LOS ANGELES — Contrary to stereotypical labels like “Godless Hollywood” and “Lost Angeles,” Los Angeles is the metropolitan area with the greatest number of evangelical adults. Its 1 million faithful Christians are more than those in the New York, Chicago and Boston metropolitan areas combined, according to a study by The Barna Group.
But George Barna was quick to put the statistics in perspective.
“Keep in mind that the metropolitan L.A. market is huge; it contains more than 10 million adults,” Barna said. “Even though its percentage of Christians is below the national average, its population is so massive that it emerged as the largest accumulation of believers. However, looking at its aggregate score as a Christian place, L.A. is 13 percent below the national average.”
The report also found that Little Rock, Ark., is the market with the highest percentage of evangelicals at 22 percent, which means more than one out of every five residents are evangelical. Of the 86 largest metro areas in the nation, those with the lowest portion of evangelicals were Salt Lake City; Hartford, Conn.; and Providence, R.I., Barna said.
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