For the first time in American history, fewer than 50% of Americans say they belong to a church, synagogue, mosque or other religious congregation, according to a new Gallup poll reported by the Washington Post.
In a poll released Monday, 47% of American reported belonging to a religious congregation, the first timey a minority have reported such an affiliation since they started asking the question in 1937, when membership was at 73%.
Also in a first, a minority, 48%, said that religion was very important to them. Church membership is directly correlated to the age of the respondent: 66% of people over the age of 75 said they belonged to a church, versus just 36% of millenials.
While many people consider themselves religious, connection to a specific religion or congregation is less important. Regardless of if one is asked about religious affiliation, denomination identification or church membership, American participation in organized religious groups is at an all-time low.
“We have to start thinking about what the world looks like in terms of politics, policy, social service,” Ryan Burge, an assistant professor of political science at Eastern Illinois University and a pastor in the American Baptist Church, said. “How do we feed the hungry, clothe the naked when Christians are half of what it was. Who picks up the slack, especially if the government isn’t going to?”