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The Flesh and The Devil: Belief in Religious Evil and Views of Sexual Morality

March 2020
Review of Religious Research 62(2)

DOI:10.1007/s13644-020-00403-4

Authors:

Joseph O. Baker

East Tennessee State University

Andrea Molle

Chapman University

We examine an understudied connection between religion and sexuality: beliefs about the reality of supernatural evil (Satan, hell, and demons). After controlling for multiple other aspects of religiosity, beliefs about religious evil remain a strong and consistent predictor of attitudes about issues involving sexuality, including abortion, homosexuality, premarital sex, extramarital sex, and pornography use. Further, the effects of religious service attendance on attitudes about sexuality are contingent upon beliefs about religious evil. Moral condemnation of non-traditional sexuality is significantly higher among regular religious participants who believe strongly in religious evil compared to actively religious people who disbelieve in religious evil, as well as compared to people who do not attend religious services. Beliefs about religious evil are therefore central to understanding the empirical connections between religion and support for conservative, traditional views of sexual morality.

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!!&#& %!$'!?

@3912.3911)A#!$!

&&#"  ("#!#

!! !& !  '$("!

")!  &

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#,#,-,! !($ 

"!&!&7!  #8 $$

'A 1221.5C3914)*#$&D

*#(E$ E$!&"78 "

!E$ !$ 

!!!B (#$$&

!$7 8'E$3992)

!$ !!!&

!-& #

&!! /

 &$ $!F(F'3912%

=<)-7 !8! G 

7&B8/  ! ("($ 

!H&7& 8!

# !  #&&&($(

 !('12:;)-78!

 & ! (#&

& !$!"$#!!! #

 $& &!! 

! #!&

&!(!!"!# &

, #!&!  &

$ !& 

 (& &!(#!

"$!!"#$ !" ?

 $ &#"   !!! $$

!%"&"   !

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

F !!& "#$ C

!!#!#& ("#

!,!  'I391:)'391=)($ 

 && ! !!!&

 &'cf@399;)E$ C

'!-!$!F)"&!

!'$!$"$)&"$ &

&&&$,! '391<)

/$(""!$ !!"& 

"$$ " ,!

 " ,$(+!&!!

$!!#& $$!F

'F391=)$!!!&,$

$$ !!&&J ! 

"!J"#!$$##

&$&'?391<.399<)

( &!

 "  "$

!!&#! "!!$#!

&&G (&!$!&

&$!&$ "&B !

&$& !!' (A399>)

"   !$"&

$ 

#/

/399>(496&!" '>>=6)""

'1426)"$'>4:6" 14;6"")(

496"$" '<446)""'3126)

&'399:) $"! !"&"

391:(&!&!"

J-J'<1=6)(-&'3136)J""

J/(391:$!&!#!

'3939)K"& !  ("&

$ $$&$ !'?

391;)

$#& (&!B !#

&$"+!&(" &&

L#$$" #/

 !!!$!F*(

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$&!$#$$##

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!"$$!B!"#$!

!(&! $!  $$ 

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&(#(!&   $$G 

7!H85  #"Angels%

 "-O$&$! 

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+!-!&" ( 

#" !B!#$  !

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$"$! !($

!" "! #&! !

! $ &$&5'124>%:1)

 & !@AHLeft Behind

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&& ( #&&#*

F(+& !&& !##$

 "!&&FH"This Present DarknessPiercing

1%PP!&&!P" P">(391:

the Darkness<(#&Left Behind

"=;'399:)

F&  $#-(!!&

!!$  &!O !Left Behind

O! $#!!&&& '

399:)*!&  !"#!  &

7(8$##"$ &" #

"! O78 7 8'122<.F$122>)/(7#

"&G !& "! !

$ +!&(" G !& !#"

&!!($ $ !8'5?124;%19=)/

##& #&(#!#&5#

!&!&" (&

!

"   "!  +!&"&

$!" #!( !

 #!'cf,I 12:;(12:>.12==.3994)(

#!!&12:9Q1229'cf(!

3914.E!(1221.M!122:)/( !!

! & !!!"

-"?+$!'I $122:.E

3994) !#&"&  

&!$!&!(##

"  &#(" #

&!  &" $ $! "!

& &! $#&$ 

! A +'3991),J&

!!J'/)!">,@!

"&(J! (J# !%J/

39! !$##!(JJ'

) J/(& $-!!"#

/$$ "  !&#,

 #!"#/!#

$  ! (! (#"

"#"$$ ($,#$ ($ 

J& J'(!!(3994)& (

#( +&$-!(! $! 

