Although religious involvement in politics is often associated with the right wing, a new study by Princeton University suggests the contrary: that Americans affiliated with religious organizations tend to be interested in liberal and moderate causes.
More than 5,000 adults around the United States were surveyed by Princeton's Survey Research Center as part of a larger effort to assess the public role of religion, particularly that of the mainline Protestant denominations, which represent about 20 million people.
"The perception that religious groups are really only interested in conservative issues is not true," said Princeton sociologist Robert Wuthnow, who directed the study. "They are not only focused on issues such as abortion or prayer in the schools. Progressive issues do seem to be of enormous importance to people."
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