The enduring appeal of the ‘spiritual but not religious’ label

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When I first joined the Deseret News and became a full-time religion reporter, talking about the “spiritual but not religious” was all the rage. Scholars, pastors, parents and journalists alike wanted to know more about the rising share of Americans who identified with spirituality but not with religion.

My editor at the time, Matt, seemed to be one of the only people in the country who was skeptical of this group and what they claimed to believe.

He assumed the rise of “spiritual but not religious” Americans could be explained by discomfort with the term “religious” rather than a truly unique set of ideas and behaviors — and he found scholars who concluded the same thing.

“People who occupy this spiritual-but-not-religious category are really few and far between if you look at what people believe and practice,” Nancy Ammerman, a professor of the sociology of religion at Boston University, told Matt in 2013. She noted that the label says more about someone’s political or moral views than their actual beliefs.

Because I worked closely with Matt, I came to share his skepticism. I didn’t doubt that many Americans felt “spiritual but not religious,” but I assumed their self-assessment stemmed from a discomfort with organized religion.

Luckily for me (and Matt), the “spiritual but not religious” moved out of the spotlight after a few years. Religion reporters and scholars began to focus more on the “rise of the nones,” that is, the group of Americans who don’t affiliate with a religious organization even if they believe in God and regularly pray.

I thought my days of thinking about the “spiritual but not religious” were over. I was wrong.

A new Gallup poll, which was released Friday, serves as a reminder that the “spiritual but not religious” label is alive and well. Gallup found that 33% of Americans describe themselves that way, while 47% say they’re religious and 2% say they’re both.

The new research shows the enduring appeal of the label that I’ve questioned. Clearly, the idea of being “spiritual but not religious” has continued to resonate with people, even after it stopped being talked about in news reports all the time.

Although Gallup’s new report is not as in-depth as the research Matt wrote about in 2013, it hints at the same phenomenon that Ammerman described. Today, as in the past, politics seems to influence whether or not someone claims to be “spiritual but not religious.”

“Among party groups, Republicans are the most likely to identify as religious, with 61% doing so, while 28% say they are spiritual. More independents say they are religious (44%) than spiritual (32%), while Democrats are about equally as likely to say they are spiritual (41%) as religious (37%),” Gallup reported.

Moving forward, I’m going to stop being so dismissive of the “spiritual but not religious” group. Instead, I’ll think and write more about why the label remains appealing.

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Term of the week: Ichma

The Ichma culture predated the better-known Inca Empire in the area of South America that we now know as Peru. It “formed around A.D. 1100 and expanded through the valleys of what is now Lima until it was incorporated into the Inca Empire in the late 15th century,” according to The Associated Press.

The Ichma culture was in the news over the weekend after workers in Lima uncovered funeral bales from that time period while working on a gas-line project. The bales contained the remains of several people, including children.

Excavation work in Lima “over the last 19 years has produced more than 1,900 archaeological finds of various kinds, including mummies, pottery and textiles,” The Associated Press reported.

What I’m reading

After stumbling upon the story this summer, I finally read (and loved!) ESPN’s in-depth look at how Frank Reich went from the NFL to the ministry and then back again.

Pew Research Center recently dug into how Pope Francis has reshaped the College of Cardinals over the past decade. By appointing a larger-than-normal share of cardinals from outside of Europe, the pope ensured that the group of Catholic leaders who will eventually vote for his successor is more diverse than it’s ever been before.

I also enjoyed reading some faith-sports crossover stories from my colleagues this week:

• Joe Coles wrote about Pat McAfee’s comments on religion during his show with two former NFL players who are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

• Jay Drew highlighted how BYU backup quarterback Jake Retzlaff, who is Jewish, is balancing his commitment to football with his commitment to his faith.

Odds and ends

Here’s one more interesting tidbit from Gallup’s new report on religion and spirituality: Americans between the ages of 30 and 49 are the most likely to describe themselves as “spiritual but not religious.” Thirty-seven percent of members of this age group claim the label, compared to 28% of 18-29-year-olds, 34% of 50-64-year-olds and 30% of those 65 or older.

My toddler and I had the pleasure of hanging out with my family at a wiener roast this weekend. While there, I created a bold new recipe that involves using potato salad as a hot-dog topping instead of ketchup or mustard. Try it and thank me later.