!!&!$ 'R334R11:(!)(

!!&$!!!!(!

C($"/(#

 & "&#$!#!!

#'12::)&   "&'2:6)$,

$!@#(!'1221)& "&

# &!!$"##$$$

!! #$$ #$

/!! (?'391:)& "&

$ #!& $! !

("&$ "#"$

 !'391=)(-$!"

!'(S(391:) ( (

!$'391=)(" &! ##"&

" $ B ! "  

$FH'3912)& !H

'12:;)&##!! !&(

#!!#$!!!&"&

" $ (###"&  

&#"  * (##"&" $ 

$!!!!$$ !

!#& "$#+!&$ 

!#& !$ +"&" 

  



!!"##&$  

(#?&/&E$ '399>)

!"5 $?(E!&(

&! #E$ & 

!"&-$! (#$&! 

$$#!! $,

$##!&# 

! #$#!&

G &4(9<1#!!"&

(;(993$" "(#!! -,

!&$$! &&#, (!(

$(&1(431 # *#

&!(($&E$ (*

!'3994)*!  (E!#&

 ! ( "&

"   (#$&$!$ !(

! $$ !(#&"("

$&5'*3994(3919)



Dependent Variables

 ! "#& 

  &"$ $-#

!"""

&"(&7#$8'9)7##$8';)(&

&#$!%7"" &!8.7#H

$8.7$! &8.7&!+

!8.7##!8#$

"(#H"!HTR21

-"$, !&

"&&$&

"(! $$ - # 

"  7"## &8#

 !$ $H#" &7"&$8

7#$8-#

&7$#"&$8

7#$$8#!!&-$&7#$

8'1)7##$8'<)(#$!!$$

!

Independent Variable

 "!"&

"&!&(((&7" 8'9)

7" ';)$"(#"!HTR2;

!  !!"#"&" $ 

&$ !!# #

$-!++!&$ !!#& 

"##"$$ !

#

Control Variables

!&+!&"!$!(# *(

#! L$5'1R#)( '1R

)( '1R)(!'1R#)! 

! " ! ,!

$$&:$'1)$ $'4)/!

 ,!($$&U19(999'1)

U1>9(999'4)5 &!  !! (

!&!$ (

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1 3

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E$  1=4YY 924 ,133 ,941

"! :11YYY 1=2 :2>YYY 14;

$$5 112YYY 14: 2>3YYY 1:=

 $5 9>:YY 943 ;>>YY 949

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$ ,91; ,9;4 ,1:2 ,9;4

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/! ,342YY ,94: ,<;<YYY ,9:<

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 312 91: 949 91<

F! ,>;;YYY ,31; ,19<:YYY ,39<

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#" &"$#$ 

$ ! "+!" 

"##""&  $

!#$ !!#(#$

"$ !#!$'29)&"

!$ #"  '<>)

K

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;

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"&E$ *G !&E$ !!

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!/&"/

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2 1 "  

M" ,

E

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$$5 94< ;;2YY ;;3YY ;9>Y 149

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5 ;3=YYY 3:<YYY 1;9 ;14YYY 1>;Y

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! ;><YYY 42<YYY ;93YY :24YYY =91YYY

!,;<>YYY ,<>:YYY ,9:> ,;42YYY ,<99YYY

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#,1>1 ,9<4 9;9 ,94< ,1;;

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 ! ,912 949 ,33:YY 342YYY 914

/! ,14< ,1=1Y ,939 ,1;> ,1=3Y

 92: 9:: 1=:Y 9<: 9:;

 ,1=:Y ,139 ,1<; ,91< 919

F!

 ,411YYY ,3=:YYY ,1>3 ,<;<YYY ,3>=YYY

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 3 ,<=3 >1> ,;9>< 9291 ,>93

 ; 923 1<:1 ,11>2 1232 =>1

K$E3>>3 >39 ;>; >>; <:;

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"&

YYYW991.YYW91.YW9>'#,)

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!!&- !'"R<39.W991&,

."R;19.W91&."R34>.W9>&

."R3=>.W9>&!"."R;91.W91&$ )

&$  G ! !&

!! $&#$&$ !!!#"$-!

