Americans on Sin (Research done by the Ellison Corp. I first saw this on A Place for the God Hungry. Here are a few snippets:
87% believe in the concept of sin. “Sin” was defined in the research as “something that is almost always considered wrong, particularly from a religious or moral perspective.”People who believe there is such a thing as “sin” were asked whether they would personally define each of thirty different behaviors as sinful. The behaviors a majority of all Americans describe as sinful are:
Adultery 81% Racism 74% Using “hard” drugs such as cocaine, heroine, meth, LSD, etc. 65% Not saying anything if a cashier gives you too much change back 63% Having an abortion 56% Homosexual activity or sex 52% Not reporting some income on your tax returns 52%The behaviors that fewer than one-third of all Americans see as sinful:
Gambling 30% Telling a “little white lie” to avoid hurting someone’s feelings 29% Using tobacco 23% Not attending church or religious worship services on a regular basis 18% Playing the lottery 18% Watching an R-rated movie 18% Being significantly overweight 17% Not giving 10% of your income to a church or charity 16% Drinking any alcohol 14% Working on Sunday/the Sabbath 14% Spanking your child when he/she misbehaves 7% Making a lot of money 4% Dancing 4%