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Americans Identify Holy Books

A 2008 survey by The Barna Group asked 1,008 U.S. adults to list the books they considered holy. The only book to be listed by above 5 percent was the Bible (84 percent). The Koran was listed by 4 percent; the Book of Mormon, 3 percent; the Torah, 2 percent. Other books which were listed by less than 1 percent of those surveyed included the Bhagavad, the Talmud, and the Teachings of Buddha.

A few additional statistics of interest concerning the 84 percent that listed the Bible as holy:

  • Of those who do not claim to be Christians, 38 percent listed the Bible as holy.

  • Men (78 percent) were less likely to list the Bible as holy than women (90 percent).

  • Political liberals (69 percent) were less likely to list the Bible as holy than political conservatives (93 percent).

  • Those under the age of 40 (77 percent) were less likely to list the Bible as holy than those who were older (93 percent), while 67 percent of those between the ages of 18–23 listed the Bible as holy.

  • Affluent individuals (77 percent) were less likely to list the Bible as holy than those who were in a lower income bracket (88 percent).

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Top Ten Favorite Books of U.S. Adults

A 2008 Harris Initiative online poll of 2,513 U.S. adults revealed America's top ten favorite books:

  1. The Bible

  2. Gone with the Wind, by Margaret Mitchell

  3. Lord of the Rings (trilogy), by J. R. R. Tolkien

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Most Americans Have High View of Scripture

According to a 2007 Gallup poll:

  • Thirty-one percent of Americans believe the Bible is literal and inerrant.

  • Ten percent of Americans with no religious affiliation believe the Bible is the literal word of God.

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