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Sympathy for the Devil: Belief in Satan and Moral Beliefs

Article

Jun 2022

Previous research suggests that religious service attendance, biblical literalism, images of God, and other measures of religion are related to moral beliefs (i.e., that certain behaviors are wrong or deviant). Given previous theory and research on spiritual appraisals (particularly demonization and desecration), we argue that belief in Satan should also predict moral beliefs. Using the first four waves of the Baylor Religion Survey, we tested the association between belief in Satan and belief in the wrongfulness of twelve different behaviors related to abortion, family matters, sexuality, and substance use. Although religious service attendance and biblical literalism were consistently related to moral beliefs, belief in Satan was significantly related to six of the twelve moral beliefs. Furthermore, there was a significant interaction effect between religious service attendance and belief in Satan for ten of the twelve moral beliefs, suggesting that religious service attendance has little or no effect on moral beliefs when people do not also believe in Satan.

Flowing Across with Demonic Hate: Belief in Supernatural Evil and Support for Stricter Immigration Policy

Article

Apr 2022

Prior research has found that different aspects of religion (such as service attendance and fundamentalism) have significant and varying effects on public attitudes about immigration. We identify an important but understudied aspect of how religion connects to immigration attitudes: beliefs about the reality of supernatural evil (e.g., Satan, hell, and demons). Using a national sample of Americans, we find that greater belief in supernatural evil is a strong and consistent predictor of more restrictive views of immigration, even after controlling for other dimensions of religiosity, sociodemographics, and political characteristics. Overall, beliefs about religious evil are the aspect of religion with the strongest connection to views of immigration. Consequently, consideration of religious evil is integral to understanding how religion influences public attitudes about immigration.

'We Condemn the Sin, not the Sinner': Understanding the Attitudes of Adventist and Baptist Believers in Montenegro towards Sexuality

Article

Full-text available

Sep 2024

Interdisciplinary Review of Demonic Possession Between 1890 and 2023: A Compendium of Scientific Cases

Article

Full-text available

Dec 2023

Episodes of demonic or spirit possession, where individuals perceive their bodies and minds as being controlled by supernatural entities, have been the subject of extensive research across various disciplines. Despite this, the extent to which existing scientific explanations can account for these phenomena is still uncertain, especially in terms of the aspects that remain unexplained. This official review aims to clarify the current scientific understanding of the origins, mechanisms, and causes of these seemingly extraordinary experiences. Our analysis includes 52 documented cases of possession, reviewed from literature published between 1890 and 2023 and incorporating insights from psychology, medicine, anthropology, and theology. We examine common symptom patterns, delve into the research conducted, and evaluate how many cases are still unexplained within the existing behavioral science framework. Quantitative models indicate a 0.01923 probability of a possession case being scientifically unexplained. The likelihood of discovering new, truly unexplained cases of demonic possession in the future is estimated at 0.0031, with a 0.0023 probability of encountering five such cases in a single year. Moreover, we assess the medical and psychological interventions employed in these cases and propose practical guidelines for the safe use of exorcisms and specific pharmacological treatments. This study advocates for the integration of therapeutic interventions, combined with the expertise of anthropologists for culturally sensitive actions and Catholic Church priests for spiritual guidance, including exorcisms where appropriate as determined by ecclesiastical authorities. Our conclusion suggests that integrative approaches provide the most comprehensive clinical support in such cases and underscore how possession episodes challenge our scientific understanding of consciousness and its boundaries.

Selling Sex in the States: Religious Fundamentalism, Christian Nationalism, and Public Acceptance of Moral Problems

Article

Oct 2024
CRIM JUSTICE BEHAV

The extent to which commercial sex, particularly sex work, should be regulated is an important and controversial policy conversation in the United States. Despite the salience of religion to informing attitudes about morality and bodily ethics, little is known about how some key dimensions of U.S. religion (e.g., religious fundamentalism and Christian nationalism) influence the public’s moral acceptance of prostitution. We investigate this gap using nationally representative survey data ( n = 1,219). Fundamentalist beliefs and Christian statism are both associated with lower moral acceptance of prostitution, adjusting for other religious and sociopolitical characteristics. Disaggregated models also revealed differences in the strengths of these associations by sex. Implications for policy and opportunities for future research are discussed.

Measuring Religious Evil: Examining the Use of Single-Item Measures in Religious Research

Article

Oct 2024

Multiple-item indexes are ubiquitous within the sociology of religion. However, there are a growing number of articles in other disciplines that have advocated the use of single-item measures in specific circumstances. Using quantitative survey data taken from the United Kingdom, this paper contributes to this literature by exploring the impact of single and multiple item measures of religious evil on a series of social and political attitudes. The findings suggest that belief in the devil is the most consistent predictor within a multiple-item measure of religious evil and the multiple-item measure does not significantly outperform single-item measures. Indeed, the item “most evil in the world is caused by the devil” could be a more efficient measure of religious evil, particularly where it is combined with religious attendance. While further cross-cultural research on the impact of belief in religious evil remains necessary, the paper also finds some evidence to suggest that exploration of more secular beliefs in evil might be advantageous.

