History UsefulNotes / AmericanChurches

* '''[[UsefulNotes/{{Atheism}} Atheists]] and other non-religious people''' (not a church, but here for completeness) make up about 15% of the American population, with their numbers being highest in the Western states and the Northeast [[hottip:*: Vermont is the least religious state.]]. The vast majority of non-religious people tend to be either liberals (they voted about 71% for BarackObama) or libertarians, although there are a few prominent conservative atheists. They have long been an acceptable target in American culture, often being stereotyped as [[HollywoodAtheist bitter, elitist, amoral, un-patriotic]], and [[DirtyCommunists possibly Communist]]. [[hottip:*:An example of the type of treatment that atheists get in America -- former President GeorgeHWBush once stated in an interview on the campaign trail that atheists couldn't be considered citizens, as America is "one nation under God."]] However, lately there have been some more positive portrayals of non-religious people in the media, such as [[{{Bones}} Temperance Brennan]] and many of JossWhedon's (himself an atheist) characters.

American Catholics are often perceived as being more liberal than the American mainstream, dissenting from the Church in Rome on many social/cultural issues (such as gay rights, allowing priests to marry, birth control, and the ordination of women and gays) while supporting activism for social justice projects. However, the socially conservative direction taken by the Church in the last few decades under Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI means that many recent converts tend to have more traditional social views than the stereotype suggests. The growing Latino contingent within American Catholicism also tends to hold more conservative values.

* The '''Roman Catholic Church''' is the largest single denomination in not only the United States, but the world (although Sunni Islam is catching up with the second one). Historically, Catholicism was the religion of TheCity in general, and of [[MeltingPot immigrant ethnic groups]] ([[TheIrishDiaspora Irish]], Italians, Poles and, more recently, Latinos) in particular. The association with immigrants and the supposed decadence of big cities, combined with America's longstanding Protestant tradition, led to widespread anti-Catholic prejudice in the 19th and early 20th centuries, with many claiming that the Catholics were agents of ThePope who were trying to subvert American society. However, outside of a few diehard fundamentalists (such as JackChick), this attitude has mostly disappeared, the pivotal moment probably being the election of JohnFKennedy as America's first Catholic President in 1960.[[hottip:*:Mind you, this was a ''huge'' deal at the time; many Protestants were concerned that Kennedy would be a puppet of Rome.]] Historically, Catholics have generally been concentrated in the Northeast, Midwest, and in Louisiana [[hottip:*:due to large scale European immigration in the later part of the 19th century in the former, and the historic French influence in the latter]]. More recently, a mix of Latino immigration and internal migration has made the Church more popular in California, the Southwest, and Florida. American Catholics are often perceived as being more liberal than the American mainstream, dissenting from the Church in Rome on many social issues (such as gay rights, allowing priests to marry, birth control, and the ordination of women and gays). However, the increasingly conservative direction taken by the Church in the last few decades under Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI means that many recent converts tend to have more socially conservative views than the stereotype suggests. The growing Latino contingent within American Catholicism also tends to hold more traditional values.

* '''Evangelical churches''', as defined by TheOtherWiki, are Protestant churches that are distinguished by four key traits -- a focus on personal conversion (becoming "born again"), spreading the message of TheBible (evangelizing), placing high stock in Biblical authority, and a focus on Jesus' death and resurrection. Examples of such churches include most subgroups of Baptists, the Missouri Synod Lutherans, and the Presbyterian Church of America [[hottip:*:not to be confused with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), which is mainline Protestant]]. They usually adhere to conservative social values, and are very often [[TheFundamentalist fundamentalist]]. [[hottip:*:As always, there are exceptions to every rule. A number of more liberal, mainline churches call themselves evangelical (such as the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America), and a substantial minority of individual evangelicals reject Biblical literalism.]] They are the largest of the major Christian groups in America, and are most heavily concentrated in an area known as the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bible_Belt "Bible Belt"]], consisting of [[DeepSouth the South]], [[EverythingIsBigInTexas Texas]] and parts of the Midwest. They have grown quite strongly in recent years, due to their focus on missionary activity, and are the group most strongly associated with the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Megachurch megachurch]] movement. If a character is described as a "born-again Christian," then he or she is most likely an evangelical -- the two terms are largely seen as interchangeable in American usage. Lately, they have become the stereotypical American churches.

