North America and Europe
According to a Pew Research Center estimation in 2020, about 2.38 billion of approximately 8.0 billion people in the world are at least nominally connected to Christianity. Christianity is the largest religion in the world and still growing. It is by no means confined to North America and Europe. According to the Pew Research Center (PRC) data for 2010, the U.S. had the largest absolute number of nominal Christians with 247 million, which constituted 79% of surveyed adults. However, a later PRC 2019 survey showed nominal Christianity in the US had dropped sharply to 65 percent. In 2010, Brazil was second with 176 million and 90 percent of surveyed adults. Mexico was third with 108 million and a nominal 95 percent Christian, and Russia fourth with 105 million (74%). Ranking number five was the Philippines (93%). Nigeria was sixth with 81 million, representing 51 percent of the population. China was seventh with 67 million, which is only 5.0 percent of the population. The Congo ranked eighth with 63 million (96%), Germany ninth with 58 million (71%), and Marxist governed South Africa 53 million (85%).
It is important to note here that nominal identification as a Christian does not necessarily indicate a strong commitment to Biblical Christianity. For Example, a Barna Group study indicated only 48 percent of Americans attended church regularly in 2009, which was its peak over the last 30 years. It fell to 45 percent in 2010, and had declined to only 29 percent in 2020. According to Barna, however, this had risen to 33 percent post-pandemic in 2023. The same survey indicated 33 percent of Americans read their Bible regularly.
In Russia, only 31 percent professed to be Russian Orthodox Christians before the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. Christians had been terribly persecuted, and many were executed under early Communist leaders. But Christian confession had risen from 31 percent to 72 percent by 2008. However, only 7 percent attended church regularly. The most accurate surveys on Russia come from the Levada Center. According to their April 2021 polling, 67 percent of Russian adults are Christians. This is strongest among women, elders, and university graduates. VCOM, a Russian survey agency, has 66 percent, with church attendance more than doubling to 15 percent. Fifty-seven percent strongly identify with the Russian Orthodox Church, down from 2008, but many independent Orthodox and Protestant churches are thriving.
A 2015-2017 PRC survey also revealed that there are strong differences in social attitudes between highly secularized Western Europe and Eastern Europe, where Orthodox Christianity predominates. Eighty-six percent of young Russian adults oppose same-sex marriage. This runs to 82 percent in Ukraine, and 75 percent in Belarus and Serbia. It is 89 percent in Moldova, 94 percent in Georgia, and 95 percent in Armenia. This compares to only 5 percent opposition in Sweden, 6 percent in Denmark, 7-11 percent in Spain, 9 percent in Belgium, 10 percent in the Netherlands, 13 percent in the UK, 15 percent in Germany, and 17 percent in France. Norway is the most conservative Scandinavian country with 19 percent opposition to same-sex marriage. The Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia are more than 60 percent opposed to same-sex marriage.
Support for gay marriage became a majority in the US in 2011. A 2018 Gallup Poll indicated that 60 percent of American parents would not mind if a child chose to marry someone of the same gender. A 2024 Gallop Poll indicated 69 percent of Americans support same-sex marriage and 29 percent oppose it. The strongest opposition is in Southern states and among Republicans.
However, a recent June 2023 PRC survey indicated opposition to same-sex marriage is now increasing in Europe and especially central European countries. The European Union has been trying to push LGBTQ issues, but strong opposition to same-sex marriage is emerging in Hungary 64%, Poland 54%; and Greece 50%. The same survey showed Canadian opposition at only 15% and US opposition rising to 34%. Opposition in Mexico is 33%. Israeli opposition is at 56% and Brazilian opposition at 40%. Indonesia is Muslim and 92% opposed to same-sex marriage. German opposition has increased from 15% to 19%, and UK opposition has increased from 13% to 23%. Six years of social reality is reaping some public approval remorse on LGBTQ issues.
According to a 2020 report compiled by Wikipedia, here are some survey based estimates of nominal Christianity in some of the nations relevant to our discussion.
Armenia 98%; Belarus 55% Belgium 65%, Brazil 90%, Canada 53%, China 3%, Congo 93%,’ Denmark 79%; Egypt 10%; France 51-66%; Georgia 88%; Germany 54%; Greece 93%, Hungary more than 53%; Ireland 84%; Israel 4%; Italy 83%; South Korea 28%, Lebanon 38-41%; Mexico 89%; Netherlands 37%; Nigeria 46%; Norway 77%; Philippines 85%; Poland 94%; Russia 77%; Serbia 91%; Slovakia 69%, Slovenia 68%; South Africa 85%; Spain 59%; Sweden 64%; Syria was 10% before the 2011 war; Turkey 0.2%; Ukraine 82%; UK 38-48%; and US 65%.
Again, these nominal figures tell you something, but not enough. They often only represent forgotten childhood baptisms or shallow commitments. In the case of China, the figures may be underestimated. Although there are three officially approved and heavily regulated government Christian Church denominations in China, the vast majority of Chinese Christians belong to “House churches,” which meet secretly in private homes. Although they are severely persecuted, the number of Christians in China may exceed 100 million.
According to a 2024 World Population Review report the 11 most Christian US states are in order of the percentage of nominally Christian population: Alabama 89%; Louisiana 87%; Mississippi 85% South Dakota 84%, Tennessee 83%; Arkansas 82%; Iowa 82%;, Georgia 81%; North Dakota 81%; Oklahoma 81%; and West Virginia 81%. Of these, Tennessee 52%, was the most evangelical, followed by Alabama 49%; Oklahoma 47%; Arkansas 46%, and Mississippi 41%.
