Poll: Most Say God Not a Factor in Hurricanes

Oct. 2, 2005 — -- Most Americans rule out either a deliberate act of God or the effect of global warming as direct causes of the recent Gulf Coast hurricanes.

Just under a quarter in this ABC News/Washington Post poll see the hurricanes as "a deliberate act" of God; two-thirds instead see them as an occurrence on God's Earth, but not a deliberate act on God's part. (The rest have no opinion, or don't believe in God.)

Separately, 54 percent think that the severity of recent hurricanes mainly reflects "severe weather events that happen from time to time," rather than the effects of global climate change. Just under four in 10 think climate change is mainly to blame.

That's not to say most people doubt global warming; 56 percent are convinced it's under way. It's just that fewer are persuaded that it has increased hurricane severity.

Broad majorities across demographic groups don't think the hurricanes are a deliberate act of God. But one in three evangelical Protestants think they are, compared with 13 percent of non-evangelical Protestants, 15 percent of Catholics and 17 percent of non-religious people.

Young, low-income and less-educated Americans also are more likely than others to think these hurricanes are a deliberate act of God.

Alabama State Sen. Hank Erwin, R-Montevallo, recently called Hurricane Katrina a punishment from God, saying New Orleans and the Mississippi Gulf Coast "have always been known for gambling, sin and wickedness. It is the kind of behavior that ultimately brings the judgment of God."

In this survey, though, among people who think the hurricanes are a deliberate act of God, just 8 percent see it as a punishment. About half instead see it as a warning sign, just over a quarter say it's for a reason we cannot understand and 14 percent say it's a test of faith.