* The '''Orthodox churches''' include the Eastern Orthodox (Russian Orthodox, Greek Orthodox, etc.) and Oriental Orthodox (Coptic Orthodox, Armenian Apostolic, Ethiopian Orthodox, etc). [[hottip:*:The two are separate because the Eastern Orthodox Church accepts all seven ecumenical councils while the Oriental Orthodox only accept the first three; they're known as the Non-Chalcedonian churches because they rejected the Council of Chalcedon]] They are both descended from the Orthodox Church of the Byzantine Empire, which split with the Roman Catholic Church in the 11th century following disputes over the respective authority of the Pope versus the Eastern Roman Emperor and Patriarch of Constantinople, doctrinal disputes over liturgy, and just plain West vs. East bigotry. The two, Pope and Patriarch, mutually excommunicated each others' followers around 1055. Orthodox Christians make up less than 1% of the American population, and are associated with particular ethnic groups even more than the Catholics. Basically, if someone is from Eastern Europe or the Balkans, they're more likely than not Eastern Orthodox, and vice versa. Copts aren't as common in America as they are in Canada (America's little brother). They're mostly from Egypt, Turkey, and Syria. There are purportedly 700,000 to 1 million Copts in America, but in very clustered communities. [[hottip:*:Mostly in New York, New Jersey, California, and Michigan. If the last one sounds weird, Michigan has a large population of Arabic-speakers--for the Egyptian Copts--and Armenians.]] The most common denominations of Oriental Orthodox in America are the Armenian Apostolic (mostly in California) and Ethiopian Orthodox (mostly in the Midwest) churches.
* The '''[[UsefulNotes/{{Mormonism}} Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]]''' (or the LDS Church, or simply the Mormons) is a Nontrinitarian orientation (which basically means they don't believe in the Holy Trinity), and is based mostly in the state of Utah, although there are also significant populations in California, Idaho, Nevada and Arizona. They are stereotyped as having deeply conservative social views -- a view that is usually TruthInTelevision. Owing to their frontier history, they also believe in self-sufficiency -- the Church recommends that all Mormons keep a few months of supplies on hand, and the Church itself has a massive stockpile of food and supplies in the event of a disaster. They also put more emphasis on helping people find jobs and become self-sufficient than on handing out charity or operating soup kitchens. Their religious beliefs often conflict with those mainstream Christianity, particularly with regard to their belief in Literature/TheBookOfMormon, which they believe to be a holy book on par with the Gospels. This, combined with their past practice of polygamy (which is not helped by the existence of breakaway sects that still practice it, in violation of both the law and current LDS Church doctrine), means that they are still an [[AcceptableTargets acceptable target]] in many parts of the country. This became evident in the 2008 Republican primary, when Mitt Romney, a Mormon, became one of the front-runners, leading to some disparaging comments by one of his rivals, Mike Huckabee, regarding his religion, and in the California gay marriage debate of the same year, going by some of the reactions by one side to their influence over the gay-rights debate in California.

* Much less common than the above, but still prevalent in America, are '''Anabaptists'''. They are the descendants of the Radical Reformation, alongside the Protestant Reformation, who believe that being baptized and joining a church should be a choice, offered only to adults who had the knowledge to make such a decision. This sounds sensible now, but was pretty revolutionary in the 16th century. Surprisingly, this is not some liberal hippie denomination, but actually the "plain people": Amish, Hutterites, and Mennonites. Each group is distinct from the others, but they all share core beliefs. They're famous for being {{actual pacifist}}s (believing that TurnTheOtherCheek isn't just a suggestion), and also refusing to swear oaths, participate in politics, or drink any alcohol. The more conservative groups dress in plain clothes, keep technology use to a minimum, live in their own separate communities, and refuse to pay Social Security or even for insurance. More moderate branches, particularly the Mennonites, blend in more with society, though they still stick to their theology. Unusually for a Christian group, Anabaptists have their own language: Low German, also known as [[http://www.mennolink.org/doc/lg/index.html Plautdietsch]].

* There is significant debate of the number of '''[[UsefulNotes/{{Islam}} Muslims]]''' in the United States, with most estimates ranging from as low as one million to as high as seven million. Two-thirds of the Muslim community is foreign-born, while most of the rest consists of African-American converts (where we get the stereotypical "[[MalcolmXerox black Muslims]]"). Almost one-fifth of [[UsefulNotes/AmericanPrisons American convicts]] are Muslims, most of whom converted to Islam while in prison (again, the "black Muslim" stereotype). They tend to be concentrated on the East Coast, in Detroit, in Houston, and in California. Thanks to the 9/11 attacks, Muslims have become {{acceptable target}}s in many parts of the United States, which has caused many of them to support the Democratic Party. [[hottip:*:Interestingly, before the attacks, most Muslims voted Republican due to their affluence and social conservatism.]] Even so, they tend to be rather well-integrated compared to their European counterparts, having a higher average income and educational attainment than the national average. The first Muslim member of [[AmericanPoliticalSystem Congress]] is Keith Ellison, an African-American Democrat from Minnesota elected in 2006; he was followed by another African American, Andre Carson (Democrat of Indiana), after a special election in 2008. And no, despite [[ConspiracyTheorist what you may have heard]], the [[BarackObama current President]] is not a Muslim ([[NotThatTheresAnythingWrongWithThat Not That There Would Be Anything Wrong With That]]...).
* '''[[UsefulNotes/{{Atheism}} Atheists]] and other non-religious people''' (not a church, but here for completeness) make up about 15% of the American population, with their numbers being highest in the Western states and the Northeast [[hottip:*: Vermont is the least religious state.]]. The vast majority of non-religious people tend to be either liberals (they voted about 71% for BarackObama) or libertarians, although there are a few prominent conservative atheists. They have long been an acceptable target in American culture, often being stereotyped as [[HollywoodAtheist bitter, elitist, amoral, un-patriotic]], and [[DirtyCommunists possibly Communist]]. [[hottip:*:An example of the type of treatment that atheists get in America -- former President GeorgeHWBush once stated in an interview on the campaign trail that atheists couldn't be considered citizens, as America is "one nation under God."]] However, lately there have been some more positive portrayals of non-religious people in the media, such as [[{{Bones}} Temperance Brennan]] and many of JossWhedon's characters.
* '''[[UsefulNotes/{{Buddhism}} Buddhists]]''' make up 1-2% of the American population. About 75-80% of American Buddhists are Asian, while most of the rest are white converts (although, as noted below, not entirely white). This latter group is typically stereotyped as consisting largely of {{New Age Retro Hippie}}s and {{Granola Girl}}s, while the former group is usually stereotyped as... well, Asian. There have been precisely three Buddhists in Congress, all Democrats: Mazie Hirono, a non-practicing ''Issei'' Japanese-American from Hawaii, and Hank Johnson, a Black convert from Georgia (yeah, it's kind of weird) were elected in 2006; Colleen Hanabusa, a practicing ''Yonsei'' Japanese-American from Hawaii was elected in 2010. (For the record, the reason there aren't more Buddhist congresspeople despite the relatively large number of Asian representatives is that most Asian American politicians are Christians.)

