More than four in 10 likely voters in the United States believe the coronavirus pandemic is a wake-up call from God or a sign of “coming judgment,” according to a new poll.
The survey asked likely voters a series of questions about the pandemic and faith, including: “Do you see the global coronavirus pandemic and economic meltdown” as “signs of coming judgment” or “a wake-up call for us to turn back to faith in God?”
A total of 44 percent of likely voters picked one or the other or chose both. Twenty-two percent said “both,” 17 percent said it was a wake-up call, and 5 percent said it was a sign of coming judgment. The poll was conducted among 1,000 likely voters between March 23-26 by McLaughlin & Associates for The Joshua Fund, a Christian ministry that supports Israel. McLaughlin & Associates also conducts political polls.
Meanwhile, 29 percent of likely voters agreed that “the coronavirus pandemic and global economic meltdown are evidence that we are living in what the Bible calls the ‘last days.” Fifty-six disagreed.
Joel C. Rosenberg, the founder and president of The Joshua Fund, called the results “stunning.”
“This survey provides a fascinating window into how Americans see the COVID-19 pandemic and how it is dramatically increasing their interest in spiritual matters,” he said.
The survey asked non-Christians if the global pandemic has caused them to “have more interest in God and spiritual matters.” Although 63 percent said it had not, others said it had.
For example:
- 7 percent of non-Christians said they “have started reading the Bible, even though I usually don’t.”
- 8 percent of non-Christians said they are “having more spiritual conversations with family and friends.”
- 5 percent of non-Christians said they have searched online to learn more about Bible prophecy.
- 2 percent of non-Christians said they “have started listening to Bible teaching and/or Christian sermons online, even though I usually don’t.”
Many Christians also have seen their interest in matters of faith increase.
For example:
- 14 percent of Christians said they’re “reading the Bible more than ever before.”
- 16 percent of Christians said they’re “listening/watching Bible teaching and Christian sermons online since I cannot go to church.”
- 10 percent said they’re “searching online to learn more about Bible prophecy and God’s plan for the future of mankind.”
“These are no ordinary times,” Rosenberg said. “Americans in near full lockdown are anxious, and understandably so. Yet millions are turning to God, the Bible and Christian sermons for answers, some of them for the first time. That may be the most important silver lining in this crisis so far.”
Related:
Majority of Americans Praying ‘for an End’ to Coronavirus Pandemic, Pew Says
Record Low 6 Percent of Americans Adhere to a Biblical Worldview, New Study Shows
Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/Yelizaveta Tomashevska
Michael Foust has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years. His stories have appeared in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, The Christian Post, The Leaf-Chronicle, the Toronto Star and the Knoxville News-Sentinel.
