Fewer than one in four Americans (24%) now believe the Bible is 'the actual word of God, and is to be taken literally, word for word'. However, about half of Americans feel that the Bible is the inspired word of God but that not all of it should be taken literally. The figures come from a Gallup poll, based on telephone interviews conducted between May 3-7, 2017, randomly sampling 1,011 adults.
26% view it as 'a book of fables, legends, history and moral precepts recorded by man'.
The percentage of literal believers has gradually decreased for about 10 years from the mid-1970s from almost 40%. In a stark contrast, the percentage who defines the Bible as just stories has doubled – most of the increase happening since 2014.
Non-white Americans, adults aged 50 and over and adults without a college education tend to make up the people who believe that the Bible is the word of God, rather than stories and history.
However, those who are more sceptic that literalist, tend to be men, whites, adults aged 18 to 29 as well as those aged 30 to 49 and college graduates.
The figures indicate that, the greatest swing is happening among young people, which could mean that this trend may speed up over the next few years.
Americans across all the age groups still accept the Bible as a holy document, but are not as focused on God's direct role in it. This may mean people are more willing than previously, to believe that the Bible is open to interpretation. With this in mind, it may have consequences for how Americans start to feel on certain moral issues.