* There are about 650,000 '''Sikhs''' in the United States, most of them living in California. Despite their own history of clash with Muslims, Sikhs wound up getting caught up in the wave of Islamophobia that occurred after 9/11, due to the fact that many of them wear turbans. The first Indian (or indeed Asian of any kind) to serve in Congress was Dalip Singh Saund, a Sikh from California who served from 1957 to 1963.

* '''The Church of {{Satan}}''' was founded in TheSixties by Anton [=LaVey=] in SanFrancisco. Sources state that there are about 10-20,000 official members of the Church of Satan in the United States, and there are possibly tens of thousands more who adhere to the philosophy or one of its offshoots. Despite their name and reputation, they [[NonindicativeName do not actually worship Satan]], being an atheistic organization rooted in a mix of pseudo-[[FriedrichNietzsche Nietzschean]] philosophy ([=LaVey=] claimed inspiration from UsefulNotes/{{Objectivism}} but his philosophy is [[{{Understatement}} significantly]] different) and the theatrics of AleisterCrowley and other occultists. They chose the name because they feel that Satan, the original rebel in Christian theology, is a role model for people to look up to, and that the Christian message of tolerance, humility, and egalitarianism is self-destructive for both individuals and society. (That, and [[NoSuchThingAsBadPublicity nothing draws attention]] like calling yourself the Church of Satan.) Note that the Church of Satan is not to be confused with...

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<<|UsefulNotes/TheUnitedStates|>>
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* There is significant debate of the number of '''[[UsefulNotes/{{Islam}} Muslims]]''' in the United States, with most estimates ranging from as low as one million to as high as seven million. Two-thirds of the Muslim community is foreign-born, while most of the rest consists of African-American converts (where we get the stereotypical "[[MalcolmXerox black Muslims]]"). Almost one-fifth of [[AmericanPrisons American convicts]] are Muslims, most of whom converted to Islam while in prison (again, the "black Muslim" stereotype). They tend to be concentrated on the East Coast, in Detroit, in Houston, and in California. Thanks to the 9/11 attacks, Muslims have become {{acceptable target}}s in many parts of the United States, which has caused many of them to support the Democratic Party. [[hottip:*:Interestingly, before the attacks, most Muslims voted Republican due to their affluence and social conservatism.]] Even so, they tend to be rather well-integrated compared to their European counterparts, having a higher average income and educational attainment than the national average. The first Muslim member of [[AmericanPoliticalSystem Congress]] is Keith Ellison, an African-American Democrat from Minnesota elected in 2006; he was followed by another African American, Andre Carson (Democrat of Indiana), after a special election in 2008. And no, despite [[ConspiracyTheorist what you may have heard]], the [[BarackObama current President]] is not a Muslim ([[NotThatTheresAnythingWrongWithThat Not That There Would Be Anything Wrong With That]]...).

* The '''[[UsefulNotes/{{Mormonism}} Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]]''' (or the LDS Church, or simply the Mormons) is a Nontrinitarian orientation (which basically means they don't believe in the Holy Trinity), and is based mostly in the state of Utah, although there are also significant populations in California, Idaho, Nevada and Arizona. They are stereotyped as having deeply conservative social views -- a view that is usually TruthInTelevision. Owing to their frontier history, they also believe in self-sufficiency -- the Church recommends that all Mormons keep a few months of supplies on hand, and the Church itself has a massive stockpile of food and supplies in the event of a disaster. They also put more emphasis on helping people find jobs and become self-sufficient than on handing out charity or operating soup kitchens. Their religious beliefs often conflict with those mainstream Christianity, particularly with regard to their belief in TheBookOfMormon, which they believe to be a holy book on par with the Gospels. This, combined with their past practice of polygamy (which is not helped by the existence of breakaway sects that still practice it, in violation of both the law and current LDS Church doctrine), means that they are still an [[AcceptableTargets acceptable target]] in many parts of the country. This became evident in the 2008 Republican primary, when Mitt Romney, a Mormon, became one of the front-runners, leading to some disparaging comments by one of his rivals, Mike Huckabee, regarding his religion, and in the California gay marriage debate of the same year, going by some of the reactions by one side to their influence over the gay-rights debate in California.

* '''[[UsefulNotes/{{Atheism}} Atheists]] and other non-religious people''' (not a church, but here for completeness) make up about 15% of the American population, with their numbers being highest in the Western states [[hottip:*:The states of Colorado and Washington have the highest concentration of non-religious people, at 31% and 25% respectively.]] and the Northeast. The vast majority of non-religious people tend to be either liberals (they voted about 71% for BarackObama) or libertarians, although there are a few prominent conservative atheists. They have long been an acceptable target in American culture, often being stereotyped as [[HollywoodAtheist bitter, elitist, amoral, un-patriotic]], and [[DirtyCommunists possibly Communist]]. [[hottip:*:An example of the type of treatment that atheists get in America -- former President GeorgeHWBush once stated in an interview on the campaign trail that atheists couldn't be considered citizens, as America is "one nation under God."]] However, lately there have been some more positive portrayals of non-religious people in the media, such as [[{{Bones}} Temperance Brennan]] and many of JossWhedon's characters.

