Study: Alabama is the most religious state in the country

If the South is the Bible Belt, Alabama is the Belt Buckle.

In a yearly study by the Pew Research Center, Alabama tied with Mississippi as the most religious state in the union, with 77% of adults claiming they are “highly religious.”

Alabama is also first in the number of people who believe in God, with 82% of Alabamians say they believe in God “with absolute certainty.”

The study also asked how frequently people attend church and pray. Alabama came in second in both of these categories, with 51% saying they attend church at least weekly, and 73% saying they pray daily.

The South has long been recognized as a region of deep religious devotion. The top six most religious states in Pew’s Religious Landscape Study come from the South: Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Louisiana, Arkansas, and South Carolina.

The Mason-Dixon line also provides a clear separation between the most religious states and the least religious. New England is home to some of the least religious states in the country, with New Hampshire and Massachusetts tied for last place. Only 33% of residents in those states consider themselves “highly religious.” Forty-three percent of New Hampshire and 40% of Massachusetts residents say they believe in God “with absolute certainty.” Vermont, Maine, and Connecticut round out the bottom five.

A related study found that Birmingham is the most religious city in Alabama. The Magic City is home to over 600 churches in over 35 denominations, including the state’s largest church, Church of the Highlands.

This study by Sperlings Best Places asked adults of Alabama’s largest cities if they considered themselves religious. Small, but likely highly devout, towns were not surveyed.

The top ten most religious cities in Alabama, according to the research are:

1. Birmingham – 84 percent
2. Gadsden – 80.4 percent
3. Dothan – 80 percent
4. Montgomery – 70 percent
5. Decatur – 69.68 percent
6. Phenix City – 69.49 percent
7. Prattville – 68 percent
8. Mobile – 61 percent
9. Florence – 58 percent
10. Tuscaloosa – 54 percent