I am both shocked and fascinated by Americans\u2019 religious literalism. One Gallup report issued last week found that 42 percent of Americans believe \u201cGod created humans in their present form 10,000 years ago.\u201d Even among people who said that they were \u201cvery familiar\u201d with the theory of evolution, a third still believed that God created humans in their present form 10,000 years ago. It\u2019s not clear what the respondents meant by being \u201cvery familiar\u201d \u2014 did they fully understand the science upon which evolution\u2019s based, or was their understanding something short of that, as in, very familiar with it as being antithetical to creationist concepts?\u00a0 <\/span>
<\/span>Whatever the case, on this issue as well as many others in America, the truth is not the light. That is in part because, compared with other developed countries, America stands out for the level and intensity of its religiosity. People are generally more likely to say that religion is an important part of their daily lives in relatively poor countries, but as Gallup pointed out in a 2010 report:\u00a0<\/span>
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