* '''[[UsefulNotes/{{Buddhism}} Buddhists]]''' make up 1-2% of the American population. About 75-80% of American Buddhists are Asian, while most of the rest are white converts (although, as noted below, not entirely white). This latter group is typically stereotyped as consisting largely of {{New Age Retro Hippie}}s and {{Granola Girl}}s, while the former group is usually stereotyped as... well, Asian. There have been precisely three Buddhists in Congress, all Democrats: Mazie Hirono, a non-practicing ''Issei'' Japanese-American from Hawaii, and Hank Johnson, a Black convert from Georgia (yeah, it's kind of weird) were elected in 2006; Colleen Hanabusa, a practicing ''Yonsei'' Japanese-American from Hawaii was elected in 2010. (For the record, the reason there aren't more Buddhist congresspeople despite the relatively large number of Asian representatives is that most Asian politicians are Christians.)

* '''[[UsefulNotes/{{Buddhism}} Buddhists]]''' make up 1-2% of the American population. About 75-80% of American Buddhists are Asian, while most of the rest are white converts (although, as noted below, not entirely white). This latter group is typically stereotyped as consisting largely of {{New Age Retro Hippie}}s and {{Granola Girl}}s, while the former group is usually stereotyped as... well, Asian. There have been precisely two Buddhists in Congress, both Democrats elected in 2006: Mazie Hirono, a non-practicing ''Issei'' Japanese-American from Hawaii, and Hank Johnson, a Black convert from Georgia (yeah, it's kind of weird).

* There is significant debate of the number of '''[[UsefulNotes/{{Islam}} Muslims]]''' in the United States, with most estimates ranging from as low as one million to as high as seven million. Two-thirds of the Muslim community is foreign-born, while most of the rest consists of African-American converts (where we get the stereotypical "[[MalcolmXerox black Muslims]]"). Almost one-fifth of [[AmericanPrisons American convicts]] are Muslims, most of whom converted to Islam while in prison (again, the "black Muslim" stereotype). They tend to be concentrated on the East Coast, in Detroit, in Houston, and in California. Thanks to the 9/11 attacks, Muslims have become {{acceptable target}}s in many parts of the United States, which has caused many of them to support the Democratic Party. [[hottip:*:Interestingly, before the attacks, most Muslims voted Republican due to their affluence and social conservatism.]] Even so, they tend to be rather well-integrated compared to their European counterparts, having a higher average income and educational attainment than the national average. The first Muslim member of [[AmericanPoliticalSystem Congress]] is Keith Ellison, an African-American Democrat from Minnesota elected in 2006; he was followed by another African American, Andre Carson (Democrat of Indiana), after a special election in 2008. And no, despite [[ConspiracyTheorist what you may have heard]], the [[BarackObama current President]] is not a Muslim.

* The '''Orthodox churches''' include the Eastern Orthodox (Russian Orthodox, Greek Orthodox, etc.) and Oriental Orthodox (Coptic Orthodox, Armenian Apostolic, Ethiopian Orthodox, etc). [[hottip:*:The two are separated because they use different words for the same things -- seriously, that's why.]] They are both descended from the Orthodox Church of the Byzantine Empire, which split with the Roman Catholic Church in the 11th century following disputes over the respective authority of the Pope versus the Eastern Roman Emperor and Patriarch of Constantinople, doctrinal disputes over liturgy, and just plain West vs. East bigotry. The two, Pope and Patriarch, mutually excommunicated each others' followers around 1055. Orthodox Christians make up less than 1% of the American population, and are associated with particular ethnic groups even more than the Catholics. Basically, if someone is from Eastern Europe or the Balkans, they're more likely than not Eastern Orthodox, and vice versa. Copts aren't as common in America as they are in Canada (America's little brother). They're mostly from Egypt, Turkey, and Syria. There are purportedly 700,000 to 1 million Copts in America, but in very clustered communities. [[hottip:*:Mostly in New York, New Jersey, California, and Michigan. If the last one sounds weird, Michigan has a large population of Arabic-speakers--for the Egyptian Copts--and Armenians.]] The most common denominations of Oriental Orthodox in America are the Armenian Apostolic (mostly in California) and Ethiopian Orthodox (mostly in the Midwest) churches.

* The '''Roman Catholic Church''' is the largest single denomination in not only the United States, but the world (although Sunni Islam is catching up with the second one). Historically, Catholicism was the religion of TheCity in general, and of [[MeltingPot immigrant ethnic groups]] ([[TheIrishDiaspora Irish]], Italians, Poles and, more recently, Latinos) in particular. The association with immigrants and the supposed decadence of big cities, combined with America's longstanding Protestant tradition, led to widespread anti-Catholic prejudice in the 19th and early 20th centuries, with many claiming that the Catholics were agents of ThePope who were trying to subvert American society. However, outside of a few diehard fundamentalists (such as JackChick), this attitude has mostly disappeared, the pivotal moment probably being the election of JohnFKennedy as America's first Catholic President in 1960.[[hottip:*:Mind you, this was a ''huge'' deal at the time; many Protestants were concerned that Kennedy would be a puppet of Rome.]. Historically, Catholics have generally been concentrated in the Northeast, Midwest, and in Louisiana [[hottip:*:due to large scale European immigration in the later part of the 19th century in the former, and the historic French influence in the latter]]. More recently, a mix of Latino immigration and internal migration has made the Church more popular in California, the Southwest, and Florida. American Catholics are often perceived as being more liberal than the American mainstream, dissenting from the Church in Rome on many social issues (such as gay rights, allowing priests to marry, birth control, and the ordination of women and gays). However, the increasingly conservative direction taken by the Church in the last few decades under Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI means that many recent converts tend to have more socially conservative views than the stereotype suggests. The growing Latino contingent within American Catholicism also tends to hold more traditional values.

