Late Night: Democrats More Likely to Believe in Ghosts, Past Lives, Mediums
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A new study by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life reveals that Democrats are more likely than Republicans to have experienced communication with the dead, visited fortune tellers, or seen ghosts. The study, “Many Americans Mix Multiple Faiths,” discovered that
large numbers of Americans engage in multiple religious practices, mixing elements of diverse traditions. Many say they attend worship services of more than one faith or denomination — even when they are not traveling or going to special events like weddings and funerals. Many also blend Christianity with Eastern or New Age beliefs such as reincarnation, astrology and the presence of spiritual energy in physical objects. And sizeable minorities of all major U.S. religious groups say they have experienced supernatural phenomena, such as being in touch with the dead or with ghosts.
It also revealed that Republicans are–depending on your own analysis–less inclined to believe outside the fundamentalist box/more traditionally Christian, and that Democrats are less restrained/more alternative in their religious thinking.
21 percent of Republicans report that they have been in touch with someone who is dead, while 36 percent of Democrats say they have done so. Eleven percent of Republicans say they have seen a ghost, while 21 percent of Democrats say so. And nine percent of Republicans say they have consulted a fortuneteller, while 22 percent of Democrats have.
When Pew asked respondents whether they have had a religious or mystical experience, 50 percent of Democrats said yes, as did 50 percent of Republican. But that’s pretty much where their the similarities ended. Over twice as many Democrats as Republicans believe in astrology and 15% of Republicans believe yoga is a spiritual practice versus 30% of Democrats survey who did. This could have far reaching results in upcoming elections where the language of faith and faith itself may come into play.
The study also reports:
Having been in touch with a dead person is more common among women than men. Women are also twice as likely to have consulted a fortuneteller or psychic. Blacks report more experience feeling in touch with the dead than whites or Hispanics. But they resemble whites and Hispanics on other items, such as encounters with a ghost or consulting a fortuneteller.
And I sense a crowd with pitchforks wearing Palin 2012 shirts outside my gate ready to burn my yoga mat and Aleister Crowley books….
So does that make Republican Scrooges?