An overwhelming majority of all evangelicals (84%) believe that personal faith in Jesus Christ is the only way to salvation, compared with 38% of Catholics and 56% of non-evangelical Protestants. Just half of white evangelicals, however, believe that only born-again Christians go to heaven, and even fewer black evangelicals (42%) say they believe only born-again Christians will go to heaven.

Only white evangelicals put moral values first among their domestic concerns. More than a third of white evangelicals (37%) say moral values are of most concern, while only 16% of all African Americans and 13% of all Hispanics say that moral values worry them most. Forty-one percent of all African Americans and 34% of all Hispanics worry most about the economy and jobs, but among white evangelicals the number is 25%. Yet on many other domestic pocketbook issues such as health care and Social Security, the level of concern among white evangelicals is very similar to that of all other Americans.

By evangelical the survey means EITHER respondents who indicated that they are Protestant or another Christian religious preference other than Roman Catholic, Orthodox or Mormon and who indicated they would say they are a fundamentalist, evangelical, charismatic or Pentecostal Protestant OR respondents who indicated that they are Protestant or another Christian religious preference other than Roman Catholic, Orthodox or Mormon who do not consider themselves liberal or mainline and call themselves a born-again Christian. This is not the only definition of evangelical, of course, but it does define the core of the evangelical community.

The nationwide survey of 1610 adults, with over-samples of white evangelicals, African Americans, and Hispanics, was conducted March 16 - April 4, 2004 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.5%. Additional analysis was provided by John Green, professor of political science and director of the Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics at the University of Akron, and Robert Wuthnow, professor of sociology and director of the Center for the Study of Religion at Princeton University.

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RELIGION & ETHICS NEWSWEEKLY, a production of Thirteen/WNET New York, is the only national television news program devoted entirely to the news of religion, spirituality and ethical issues. Now in its seventh season, it is distributed Friday evenings to PBS stations nationwide. Funding is provided by the Lilly Endowment, Inc. with additional support from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Additional support for extended program distribution is provided by The Pew Charitable Trusts. The executive editor and host is Bob Abernethy. The executive producer is Arnold Labaton.