* '''Evangelical churches''', as defined by TheOtherWiki, are Protestant churches that are distinguished by four key traits -- a focus on personal conversion (becoming "born again"), spreading the message of TheBible (evangelizing), placing high stock in Biblical authority, and a focus on Jesus' death and resurrection. Evangelical churches tend to be the more conservative churches (for example, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America is mainline). Going with the popular American definition that evangelical churches are conservative, however, Such churches include most subgroups of Baptists, the Missouri Synod Lutherans, and the Presbyterian Church of America [[hottip:*:not to be confused with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), which is mainline Protestant]]. They usually adhere to conservative social values, and are very often [[TheFundamentalist fundamentalist]]. [[hottip:*:As always, there are exceptions to every rule. A number of more liberal, mainline churches call themselves evangelical (such as the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America), and a substantial minority of individual evangelicals reject Biblical literalism.]] They are the largest of the major Christian groups in America, and are most heavily concentrated in an area known as the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bible_Belt "Bible Belt"]], consisting of [[DeepSouth the South]], [[EverythingIsBigInTexas Texas]] and parts of the Midwest. They have grown quite strongly in recent years, due to their focus on missionary activity, and are the group most strongly associated with the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Megachurch megachurch]] movement. If a character is described as a "born-again Christian," then he or she is most likely an evangelical -- the two terms are largely seen as interchangeable in American usage. Lately, they have become the stereotypical American churches.

* The '''Roman Catholic Church''' is the largest single denomination in not only the United States, but the world (although Sunni Islam is catching up with the second one). Historically, Catholicism was the religion of TheCity in general, and of [[MeltingPot immigrant ethnic groups]] ([[TheIrishDiaspora Irish]], Italians, Poles and, more recently, Latinos) in particular. The association with immigrants and the supposed decadence of big cities, combined with America's longstanding Protestant tradition, led to widespread anti-Catholic prejudice in the 19th and early 20th centuries, with many claiming that the Catholics were agents of ThePope who were trying to subvert American society. However, outside of a few diehard fundamentalists (such as JackChick), this attitude has mostly disappeared, the pivotal moment probably being the election of JohnFKennedy as America's first Catholic President in 1960[[hottip:*:Mind you, this was a ''huge'' deal at the time; many Protestants were concerned that Kennedy would be a slave to Rome]]. Historically, Catholics have generally been concentrated in the Northeast, Midwest, and in Louisiana (due to large scale European immigration in the later part of the 19th century in the former and the historic French influence in the latter). More recently, a mix of Latino immigration and internal migration has made the Church more popular in California, the Southwest, and Florida. American Catholics are often perceived as being more liberal than the American mainstream, [[CompletelyMissingThePoint dissenting from the Church in Rome on many key social issues]] (such as gay rights, allowing priests to marry, birth control, and the ordination of women and gays). However, the increasingly conservative direction taken by the Church in the last few decades under Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI means that many recent converts tend to have more socially conservative views than the stereotype suggests. The growing Latino contingent within American Catholicism also tends to hold more traditional values.
* '''Mainline Protestant churches''' include the Methodists, the Lutherans, the Presbyterians, the Episcopalians (the American branch of the Anglicans), the United Church of Christ and other well-established, or "heritage", churches. These churches are the more liberal of the two Protestant groups, and will often take moderate or liberal positions on social issues. They are generally concentrated in the Northeast and the Midwest. Lately, these churches have been seeing steep declines in membership as people gravitate to either the more conservative evangelical churches or toward more secular outlooks. At the same time, some of the churches have been battling conservative defections due to their liberal social positions, especially with regards to homosexuality. The Episcopal Church's election of an openly gay bishop, for example, caused some churches to break away and align themselves with more conservative Anglican denominations in Africa.
* '''Evangelical churches''' is the term often attributed to the more conservative churches, though "evangelical" has multiple meanings and some of the more liberal churches apply that term to themselves (for example, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America is mainline). Going with the popular American definition that evangelical churches are conservative, however, such churches include most subgroups of Baptists, the Missouri Synod Lutherans, and the Presbyterian Church of America (not to be confused with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), which is mainline Protestant). They usually adhere to conservative social values (which they are often quite vocal about), and believe strongly in the infallibility of TheBible, sometimes overlapping with [[TheFundamentalist fundamentalists]]. They are the largest of the major Christian groups in America, and are most heavily concentrated in an area known as the "[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bible_Belt Bible Belt]]" consisting of [[DeepSouth the South]], [[EverythingIsBigInTexas Texas]] and parts of the Midwest. They have grown quite strongly in recent years, due to their focus on missionary activity, and are the group most strongly associated with the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Megachurch megachurch]] movement. If a character is described as a "born-again Christian," then he or she is most likely an evangelical -- the two terms are largely seen as interchangeable in American usage. Lately, they have become the stereotypical American churches.

