The big trends are clear, the nominals are becoming the nones, yet the convictional are remaining committed.<\/p>\n
In other words, Americans whose Christianity was nominal\u201d\u201din name only\u201d\u201dare casting aside the name. They are now aligning publicly with what they\u2019ve actually not believed all along.<\/p>\n
The percentage of convictional Christians remains rather steady, but because the nominal Christians now are unaffiliated the overall percentage of self-identified Christians is decline. This overall decline is what Pew shows\u201d\u201dand I expect it to accelerate.<\/p>\n
As I have said before, not one serious researcher thinks Christianity in America is dying. What we see from Pew is not the death-knell of Christianity, but another indication that Christianity in America is being refined.<\/p>\n