Protestants are most likely to credit the Bible as the inerrant word of God to be taken literally, according to a Gallup Poll. The rest of the population largely said the Bible might be inspired by God, but not literally so.
Gallup has been asking the question since 1991, and the answers remain remarkably unchanged. About 31 percent said they believe the Good Book is infallible. Forty-seven percent said they see the Bible as the inspired word of God, but not to be taken literally.
Frank Newport, editor in chief at Gallup, said we still live in a country where God’s word is taken seriously.
“Religious people around the world who believe that a religious document is inerrant will engage in behaviors and support types of policies which are significantly different than others might and those have real implications for society,” he told Family News in Focus.
The other steady result is that belief in the Bible correlates with church attendance and Protestant theology. Dr. Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, said such a connection makes sense.
“People who take the Bible seriously are going to go to church," he said. "And if they go to church, they’re going to hear sermons, and they’re going to have Sunday school lessons that are going to teach them that the Bible is the inerrant and infallible word of God.”
Add the people who say the whole Bible is the direct word of God with those who see it as divinely inspired, but who do not take all parts literally, and nearly 80 percent of Americans consider the Bible to be a major source of truth.
“This is a very religious country," Land said, "and it’s getting more so, not less so."