* The '''Orthodox churches''' include the Eastern Orthodox (Russian Orthodox, Greek Orthodox, etc.) and Oriental Orthodox (Coptic Orthodox, Armenian Apostolic, Ethiopian Orthodox, etc), which for some reason is different from Eastern Orthodox because they use different words for the same things (seriously, that's why). They are both descended from the Orthodox Church of the Byzantine Empire, which split with the Roman Catholic Church in the 11th century following disputes over the respective authority of the Pope versus the Eastern Roman Emperor and Patriarch of Constantinople, doctrinal disputes over liturgy and just plain West vs. East bigotry. The two, Pope and Patriarch, mutually excommunicated each others' followers around 1055. Orthodox Christians make up less than 1% of the American population, and are associated with particular ethnic groups even more than the Catholics. Basically, if someone is from Eastern Europe or the Balkans, they're more likely than not Eastern Orthodox, and vice versa. Copts aren't as common in America as they are in Canada (America's little brother). They're mostly from Egypt, Turkey, and Syria. There are purportedly 700,000 to 1 million Copts in America, but in very clustered communities (mostly in New York, New Jersey, California, and Michigan; if the last one sounds weird, Michigan has a large population of Arabic-speakers--for the Egyptian Copts--and Armenians). The most common denominations of Oriental Orthodox in America are the Armenian Apostolic (mostly in California) and Ethiopian Orthodox (mostly in the Midwest) churches.
* The '''[[UsefulNotes/{{Mormonism}} Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]]''' (or the LDS Church, or simply the Mormons) is a Nontrinitarian orientation (which basically means they don't believe in the Holy Trinity), and is based mostly in the state of Utah, although there are also significant populations in California, Idaho, Nevada and Arizona. They are usually stereotyped as having deeply conservative social views -- a view that is usually TruthInTelevision. Owing to their frontier history, they also believe in self-sufficiency -- the Church recommends that all Mormons keep a few months of supplies on hand, and the Church itself has a massive stockpile of food and supplies in the event of a disaster. They also put more emphasis on helping people find jobs and become self-sufficient than on handing out charity or operating soup kitchens. Their religious beliefs often conflict with those mainstream Christianity, particularly with regard to their belief in TheBookOfMormon, which they believe to be a holy book on par with the Gospels. This, combined with their past practice of polygamy (which is not helped by the existence of breakaway sects that still practice it, in violation of both the law and current LDS Church doctrine), means that they are still an [[AcceptableTargets acceptable target]] in many parts of the country. This became evident in the 2008 Republican primary, when Mitt Romney, a Mormon, became one of the front-runners, leading to some disparaging comments by one of his rivals, Mike Huckabee, regarding his religion, and in the California gay marriage debate of the same year, going by some of the reactions by one side to their influence over the gay-rights debate in California.

* '''[[UsefulNotes/{{Judaism}} Jews]]''' are primarily concentrated on the East Coast (particularly the New York and Washington areas, where they make up a double-digit percentage of the population in some counties), South Florida (where many of them go to retire), and California, with small enclaves elsewhere in the country. Their disproportionate presence in New York and Los Angeles explains why Jews are so well-represented in the entertainment and financial industries. They tend to pull for the Democrats in large numbers -- the only Democrat since [[FranklinDRoosevelt FDR]] who earned less than 70% of the Jewish vote was Adlai Stevenson in 1952 and 1956 -- and usually have social views more liberal than the American mainstream (they were heavily involved in the CivilRightsMovement, and it was a Jewish woman who wrote ''The Feminine Mystique'', the book often credited with kick-starting the second wave of feminism). In America, as in most other places, Jews are OnceAcceptableTargets -- anti-Semitism was prevalent in America as late as {{the Great Depression}} (during which time populist radio host Father Coughlin blamed the Jews for the stock market crash), but quickly came to an end after the atrocities of WorldWarII were brought to the surface.
* There is significant debate of the number of '''[[UsefulNotes/{{Islam}} Muslims]]''' in the United States, with most estimates ranging from as low as one million to as high as seven million. Two-thirds of the Muslim community is foreign-born, while most of the rest consists of African-American converts (where we get the stereotypical "[[MalcolmXerox black Muslims]]"). Almost one-fifth of [[AmericanPrisons American convicts]] are Muslims, most of whom converted to Islam while in prison. They tend to be concentrated on the East Coast, in Detroit, in Houston, and in California. Thanks to the 9/11 attacks, Muslims have become {{acceptable target}}s in many parts of the United States, which has caused many of them to support the Democratic Party (interestingly, before the attacks, most Muslims voted Republican due to their affluence and social conservatism). Even so, they tend to be rather well-integrated compared to their European counterparts, having a higher average income and educational attainment than the national average. The first Muslim member of [[AmericanPoliticalSystem Congress]] is Keith Ellison, an African-American Democrat from Minnesota elected in 2006; he was followed by another African American, Andre Carson (Democrat of Indiana), after a special election in 2008.
* '''[[UsefulNotes/{{Atheism}} Atheists]] and other non-religious people''' (not a church, but here for completeness) make up about 15% of the American population, with their numbers being highest in the Western states (the states of Colorado and Washington have the highest concentration of non-religious people, at 31% and 25% respectively) and the Northeast. The vast majority of non-religious people tend to be either liberals (they voted about 71% for BarackObama) or libertarians, although there are a few prominent conservative atheists. They have long been an acceptable target in American culture, often being stereotyped as bitter, elitist, un-patriotic, and having loose morals (GeorgeHWBush once stated in an interview on the campaign trail that atheists couldn't be considered citizens, as America is "one nation under God"). The HollywoodAtheist stems partially from this perception. However, lately there have been some positive portrayals of non-religious people in the media, such as [[{{Bones}} Temperance Brennan]] and JossWhedon's shows.