Does Belief in Supernatural Agents Moderate the Association Between Interpersonal Conflict at Work and Worker Well‐Being?

Article

Mar 2024

This study examines how interpersonal conflict at work is associated with worker well‐being in Singapore. More importantly, it assesses how this association is contingent upon belief in angelic intervention and belief in supernatural evil. Using data from the 2021 Work, Religion, and Health Survey ( N = 508), the analyses show that interpersonal conflict at work is positively associated with anxiety and job burnout. In addition, belief in angelic intervention and belief in supernatural evil moderate the association. Specifically, the positive association between interpersonal conflict at work and anxiety is weaker for those who report the belief in angelic intervention. Similarly, higher levels of belief in supernatural evil reduce the positive association of interpersonal conflict at work with anxiety and job burnout. These findings indicate that belief in supernatural agents acts as a key personal resource in the workplace, buffering against the harmful effects of interpersonal conflict at work on worker well‐being.

Ruled by the Demons? Exploring the Relationship Between Belief in Demons and Public Attitudes Toward Donald Trump and Joe Biden

Article

Jan 2024

Fanhao Nie

Beliefs in supernatural evils are prevalent among many religions. Prior research has shown that beliefs in supernatural evils were tied to various social and health outcomes. However, much less is known about the political implications of beliefs in supernatural evils. To fill this research void, a national survey of 1092 adults with oversamples of respondents of Asian or Hispanic heritage was conducted in March 2023. The findings suggest that a stronger belief in demons or evil spirits was associated with more negative views toward President Joe Biden. This demonic effect was robust even after controlling for a variety of religious and sociodemographic variables. Besides being robust, the demonic effect was the strongest among all religiosity measures. In contrast, a main relationship between a stronger belief in demons and greater support for Donald Trump was found. However, this demonic effect was explained by Christian nationalism. Finally, these demonic effects vary based on one’s political party identity.

Religion, Human Sexuality, and Evolution

Chapter

Aug 2023

James Arthur Van Slyke

Religiosity, Sex Frequency, and Sexual Satisfaction in Britain: Evidence from the Third National Survey of Sexual Attitudes and Lifestyles (Natsal)

Article

Full-text available

Aug 2022
J SEX RES

Previous studies on the relationship between religiosity and sexual behavior have yielded mixed results, partly due to variations by gender and marital status. Furthermore, less is known about this relationship in relatively secularized societies, as in the case of Britain. In this study, we used data from the third British National Survey of Sexual Attitudes and Lifestyles (Natsal-3) to explore the link between religiosity (11% of men and 16% of women stated that religion and religious beliefs were very important to them) and sex frequency and satisfaction among men and women in different types of relationships. Women and men who saw religion as more important in their lives reported having less sex on average, though this was mainly driven by the significantly lower sex frequency among non-cohabiting religious individuals compared to their less religious peers. At the same time, religiosity was linked with overall higher levels of sex life satisfaction. This relationship appeared to be largely mediated by attitudes on the appropriate context for sexual intercourse. These findings highlight the importance of sociocultural norms in shaping sexual behavior and sexual satisfaction.

Belief in Supernatural Evil and Mental Health: Do Secure Attachment to God and Gender Matter?

Article

Full-text available

Jan 2020

Jong Hyun Jung

This study examines whether belief in supernatural evil is associated with mental health. In addition, it assesses how secure attachment to God moderates this association and how gender conditions the moderating effect of secure attachment to God. Among a variety of mental health outcomes, this study focuses on general mental health problems as well as anxiety‐related disorders (e.g., general anxiety, social anxiety, and paranoia). Using data from the 2010 Baylor Religion Survey (N = 1,627), the analyses reveal that belief in supernatural evil is positively associated with general anxiety and paranoia. In addition, secure attachment to God buffers the positive associations between belief in supernatural evil and social anxiety and paranoia. Yet, when general mental health problems and general anxiety serve as the outcome measures, secure attachment to God attenuates the positive associations of belief in supernatural evil with mental health only for women, but not men. These results underscore the ways that religious beliefs have both positive and negative implications for mental health. Furthermore, they highlight the importance of gender in the complex relationships between religious beliefs and mental health.

