In either a sign of interfaith harmony or confusion, more than one in four Christians celebrate the Jewish holiday of Passover, according to a new poll.
Some 27 percent of Christians participate in Passover events, and more than one in five Americans overall celebrate Passover, far more than the estimated 2 percent to 3 percent U.S. Jewish population, according to the latest Economist/YouGov poll. Most also celebrate Easter.
And 35 percent of born-again Christians celebrate Passover, said the poll.
The findings come as another poll, from Rasmussen Reports, reveals that Easter church attendance has dropped below 50 percent. A new survey said that among all Americans, 46 percent plan to attend an Easter church service this year, down from 54 percent last year.
The Rasmussen poll focused on the importance of Easter. But it found that just 39 percent of all Americans believe it to “one of our nation’s most important holidays.” What’s more, 19 percent think it’s among the “least important holidays,” and 38 percent place it somewhere in between.
YouGov, meanwhile, looked at the connection of Easter and Passover, the religious holidays that converged this weekend.
The poll analysis suggested that the occurrence played a role in Americans, and especially Christians, celebrating them both.
“The two holidays converge this year, as Good Friday and the first night of Passover are on the same day. And, of course, the first Holy Thursday supper was a Passover Seder. So it may not be surprising that some Christians are celebrating both, not to mention that many non-Jews have always been invited to Seders. Born-Again Christians are even more likely to report that they will celebrate Passover this year: more than a third of Born-Again Christians (35 percent) say they will,” said the poll analysis.
Paul Bedard, the Washington Examiner’s “Washington Secrets” columnist, can be contacted at [email protected].