* '''Evangelical churches''' is the term often attributed to the more conservative churches, though "evangelical" has multiple meanings and some of the more liberal churches apply that term to themselves. Going with the popular American definition that evangelical churches are conservative, however, such churches include most subgroups of Baptists, the Missouri Synod Lutherans, and the Presbyterian Church of America (not to be confused with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), which is mainline Protestant). They usually adhere to conservative social values (which they are often quite vocal about), and believe strongly in the infallibility of TheBible, sometimes overlapping with [[TheFundamentalist fundamentalists]]. They are the largest of the major Christian groups in America, and are most heavily concentrated in an area known as the "[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bible_Belt Bible Belt]]" consisting of [[DeepSouth the South]], [[EverythingIsBigInTexas Texas]] and parts of the Midwest. They have grown quite strongly in recent years, due to their focus on missionary activity, and are the group most strongly associated with the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Megachurch megachurch]] movement. If a character is described as a "born-again Christian," then he or she is most likely an evangelical -- the two terms are largely seen as interchangeable in American usage. Lately, they have become the stereotypical American churches.

A commonly-held view among Europeans and Canadians is that Americans are far more religious than the rest of the Western world, and to a great extent, this view is TruthInTelevision. There are some areas of the country (most notably [[HollywoodNewEngland New England]], the [[TheOtherRainforest Pacific Northwest]] and most of the Rocky Mountain region) that have rates of religiosity more in line with Canadian or European norms, but when one is in, say, the DeepSouth, the [[DownOnTheFarm rural Midwest]] or Utah, it's not as much of a joke as a non-native would think to say that the church ''is'' the local government, and vice versa. Such areas tend to have firmly established churches that are heavily integrated into the local community and are often a major part of community life. It's very common, especially in small rural towns, for churches to be the center of the community, and for everyone in that town, from the mayor to convenience store owners, to attend church on Sunday. This has a profound effect on the prevailing social views within the US; it explains why there exists more resistance to things like abortion, homosexuality and the teaching of evolution than in other countries, as well as the relative strictness of the {{Media Watchdog}}s at the FCC, especially on matters of sex and profanity.

* The '''Roman Catholic Church''' is the largest single denomination in not only the United States, but the world (although Sunni Islam is catching up with the second one). Historically, Catholicism was the religion of TheCity in general, and of [[MeltingPot immigrant ethnic groups]] ([[TheIrishDiaspora Irish]], Italians, Poles and, more recently, Latinos) in particular. The association with immigrants and the supposed decadence of big cities, combined with America's longstanding Protestant tradition, led to widespread anti-Catholic prejudice in the 19th and early 20th centuries, with many claiming that the Catholics were agents of ThePope who were trying to subvert American society. However, outside of a few diehard fundamentalists (such as JackChick), this attitude has mostly disappeared, the pivotal moment probably being the election of JohnFKennedy as America's first Catholic President in 1960. Historically, Catholics have generally been concentrated in the Northeast, Midwest, and in Louisiana (due to large scale European immigration in the later part of the 19th century in the former and the historic French influence in the latter). More recently, a mix of Latino immigration and internal migration has made the Church more popular in California, the Southwest, and Florida. American Catholics are often perceived as being more liberal than the American mainstream, [[CompletelyMissingThePoint dissenting from the Church in Rome on many key social issues]] (such as gay rights, allowing priests to marry, birth control, and the ordination of women and gays). However, the increasingly conservative direction taken by the Church in the last few decades under Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI means that many recent converts tend to have more socially conservative views than the stereotype suggests. The growing Latino contingent within American Catholicism also tends to hold more traditional values.

* The '''[[UsefulNotes/{{Mormonism}} Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]]''' (or the LDS Church, or simply the Mormons) is a Nontrinitarian orientation (which basically means they don't believe in the Holy Trinity), and is based mostly in the state of Utah, although there are also significant populations in Idaho, Nevada and Arizona. They are usually stereotyped as having deeply conservative social views -- a view that is usually TruthInTelevision. Owing to their frontier history, they also believe in self-sufficiency -- the Church recommends that all Mormons keep a few months of supplies on hand, and the Church itself has a massive stockpile of food and supplies in the event of a disaster. They also put more emphasis on helping people find jobs and become self-sufficient than on handing out charity or operating soup kitchens. Their religious beliefs often conflict with those mainstream Christianity, particularly with regard to their belief in TheBookOfMormon, which they believe to be a holy book on par with the Gospels. This, combined with their past practice of polygamy (which is not helped by the existence of breakaway sects that still practice it, in violation of both the law and current LDS Church doctrine), means that they are still an [[AcceptableTargets acceptable target]] in many parts of the country. This became evident in the 2008 Republican primary, when Mitt Romney, a Mormon, became one of the front-runners, leading to some disparaging comments by one of his rivals, Mike Huckabee, regarding his religion.

* '''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bah%C3%A1%27%C3%AD_Faith Baha'i]]''' is a monotheistic religion with millions of followers around the world. Baha'i in America are divided among Persians, many of whom fled the Islamic Revolution in 1979 (which, to say the least, did not like them) and the sort of NewAgeRetroHippie-types who might have become Buddhist but preferred something more Abrahamic. The most notable Baha'i in America is none other than Rainn Wilson, AKA [[TheOffice Dwight Schute]], whose parents were of the second category and raised him in the faith while living in a houseboat off the coast of Washington State.

* '''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baha%27i Baha'i]]''' is a monotheistic religion with millions of followers around the world. Baha'i in America are divided among Persians, many of whom fled the Islamic Revolution in 1979 (which, to say the least, did not like them) and the sort of NewAgeRetroHippie-types who might have become Buddhist but preferred something more Abrahamic. The most notable Baha'i in America is none other than Rainn Wilson, AKA [[TheOffice Dwight Schute]], whose parents were of the second category and raised him in the faith while living in a houseboat off the coast of Washington State.