Examining Public Opinion About LGBTQ-Related Issues in the United States and Across Multiple Nations

Article

Full-text available

Dec 2018

Over the last three decades, many countries across the world, including the United States, have experienced major increases in support for LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer) individuals and related issues. In partial relation to these changes, multiple studies have examined the factors shaping public opinion. In this review, we focus on four major areas of research on public opinion in this field of study. First, we assess the terms that scholars typically use when examining attitudes and highlight the areas of public opinion research that have received the most attention. Second, we focus on the data and measurement challenges related to examining attitudes in the United States and across many nations. Third, we consider how and why attitudes and related laws have changed over time and across nations. Finally, we discuss the major micro and macro empirical forces that influence and the theoretical explanations for why there are such differences in support.We end by offering several suggestions for future research. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Sociology Volume 45 is July 30, 2019. Please see http://www.annualreviews.org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.

Race, Xenophobia, and Punitiveness Among the American Public

Article

Full-text available

Jul 2018

We outline four connections between xenophobia and punitiveness toward criminals in a national sample of Americans. First, among self-identified whites xenophobia is more predictive of punitiveness than specific forms of racial animus. Second, xenophobia and punitiveness are strongly connected among whites, but are only moderately and weakly related among black and Hispanic Americans, respectively. Third, among whites substantial proportions of the variance between sociodemographic, political, and religious predictors of punitiveness are mediated by levels of xenophobia. Finally, xenophobia is the strongest overall predictor of punitiveness among whites. Overall, xenophobia is an essential aspect of understanding public punitiveness, particularly among whites.

Intolerance Toward Others and Belief in an Active Satan

Chapter

Jan 2006

Fear Itself: The Causes and Consequences of Fear in America

Article

May 2020

Addicted to Lust: Pornography in the Lives of Conservative ProtestantsPornography in the Lives of Conservative Protestants

Book

Jun 2019

Samuel Perry

Few other cultural issues alarm conservative Protestant families and communities more than the seemingly ubiquitous threat of pornography. Thanks to widespread access to the internet, conservative Protestants now face a reality in which every Christian man, woman, and child with a smartphone can access limitless pornography in his or her bathroom, at work, or at a friend’s sleepover. Once confident of their victory over pornography in society at large, conservative Protestants now fear that “porn addiction” is consuming even the most faithful. How are conservative Protestants adjusting to this new reality? And what are its consequences in their lives? Drawing on over 130 interviews, as well as numerous national surveys, Addicted to Lust shows that, compared to other Americans, pornography shapes the lives of conservative Protestants in ways that are uniquely damaging to their mental health, spiritual lives, and intimate relationships. Samuel Perry demonstrates how certain pervasive beliefs within the conservative Protestant subculture unwittingly create a context in which those who use pornography are often overwhelmed with shame and discouragement, sometimes to the point of depression or withdrawal from faith altogether. Conservative Protestant women who use pornography feel a “double shame,” both for sinning sexually and for sinning “like a man,” while conflicts over pornography in marriages are escalated with patterns of lying, hiding, blowing up, or threats of divorce. Addicted to Lust shines new light on one of the most talked-about problems facing conservative Christians.

Smut: Erotic Reality/Obscene Ideology

Book

Jan 1983

Murray S. Davis

Wayward Puritans: A Study in the Sociology of Deviance

Article

Jul 1968

Culture wars: the struggle to define America

Book

Jan 1991

James Davison Hunter

Parenting Practices and Attitudes and the Role of Belief in Supernatural Evil: Results From a National U.S. Survey

Article

Aug 2017

Research on parenting has explored a variety of religious factors affecting child-rearing outcomes but has devoted limited attention to supernatural evil. We extend this work by examining the relationship between parents’ belief in supernatural evil and their child-rearing outcomes. We propose that parents with greater belief in supernatural evil practice “supernatural risk management,” and they use parenting orientations more closely associated with obedience and control to counter the potential influence of supernatural antagonists. Using a national survey of Americans with a multi-item index of belief in supernatural evil, we estimate models predicting five parenting outcomes: corporal punishment, using time outs, praising a child instead of disciplining, closely monitoring children, and closely monitoring children’s entertainment intake. We find partial support for our hypothesis as belief in supernatural evil is positively associated with corporal punishment, while negatively associated with believing praise is more important than discipline, and closely monitoring one’s child.