Faith Counts Launches First Comprehensive Resource on Religion's Impact in America

Posted on 28th Sep 2021

WASHINGTON, June 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Faith Counts, a multi-faith nonprofit group, today launched a first-of-its-kind database that distills the latest research on how religion positively impacts the most important issues facing America.  

Religion in the United States today contributes a combined $1.2 trillion a year to the economy and society. However, studies highlighting the impact of faith and religion are often aimed at scholars and academics, making it difficult to find the meaningful information too often buried in published works that can be difficult for the non-scholar to navigate.

Faith Facts uses videos, infographics and shareables to pull out key data points to detail the invaluable role faith communities play in supporting the economy, healthcare, immigration, criminal justice, substance abuse and disaster relief. They have been particularly critical during this historically difficult period, supporting:

Food insecurity:  53% of all food banks in the U.S. are faith-based 
Disaster relief:  About 58% of all emergency shelter beds are faith-based 
Pandemic healthcare capacity:  20% of all U.S. hospital beds and 1-in-7 hospitals are faith-based
"As a recent Pew study shows, the personal religiosity of Americans continues to decline. We'd like to gently remind people of the significant good that religious organizations and individuals do for our society and economy," said Kerry Troup, Communications Director of Faith Counts. "This database helps quantify religion's contributions in a way that is accessible, interesting and readily available."

Faith Facts also consolidates the latest news on how faith communities are affecting the country. Most importantly, it encompasses the contributions of a diverse range of faith communities, including and beyond the Judeo-Christian tradition. From Muslims running an entirely free health-care clinic in rural Alabama, to Christians providing life-saving services on the southern border, Faith Facts hopes to document data and examples to showcase the positive difference religion makes in America. 

By: Faith Counts