VENTURA, Calif. — A significant majority of gays and lesbians — six in 10 — say faith is important in their lives but heterosexuals generally state such commitments more often, according to a new survey by a Christian research firm. “People who portray gay adults as godless, hedonistic Christian bashers are not working with the facts,” said George Barna, founder of the Barna Group, a Ventura, Calif.-based research company. “A substantial majority of gays cite their faith as a central facet of their lives, consider themselves to be Christian and claim to have some type of meaningful personal commitment to Jesus Christ active in their lives today.”
Among the findings:
- 72 percent of heterosexual adults say faith is important in their lives, compared to 60 percent of homosexual adults.
- 85 percent of straight adults identify themselves as Christians, compared to 70 percent of gay adults.
- 75 percent of heterosexuals say their “personal commitment to Jesus Christ” is still important today, compared to 58 percent of gays and lesbians.
The survey is based on telephone interviews conducted between January 2007 and November 2008 of 9,232 adults. (TAB)
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