Church Attendance Surge Over: For the last three decades, Gallup Poll has found the percentage of Americans who attend church or synagogue weekly to hover between 39% and 43%. In May ‘01, the figure was 41%, in the 10 days after 9/11, it climbed to 47%—a noticeable rise, but no more than what is usual during the Christmas or Easter seasons. By early November, attendance had dropped back to 42%. George Barna, Barna Research Group, found a larger rise in church attendance than the Gallup Poll did, as well as a slight increase in Sunday school attendance. But Mr. Barna found no change in the number of people who said they had prayed to God, read the Bible, participated in a small prayer group, volunteered at church or made time for personal prayer or meditation. Even the number of those who said religious faith was very important in their lives stayed the same. He said. “I think it confirms that for the most part we take faith for granted, and we turn to religion in times of crisis. But after the immediate crisis passes, so does our flirtation with any kind of deeper faith.” Bookstores have been reporting many requests for Bibles and books on Islam. But over all, the sales figures for religious books after 9/11 “are really mixed,” said Bill Anderson, President of CBA. (NY Times 11/26/01)
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