With the general population indicating a warm and positive perception of Jesus, how is it possible that the U.S. is increasingly and swiftly becoming more post-Christian?

The answer appears to lie in the dichotomy between how people perceive Jesus versus how they view his followers and the institutional Church—something we’ll explore in today’s article, an excerpt from our third release in the Spiritually Openseries. You can read the full release on Barna Access Plus.

Jesus vs. the Church When we asked Americans whether they have a positive or negative opinion of Jesus, seven in 10 (71%) say they view him positively. Of all U.S. teens and adults, 63 percent say they have made a personal commitment to Jesus Christ that is still important in their life today. This is actually most common among Millennials, of whom 70 percent say their commitment to Jesus is still important to them. Overall, the percentage of Americans who agree with this statement has declined fewer than 10 percentage points over the last 20 years (which is less of a decline than what is observed with other Barna faith metrics like church attendance).

Beyond Jesus, when it comes to views of other Christian groups or entities, positive opinions wane. People of no faith are neutral or leaning negative—and for celebrity, mega- or famous representatives of the faith, opinions are decidedly negative.