In 2016, the PRC published an extensive study of US Christianity based on 2014 data.. That data is now 10 years old, but thorough enough to remain very important. This survey of “highly religious Christians” was based on four weighted factors. First, and essential was that they considered religion very important in their life. Second, was that they tried to attend church services weekly. Third, they prayed daily, and fourth, they believed in God with absolute certainty. Fifteen states rated 60 percent to 77 percent, and South Dakota came close with 59 percent. Here are the top 16 in order:
Alabama 77%; Mississippi 77%; Tennessee 73%; Louisiana 71%; Arkansas 70%; South Carolina 70%; West Virginia 69%; Georgia 66%; Oklahoma 66%; North Carolina 65%; Texas 64%; Utah 64%; Kentucky 63%; Virginia 61%; Missouri 60%; and South Dakota 59%. The median for the US was 53%. Immigration from abroad and the internal migration within the US have undoubtedly changed some states in the last ten years. Recent immigration to the US has been less Christian than prior migration waves.
Seventeen states had percentages of 33-49%. This includes all of New England, New York, Minnesota, Wisconsin, the whole Pacific coast plus Alaska and Hawaii, and Nevada, Montana, and Colorado. The Pacific Northwest and much of California has undoubtedly been influenced by high-tech migrants from both East and South Asia.
The four least Christian states in this survey were New Hampshire and Massachusetts with 33%, and Maine and Vermont with 34%. Yet we must realize that even in these four states, one third of adults can be classified as “highly religious Christians.”
Immigration from abroad and the internal migration within the US have undoubtedly changed many states in the last ten years. Besides greatly increased cheap-labor migration from Mexico and Central America, more recent immigration has included large numbers of high-tech migrants from both East and South Asia, who with the exception of South Korea, the Philippines, and Vietnam, are much less likely to have a Christian background. In addition, the massive illegal open-border immigration of the Obama-Biden-Kamala regime could have a dramatic anti-Christian impact.
The State of Washington is a good example of the impact of new Asian migration to high-tech industry centers. The State of Washington has a population of nearly 8.0 million. It has increased 63 percent since 1990. In 1990, 89 percent of the population classified itself as white. In 2020, white non-Hispanics were only 64 percent of the population. The number of Asians had almost tripled to 12 percent. A huge 42 percent of the population claims no religion, and only 50 percent are nominally Christian.
A 2019 PRC study found that church attendance by professed Christians, measured by at least “once or twice a month,” has NOT changed since 2009. It was 62 percent in both 2009 and 2018/2019. Church attendance has NOT declined among Christians. US church attendance has declined because the percentage of Christians has fallen. There are undoubtedly several reasons why Christianity is declining in the US, but one of them is obviously immigration.
Another major reason is the growing secular bias of media and education. There is a constant fire-hose of anti-Christian social doctrine gushing from the mainstream media and reinforced by secularized educational institutions. This has more recently been amplified by corporate leaders who fearfully cave to even the most ridiculous woke fashions and cannot summon the courage to say “NO,” even while destroying public, employee, and stock-holder confidence in the enterprise they manage—without a sense of responsibility or honor.
A more tragic contribution, however, is the erosion or denial of Biblical teachings by churches seeking to grow through happy compromise with secular humanism and all-powerful secular media. A prime example is churches that compromise clear Biblical teachings on marriage, family, and the parameters of sexual morality.
One example of church self-destruction can be seen in the recent United Methodist defense of same-sex marriage and LGBQT focuses generally. I haven’t been a Methodist since about 1969, but I happened in a nostalgic mood to check on a former church. Their average attendance had declined from close to 200 to 45. Then I decided to check on the large Methodist church my mother’s family attended and loved in Paragould, Arkansas. It seemed to be thriving, but I found that in the last two years 169 or about percent 25 of Methodist churches in Arkansas had left the denomination in protest of LGBQT issues. Those churches remaining were suffering losses of membership. For a brief Biblical basis for this controversy read Romans 1:16-31.
According to the United Methodist News, over the last four years, 7,659 United Methodist congregations have voted to disaffiliate with the United Methodist Church, about 19 percent of the original total of over 40,000 US congregations. This is the largest church split since the Civil War. A new denomination, the Global Methodist Church, has acquired over 4,000 of the disaffiliated congregations. The Civil War may be a geographically appropriate comparison. Southern UMC congregations departing the UMC totaled 4,517, over 59 percent of the grand total. I have included both Southern and Border States with Southern culture, which include Kentucky, Missouri, Oklahoma, and West Virginia. The largest state loss may be North Carolina with 672 churches leaving.
There have been several conservative US denominations formed in breakaways from larger denominations that were becoming too liberal. In 1973, the Presbyterian Church in American (PCA) broke away from the Presbyterian Church USA over the PCUSA’s increasing doctrinal liberalism. Many Southern Episcopalian church congregations moved to the Anglican Church in North America formed in 2009. The Southern Baptist Convention has had several internal battles to maintain Bible-truth centered Christian doctrine. A good background for understanding and preparing for these battles is Harold Lindsell’s 1978 book, The Battle for the Bible. The Battle for the Bible continues around the world. But despite the tides of unbelief and compromised Biblical teachings, it is our Sovereign God who protects, cleanses, and readies His Church for ultimate victory.
“He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock
I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” - Matthew 16:15-18 ESV
Mike Scruggs is the author of two books: The Un-Civil War: Shattering the Historical Myths; and Lessons from the Vietnam War: Truths the Media Never Told You, and over 600 articles on military history, national security, intelligent design, genealogical genetics, immigration, current political affairs, Islam, and the Middle East. 
