The Nation - News from Dec. 28, 1986

Forty percent of Americans surveyed attended a church or a synagogue in a typical week in 1986, according to the Gallup Poll. That figure has stayed fairly constant since 1969 after a decline from the high point of 49% in 1955 and 1958, pollsters said. The level of attendance at religious services in 1986 was higher among women (46%) than among men (33%) and among older persons than younger. Nationally, 49% of Catholics, 41% of Protestants and 20% of Jews attended. People from the South and the Midwest were most apt to attend church weekly, while those in the West had the lowest level of attendance.