I posted yesterday about a new Pew Research Center survey about national identity. The big takeaway for readers of this site was that 32% of respondents felt that belief in Christianity was very important when it came to being “truly” American.

But there was another really fascinating response in the survey worth mentioning.

The Pew researchers asked people in several other countries if being a Christian was important when it came to national identity. It won’t surprise you that several European countries were less likely to think that’s true. It also won’t surprise you that younger people were less likely to think Christianity was a relevant factor in being a True Whatever than older generations — every single country on the list showed that difference.

Now look at the numbers in Germany:

0% — literally 0% — of Germans 18-34 feel that Christianity is a core ingredient in their national identity. That’s incredible.

The numbers for the same age range were also minuscule in the Netherlands and Sweden. (For the sake of comparison, 18% of people 18-34 felt Christianity was a core part of being a True American while 44% of people 50 and older said the same thing.)

There’s hope for the future.

(Thanks to H J for the link)



