Despite a decade of seismic shifts in American public life, a recent Pew survey shows that clergy are largely addressing the same political and social issues in their sermons that they were ten years ago.
Adults who attend religious services at least one to two times a month told researchers they typically hear messages against abortion and homosexuality and about supporting Israel. They also hear about welcoming and supporting immigrants, protecting the environment, and opposing transgender identity.
According to the study, two-thirds of the surveyed American adults reported hearing at least one political or social issue brought up in a religious service. The most common were abortion (35%), Israel (34%), and homosexuality (31%). Other topics include immigration (27%), US military action in Iran (25%), the environment (24%), and people who are transgender (23%).
Becka Alper, the report’s lead author, said researchers selected seven categories to ask about based on their contemporary relevance.
“These topics have been in the news and matters of ongoing public debate recently,” Alper told CT. “We wanted to get a sense of what people might be hearing about.”
Pew conducted a similar study in 2016 but cautioned against comparing the two surveys too closely because of differences in methodology. Many topics, however, held consistent across both studies. The portion of worshipers who said their clergy addressed issues like abortion and immigration, for instance, changed little during the decade between studies—despite major developments like the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022 or the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration.
Researchers in the 2016 survey did not specifically ask about Israel or transgender ideology, nor did respondents mention them when prompted to list other social issues they had heard clergy address. Both studies listed homosexuality and environmental issues as significant topics of attention from the pulpit.
In the 2026 study, white evangelical Protestants are just as likely to have clergy call for stricter immigration enforcement as they are to have clergy say to welcome and support immigrants, but only small minorities (4%) said they had heard such messages.
The war in Iran has drawn more diverse takes from church leaders. The poll shows 8 percent said they recently heard their clergy speak against US military action in Iran, and 4 percent in favor of it. Nine percent say their clergy has spoken about it neutrally.
Denominations differ on what they hear about most often. White evangelical Protestants are most likely to hear about abortion, homosexuality, and Israel. White nonevangelical Protestants hear most about the environment and immigration. Black Protestants hear about Israel, immigration, and homosexuality. Catholics hear most about abortion, immigration, and the US war in Iran.
The survey also asked participants how they perceive their clergies’ political partisanship. Four in ten were not sure of their clergy’s political affiliation, and one quarter said they perceive a mix of Democrats and Republicans. In the survey, 36 percent of white evangelical Protestants said their clergy are mostly Republicans, and 3 percent said Democrats. Of Black Protestants, 21 percent said their clergy are mostly Democrats, and 8 percent said they are mostly Republicans.
The survey was open to all religious groups, but there were not enough respondents from Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, or Hindu backgrounds to break out their responses, according to Pew.
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