serve in Church
More than 100,000 same-sex couples have tied the knot since the Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriages nationwide last year. But for preachers, being asked to do a same-sex wedding remains rare. A new survey by Nashville-based Lifeway Research found 11 percent of Protestant senior pastors have been asked to perform a same-sex wedding.
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