American churchgoers are becoming less sure about what the Bible says regarding abortion, human sexuality, and gender, according to a study conducted by Family Research Council’s Center for Biblical Worldview.
The survey was conducted in July of this year and included roughly 1,000 participants. The survey replicated 37 questions from a similar survey that was conducted in June 2023.
The results of the survey indicated that regular churchgoers are less certain than they were two years ago that the Bible is “clear and decisive” on the issues of “legitimate marriage,” sexuality and gender identity, religious liberty, and abortion.
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Of those surveyed, 65% said that the Bible is clear and decisive about “the definition of a legitimate marriage,” down from 75% in 2023. Roughly 8% said that the Bible doesn’t speak to the issue at all in this year’s survey.
Only 47% of participants indicated that the Bible is clear and decisive about “whether homosexuality is morally acceptable,” with 26% saying that the Bible does not speak to the issue. In 2023, 63% said the Bible was clear and decisive on the issue.
In 2025, 40% of those surveyed said that the Bible is clear and decisive about “whether transgenderism is morally acceptable,” down from 52% in 2023.
Approximately 51% said that the Bible is clear about the “morality of aborting an unborn child,” down from 65% in 2023. In 2025, 59% said the Bible is clear and decisive about religious liberty, down from 69%.
“Pastors and ministry leaders should read these results not as cause for discouragement but as a strategic briefing,” the report said in its conclusion. “We need to preach and teach the whole counsel of God, re-ground people in biblical doctrine…and then patiently apply that doctrine to contested questions—life, sexuality, marriage, religious liberty, justice, and civic responsibility.”
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“Churches that catechize well, model compassionate conviction, and equip parents to disciple at home will be best positioned to reverse these trends,” the report added.