In the United States, the First Amendment puts an extremely strong prohibition on the government regulating religion, up to and specifically forbidding a government church. This is known as the principle of "separation of church and state." Now, this doesn't give churches unlimited freedom to do anything they want -- church buildings still have to comply with building codes (although they're generally exempt from height limitations), and anyone claiming something ridiculous and illegal (like, say, HumanSacrifice) as part of their religion will be laughed out of court (and in the case of HumanSacrifice, promptly convicted of murder). And while the involvement of religious organizations in politics isn't forbidden by the Constitution, churches can lose their tax-exempt status if they do so (as they would then be considered a political lobbying group), causing them to keep a low profile in politics. Nearly all religious-based lobbying is done by non-profit groups for exactly this reason.

* '''Evangelical churches''' is the term often attributed to the more conservative churches, though "evangelical" has multiple meanings and some of the more liberal churches apply that term to themselves. Going with the popular American definition that evangelical churches are conservative, however, such churches include most subgroups of Baptists, the Missouri Synod Lutherans, and the Presbyterian Church of America (not to be confused with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), which is mainline Protestant). They usually adhere to conservative social values (which they are often quite vocal about), and believe strongly in the infallibility of TheBible, sometimes overlapping with [[TheFundamentalist fundamentalists]]. They are the largest of the major Christian groups in America, and are most heavily concentrated in an area known as the "[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bible_Belt Bible Belt]]" consisting of [[DeepSouth the South]], [[EverythingIsBigInTexas Texas]] and parts of the Midwest. They have grown quite strongly in recent years, due to their focus on missionary activity, and are the group most strongly associated with the [[http://en.wikipediaorg/wiki/Megachurch megachurch]] movement. If a character is described as a "born-again Christian," then he or she is most likely an evangelical -- the two terms are largely seen as interchangeable in American usage. Lately, they have become the stereotypical American churches.

** A subset of evangelical Christianity is '''Pentecostalism''', which writers often lump in with the evangelicals due to a lack of familiarity with either one. Pentecostalism is based around a direct experience with God, and often includes faith healing, speaking in tongues, and getting "imbued" with the Holy Spirit. Often associated with loud, charismatic preachers (indeed, a subset of Pentecostalism is called the "charismatic movement"), who many skeptics will claim are responsible for the activity that goes on during Pentecostal sermons due to their getting the crowd riled up. Despite the fact that Hollywood screenwriters often lump Pentecostals and evangelicals together (most likely due to their shared social conservatism), the two groups differ on a great number of theological issues, which has led to some friction between them.

* '''Scientology''' is a... [[InternetBackdraft highly controversial religious movement]] founded in the United States. They claim to have over three million members in America, but most estimates put their numbers at below 100,000. They have lots of missionaries giving "Free Stress Tests" or the like, and many are attracted from the "Free" offer. However, most "converts" leave soon after they find out about the exorbitant prices one must pay to continue on the Bridge, as well as the practice of shunning non-members or "[=SPs=]". They are extremely well-represented in Hollywood, due to their practice of proselytizing toward celebrities (who are usually rich enough to afford the thousands of dollars that their programs cost) in order to use them as spokespeople to gain further converts. They also have a strong presence in Clearwater, Florida, often called "Scientology's Town", where they have their headquarters.

* The '''Orthodox churches''' include the Eastern Orthodox (Russian Orthodox, Greek Orthodox, etc.) and Oriental Orthodox (Coptic Orthodox, Armenian Apostolic, Ethiopian Orthodox, etc), which for some reason is different from Eastern Orthodox because they use different words for the same things (seriously, that's why). They are both descended from the Orthodox Church of the Byzantine Empire, which split from the Roman Catholic Church in the 11th century following disputes over the respective authority of the Pope versus the Eastern Roman Emperor and Patriarch of Constantinople, doctrinal disputes over liturgy and just plain West vs. East bigotry. The two, Pope and Patriarch, mutually excommunicated each others' followers around 1055. Orthodox Christians make up less than 1% of the American population, and are associated with particular ethnic groups even more than the Catholics. Basically, if someone is from Eastern Europe or the Balkans, they're more likely than not Eastern Orthodox, and vice versa. Copts aren't as common in America as they are in Canada (America's little brother). They're mostly from Egypt, Turkey, and Syria. There are purportedly 700,000 to 1 million Copts in America, but in very clustered communities (mostly in New York, New Jersey, California, and Michigan; if the last one sounds weird, Michigan has a large population of Arabic-speakers--for the Egyptian Copts--and Armenians). The most common denominations of Oriental Orthodox in America are the Armenian Apostolic (mostly in California) and Ethiopian Orthodox (mostly in the Midwest) churches.

* '''UsefulNotes/{{Scientology}}''' is a... [[InternetBackdraft highly controversial religious movement]] founded in the United States. They claim to have over three million members in America, but most estimates put their numbers at below 100,000. They have lots of missionaries giving "Free Stress Tests" or the like, and many are attracted from the "Free" offer. However, most "converts" leave soon after they find out about the exorbitant prices one must pay to continue on the Bridge, as well as the practice of shunning non-members or "[=SPs=]". They are extremely well-represented in Hollywood, due to their practice of proselytizing toward celebrities (who are usually rich enough to afford the thousands of dollars that their programs cost) in order to use them as spokespeople to gain further converts. They also have a strong presence in Clearwater, Florida, often called "Scientology's Town", where they have their headquarters.