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Motivational guru Zig Ziglar liked to say he read the Bible and a newspaper every day. "That way, I know what both sides are up to," he quipped.

The late Ziglar's reading choices — either one, actually — put him in a small minority of Americans. While various studies estimate almost nine of 10 Americans own a Bible, more often than not the all-time best-seller simply collects dust, whether on a nightstand, tucked away on a bookshelf or in an attic trunk.

In a study released Tuesday, LifeWay Research found that 53 percent of 1,000 Americans it surveyed had read little or none of all of the scriptural canon.

Almost one in 10 (9 percent) have read the Old and New Testaments through more than once; 11 percent have done so once; 12 percent responded they have read "almost all of it;" and 15 percent said they have read half.

Scott McConnell, LifeWay Research's executive director, echoes pastoral laments over the biblical illiteracy of their flocks.

"Most Americans don't know firsthand the overall story of the Bible — because they rarely pick it up. Even among worship attendees less than half read the Bible daily," McConnell stated. "The only time most Americans hear from the Bible is when someone else is reading it."

Consistency of Bible reading coincided with church attendance, LifeWay researchers found: 39 percent of those attending a service at least once monthly read scripture daily. However, just 13 percent who attended less than once a month bothered to pick up their Bible.

Evangelical Christians are more likely to read the scriptures daily (49 percent) than those of nonevangelical persuasions, Overall, Protestants (36 percent) read the Bible more often that Catholics (17 percent).

Bob Mims