record-low share of Houstonians suppose Bible is God’s ...

the share of Houstonians who believe the Bible is the exact word of God dropped to its lowest point in well-nigh 40 years, according to a brand new survey.

The records with the aid of Rice tuition's Kinder Institute found simplest about 28 % of Houstonians described the Bible as being the literal be aware of God. It marked the bottom share because Rice researchers first asked the question in 1982, and a precipitous drop due to the fact 2011, when roughly 42 % of respondents mentioned the same.

meanwhile, the proportion of Houstonians who trust the Bible is God's "inspired note" hit its 2d-highest price over the remaining two decades, with a little greater than half of respondents agreeing.

launched Monday, the file also discovered continuing changes in the manner Houston residents view different religion-linked concerns.

"Favorable" views toward Muslims, for instance, have basically doubled over the remaining decade to roughly 60 p.c this 12 months, the survey found. And opinions about "homosexual rights" have in a similar way shifted over time.

"The surveys verify the impressive nationwide shift within the public's aid for homosexual rights," the document's authors wrote. "The proportion of Harris County residents who had been in desire of homosexuals being legally authorized to adopt toddlers grew from 17 percent in 1991 to sixty two % today, and their help for homosexual marriage elevated from 34 percent in 1993 to sixty three % in 2019."

also exceptional are the survey's findings on stances towards abortion, which the document called "paradoxical."

"In sharp distinction with the growing aid for gay rights, Houstonians' attitudes toward abortion rights have remained remarkably stable," the document says. "across the entire years of the surveys, area residents have persevered to espouse a position that's both anti-abortion and pro-alternative."

The record persisted: "The pro-existence respondents proceed to be extra possible than the seasoned-option respondents to assert that they're going to vote on the basis of that one difficulty alone, but the change between the two groups in single-problem voting changed into smaller in the 2020 survey than in old years."

robert.downen@chron.com