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Talk about the U.S. Supreme Court's decision this past week to hear a Colorado baker's appeal over the right to refuse to sell a wedding cake to a same-sex couple, and you're likely to get an earful.
What's more important, you may ask, religious or sexual freedom? Well, brace for a fiery debate and, in the case of a LifeWay Research poll, sharply divided and ultimately inconclusive results.
The Nashville, Tenn.-based organization found that 48 percent of the 1,000 Americans it surveyed said religious freedom should trump sexuality in such cases. Nearly a quarter (24 percent) said sexual freedom should prevail; 28 percent were unsure.
"It's clear Americans value religious liberty," LifeWay Research Executive Director Scott McConnell said of the results released Tuesday. "But when it comes to sex, they aren't sure religion should have the final word."
While the survey (conducted Sept. 27-Oct. 1, 2016) did not reflect a direct reaction to the Supreme Court case, it did show a sharply polarized landscape.
As might be expected, Americans with evangelical Christian backgrounds (74 percent) overwhelmingly backed an individual's exercise of religious freedom in such clashes.
Nonevangelicals still were "more likely" to choose religious over sexual freedom when the two clash, but with perhaps less conviction. Mainline Protestants came in at 68 percent, Catholics 49 percent; the catch-all category of "other religions" was at 53 percent, while 15 percent of "nonreligious" respondents tipped to the faith side of the scale.
Asked what motivates believers who clash with sexual freedom advocates, 49 percent of respondents said it was faith; 20 percent insisted it was hate; and 31 percent were undecided.
The overall poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
Bob Mims