Survey Says Religious Americans Are Less Likely to Believe in Aliens

Milton Quintanilla | Contributor for ChristianHeadlines.com | Published: Jul 30, 2021
Survey Says Religious Americans Are Less Likely to Believe in Aliens

Survey Says Religious Americans Are Less Likely to Believe in Aliens

According to a recent survey by Pew Research, religiously affiliated Americans are less likely to believe in the existence of intelligent life off-world.

The survey, which was conducted June 14-24, 2021, with a national sample of 10,417 adults, revealed that 51 percent of Protestants believed in aliens, which was less than 65 percent of non-religiously affiliated Americans who also held to that notion.

White Evangelicals, however, were most unlikely to believe in aliens (58 percent), Premier Christian News reported. On the other hand, 65 percent of White and non-evangelical Protestants believe in extraterrestrial life. Additional religious groups, such as Black Protestants (55 percent) and Catholics (67 percent) expressed belief in aliens. 

Atheists and Agnostics were found to be the groups most likely to say that there is intelligent life beyond Earth (85 percent each).

White evangelicals were also one of the most unlikely groups to believe that the existence of intelligent life was evidenced by UFOs (35 percent) with atheists expressing further disbelief (31 percent).

Pew Research also noted that the consistency of attending religious services was a key factor in one’s beliefs in aliens. For instance, 44 percent of respondents attending religious services frequently said there is intelligent life while 66 percent of monthly or yearly attendees likewise believed. 

Additionally, people who seldom or never attended religious services were the most likely group to affirm their belief in intelligent life, with 75 percent believing. 

American adults who placed a high value on religion were less likely to believe in aliens than those who did not. About 49 percent of respondents say religion is “very important” as opposed to 83 percent who said religion was “not at all important.”

The survey also found that prayer was found to be a contributing factor with 54 percent of religious Americans, who prayed daily, to say that aliens exist. In contrast, respondents who “seldom/never” pray were most likely to believe in intelligent life. 

As Christian Headlines reported last month, Christian apologist Ken Ham, contended that the Bible makes no case for the existence of intelligent life in outer space.

Ham, who is the founder of Answers in Genesis, addressed the topic last month in a blog as well as on the Answers in Genesis apologetics program Answers News.

While Ham points out that the Bible “does not say whether there is or is not animal [or] plant life in outer space,” he dismissed the possibility of aliens altogether. “But … as far as intelligent life in outer space, I would say absolutely not.”

Photo Courtesy: ©Getty Images/oorka 


Milton Quintanilla is a freelance writer and content creator. He is a contributing writer for Christian Headlines and the host of the For Your Soul Podcast, a podcast devoted to sound doctrine and biblical truth. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Alliance Theological Seminary.



Survey Says Religious Americans Are Less Likely to Believe in Aliens