--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Three quarters of the American population…" description: "\"Three quarters of the American population literally believe in religious miracles. The numbers who believe in the devil, in resurrection, in God doing ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5b/noam-chomsky-42_astonishing_three-quarters-of-the-american-populatio_1197468.jpg" --- # Three quarters of the American population literally… ![“Three quarters of the American population literally believe in religious miracles. The numbers who believe in the devil, in resurrection, in God doing this and that - it's astonishing. These numbers aren't duplicated anywhere else in the industrial world. You'd have to maybe go to mosques in Iran…” quote by Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5b/noam-chomsky-42_astonishing_three-quarters-of-the-american-populatio_1197468.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5b/noam-chomsky-42_astonishing_three-quarters-of-the-american-populatio_1197468.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5b/noam-chomsky-42_astonishing_three-quarters-of-the-american-populatio_1197468.jpg) > “Three quarters of the American population literally believe in religious miracles. The numbers who believe in the devil, in resurrection, in God doing this and that - it's astonishing. These numbers aren't duplicated anywhere else in the industrial world. You'd have to maybe go to mosques in Iran or do a poll among old ladies in Sicily to get numbers like this. Yet this is the American population.” [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Americans show unusually high belief in supernatural events compared to other industrial societies. **In simple terms:** Many Americans believe in miracles more than elsewhere. Key Takeaway Recognize cultural influences on belief systems. Themes religion culture statistics comparative sociology Mood thoughtful analytical Type observational critical When to use this quote - polling - public discourse - education - media analysis Key Concepts secularism faith social psychology Questions to Reflect On - How do cultural narratives shape belief? - What factors explain US religious uniqueness? A Different Perspective Belief data may be outdated or context‑specific. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Astonishing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/astonishing/) [Belief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief/) [Believe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe/) [Believe Devil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe-devil/) [Believe Religious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe-religious-801145/) [Devil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devil/) [Iran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/iran/) [Miracle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/miracle/) [Miracles Numbers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/miracles-numbers-3577747/) [Mosques](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mosques/) [Numbers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/numbers/) [Numbers Believe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/numbers-believe-2511663/) [Old lady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-lady/) [Polls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/polls/) [Population](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/population/) [Quarters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quarters/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Religious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religious/) [Religious Miracles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religious-miracles-3577748/) [Resurrection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/resurrection/) [Three](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/three/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [“The many instances of forged miracles, and prophecies, and supernatural events, which, in all ages, have either been detected by contrary evidence, or which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/the-many-instances-of-forged-miracles-and-prophecies-and-supernatural-3/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [No, I think I don't believe in too many numbers. I believe in contributions or performances that win games. I give a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mayank-agarwal/no-i-think-i-don-t-believe-in-too-many-numbers-i-believe-in/) [Mayank Agarwal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mayank-agarwal/) > [Israel uses sophisticated attack jets and naval vessels to bomb densely-crowded refugee camps, schools, apartment blocks, mosques, and slums to attack a population that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/israel-uses-sophisticated-attack-jets-and-naval-vessels-to-bomb/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [One of the Christian fundamentalists' goals seems to be to rebuild the Temple, which means destroying the Al-Aqsa Mosque, which presumably means war with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/one-of-the-christian-fundamentalists-goals-seems-to-be-to-rebuild-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [I believe that religious faith schools are highly dubious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bj-rn-ulvaeus/i-believe-that-religious-faith-schools-are-highly-dubious/) [Bjorn Ulvaeus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bj-rn-ulvaeus/) > [“People believe in scripture and place value in the words because they already believe in the religious principles the text describes. There”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/atheist-republic/people-believe-in-scripture-and-place-value-in-the-words-because-they/) [Atheist Republic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/atheist-republic/) > [Whatever else the religious Right may be, it is a bonanza for its opponents... Reports of the great terror that is upon us are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-john-neuhaus/whatever-else-the-religious-right-may-be-it-is-a-bonanza-for-its/) [Richard John Neuhaus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-john-neuhaus/) > [I believe not only that religious faith will be victorious, but that it is vital to humankind that it shall be. We may differ…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-hoover/i-believe-not-only-that-religious-faith-will-be-victorious-but-that/) [Herbert Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-hoover/) > [I believe in one God, and no more; and I hope for happiness beyond this life. I believe in the equality of humans; and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/i-believe-in-one-god-and-no-more-and-i-hope-for-happiness-beyond-this/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [I believe that whatever your religious preference, there has to be a commitment to family because everything really does start there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nia-long/i-believe-that-whatever-your-religious-preference-there-has-to-be-a/) [Nia Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nia-long/) > [“I believe in religion, I believe in religious expression, and I believe that all gods are one God. I do not lie when I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arin-murphy-hiscock/i-believe-in-religion-i-believe-in-religious-expression-and-i-believe/) [Arin Murphy-Hiscock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arin-murphy-hiscock/) > [“If they’re beautiful I don’t much mind if they’re not true. It’s asking a great deal that things should appeal to your reason as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-somerset-maugham/if-they-re-beautiful-i-don-t-much-mind-if-they-re-not-true-it-s/) [William Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-somerset-maugham/) > [If we really want to cherish religious freedom, people who want to believe that same-sex marriage should take place, they have a right to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/foster-friess/if-we-really-want-to-cherish-religious-freedom-people-who-want-to/) [Foster Friess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/foster-friess/) > [I believe with religious intensity that good design is for everyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russel-wright/i-believe-with-religious-intensity-that-good-design-is-for-everyone/) [Russel Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russel-wright/) > [“I do not believe in the court system, at least I do not think it is especially good at finding the truth. No lawyer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-landay/i-do-not-believe-in-the-court-system-at-least-i-do-not-think-it-is/) [William Landay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-landay/) ## More by Noam Chomsky > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [If you believe in democracy, why shouldn't you know what the government is doing?