Friday, December 26, 2003
U.S. JESUS POLL SPARKS DEBATE
Americans, for the most part, believe in the historical reality of Jesus.
An Ohio University survey of 1,054 U.S. adults revealed that 75 percent "absolutely believe" that Jesus was a real person. Only 5 percent "do not believe" he was an historical reality.
But what Americans accept about Jesus is much more complex.
Nearly one out of five people don't believe that Jesus was born to the Virgin Mary. Sixty percent said they "absolutely believe" Jesus was born to a virgin, 16 percent mostly believe and 5 percent are uncertain.
Americans have more confidence that Jesus "died and rose from the dead," with 63 percent saying they believe the traditional Easter story.
But those polled were more likely to conclude that "Jesus was the son of God" - 69 percent - than to believe the biblical accounts of his birth and death.
The survey results prompted deep disagreement among prominent U.S. theologians.
"This shows a glaring inconsistency in the American mind: to hold that Jesus was divine but that he did not rise from the dead or was born of a virgin," said the Rev. Al Mohler, head of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky.
But Marcus Borg - distinguished professor of religion and culture at Oregon State University - said the poll shows that many Americans are re-evaluating the traditional, literal interpretations of Jesus.
"There are a growing number of Christians who understand the story of Jesus' birth and resurrection as metaphoric and symbolic," said Borg. "They want to take the Bible seriously, but not literally."
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