A recent survey has revealed that the majority of Americans believe the Bible is important, but much fewer actually make time to read it.
The survey was released by the American Bible Society, in partnership with the Barna Group. According to OneNewsNow.com, the American Bible Society has released their “report card” survey on Americans’ views on the Bible for the past eight years.
The survey found that six in 10 or 58 percent of Americans recognize the Bible’s importance and wish they read it more. But American Bible Society spokesman Geof Morin says, “wishing, as you know, doesn’t make it so. They still need to make good choices about engaging with the scriptures.”
About one in five Americans are actively reading their Bibles. The American Bible Society refers to these individuals as “engaged” Americans.
Morin explained, “engaged” Americans “are positive about the scriptures —but they’re also actively engaging with the scriptures themselves.”
Interestingly, in China, where the Bible was banned for many years, a Church in Beijing is now in the middle of an 80 hour Bible reading marathon. The purpose is to help brothers and sisters think about the suffering and resurrection of Christ.
The survey also found that more Americans are concerned about the decline of morality in American society. Eighty-one percent of survey participants said they believe morals are declining.
“In fact,” said Morin, “it’s at a pretty speedy decline from asking the same question last year. It increased five percent.”