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/if-you-believe-in-democracy-why-shouldn-t-you-know-what-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [It’s a shameful moment for U.S. media when it insists on being subservient to the grotesque propaganda agencies of a violent, aggressive state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/it-s-a-shameful-moment-for-u-s-media-when-it-insists-on-being/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There are questions as to whether it should even exist. Who should corporations be responsive to, the management of a corporation? Theoretically they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-are-questions-as-to-whether-it-should-even-exist-who-should/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Governments regard their own citizens as their main enemy, and they have to be - protect themselves. That's why you have state secret laws.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/governments-regard-their-own-citizens-as-their-main-enemy-and-they/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [I don't join the New Atheists. So, for example, I wouldn't have the arrogance to lecture some mother who hopes to see her dying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/i-don-t-join-the-new-atheists-so-for-example-i-wouldn-t-have-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [The first thing you ought to do is verify what I present. Just because I say it doesn't make it true. So check it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-first-thing-you-ought-to-do-is-verify-what-i-present-just-because/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [ I wrote an article about the marine landing \[in Haiti\] right away, but barely mentioned the oil, because my article would come out two… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/i-wrote-an-article-about-the-marine-landing-in-haiti-right-away-but/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [American society is now remarkably atomized. Political organizations have collapsed. In fact, it seems like even bowling leagues are collapsing. The left has a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/american-society-is-now-remarkably-atomized-political-organizations/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Discovery is the ability to be puzzled by simple things. Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/discovery-is-the-ability-to-be-puzzled-by-simple-things-noam-chomsky/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There's an interesting book about that called The Third Reich and the Ivory Tower, written by Stephen H. Norwood. It has a long discussion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-s-an-interesting-book-about-that-called-the-third-reich-and-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [This is class war on an international scale, and power is in the hands of those who control the international economic system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/this-is-class-war-on-an-international-scale-and-power-is-in-the-hands/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There are big, extremely irrational parts of the society, and they have now been mobilized politically by the Republican establishment, hoping that these people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-are-big-extremely-irrational-parts-of-the-society-and-they-have/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There's plenty to criticize about the mass media, but they are the source of regular information about a wide range of topics. You can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-s-plenty-to-criticize-about-the-mass-media-but-they-are-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [The 50,000 Korean mercenaries we had in Vietnam were professional killers and just massacred people outright. And the American army did plenty of that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-50-000-korean-mercenaries-we-had-in-vietnam-were-professional/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) [Explore all 2,129 Noam Chomsky quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) ## More Astonishing quotes > [It's astonishing what you learn and feel and see along the way. That's why a reporter's job, as you know, is such a joy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-wallace/it-s-astonishing-what-you-learn-and-feel-and-see-along-the-way-that-s/) [Mike Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-wallace/) > [A man may perform astonishing feats and comprehend a vast amount of knowledge, and yet have no understanding of himself. But suffering directs a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/a-man-may-perform-astonishing-feats-and-comprehend-a-vast-amount-of/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [A first novel of astonishing force, craft and beauty, The Headmaster's Wager conjures up a dizzyingly evocative wartime Saigon in the story of Percival…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-y-k-lee-2/a-first-novel-of-astonishing-force-craft-and-beauty-the-headmaster-s/) [Janice Y. K. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-y-k-lee-2/) > [“What is astonishing is that we, who had no idea how anything was going to turn out, now know exactly what happened.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-roth/what-is-astonishing-is-that-we-who-had-no-idea-how-anything-was-going/) [Philip Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-roth/) > [It's a great historical joke that when the Spanish met the Aztecs, it was a blind date made in serve-you-right heaven. At the time,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-gill/it-s-a-great-historical-joke-that-when-the-spanish-met-the-aztecs-it/) [A. A. Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-gill/) > [It was astonishing when at one point, I got the idea of how to make artifical clouds with a collaborator, we had pictures made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benoit-mandelbrot/it-was-astonishing-when-at-one-point-i-got-the-idea-of-how-to-make/) [Benoit Mandelbrot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benoit-mandelbrot/) > [Although there may be nothing new under the sun, what is old is new to us and so rich and astonishing that we never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/although-there-may-be-nothing-new-under-the-sun-what-is-old-is-new-to/) [Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/) > [The astonishing thing for me is that I had a career before politics and I never thought about my colour.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-gyimah/the-astonishing-thing-for-me-is-that-i-had-a-career-before-politics/) [Sam Gyimah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-gyimah/) > [“There is no denying it; one must admit that there is something astonishing about Christianity. 'It is because you were born in it,' they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/there-is-no-denying-it-one-must-admit-that-there-is-something/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [It's Twitter's combination of simplicity and complexity that is astonishing in the same way that minimalist sculpture was inspiring and enlightening.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-goldsmith/it-s-twitter-s-combination-of-simplicity-and-complexity-that-is/) [Kenneth Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-goldsmith/) > [All that we don't know is astonishing. Even more astonishing is what passes for knowing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-roth/all-that-we-don-t-know-is-astonishing-even-more-astonishing-is-what/) [Philip Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-roth/) > [Still more astonishing is that world of rigorous fantasy which we call mathematics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-bateson/still-more-astonishing-is-that-world-of-rigorous-fantasy-which-we/) [Gregory Bateson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-bateson/) > [“No one ever said aloud any of the kinds of things he was so constantly thinking, because no one in the parish, not Alice,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-von-arnim/no-one-ever-said-aloud-any-of-the-kinds-of-things-he-was-so/) [Elizabeth von Arnim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-von-arnim/) > [If you worry less about what people think of you, you can pick up an astonishing amount of information about them. 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