Many Christians also voice belief in astrology and other practices

Can you believe in Jesus and in astrology? The answer is a resounding "yes," according to a study that shows Americans' beliefs to be more complex than might be expected.

The survey — one of the first by a major religion polling group to tackle Americans' belief in such things as "the evil eye" and "spiritual energy in trees" — was conducted in August by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life. The goal was to explore the complexity of faith in the modern world and the overlap between religions and other supernatural beliefs.

According to results released Thursday, the overlap is considerable. Researchers found that 24 percent of U.S. adults sometimes attend services of a faith different from their own. (That figure doesn't include people who go for special events such as weddings and funerals or attend services while traveling.)

The study also found Americans' personal beliefs often combine aspects of major religions such as Christianity with Eastern or New Age beliefs like reincarnation and astrology.

For example, 25 percent of about 4,000 U.S. adults surveyed believe in reincarnation, the rebirth of the soul in another body. Among Christians, the number drops only slightly, to 22 percent.

"We know that religion in U.S. society is quite complex and diverse. What's interesting is this data shows that even at the individual level, a single person holds that same diversity and range of beliefs," said senior researcher Gregory Smith.

Researchers asked specifically whether people believed in or had experience with the following: reincarnation, spiritual energy located in physical things, yoga as a spiritual practice, the evil eye, astrology, being in touch with the dead, consulting a psychic or encountering a ghost. About 65 percent expressed belief in at least one of them.

For most of the questions, little previous data exists for purposes of comparison. But two questions — "have you ever had a religious or mystical experience" and "have you seen or been in the presence of a ghost" — have been asked before, and in both cases, there was a significant increase in the number of people saying yes.

Nearly half of those surveyed in August said they have had a mystical/religious experience, compared with 22 percent in a 1962 survey. The percentage who said they have interacted with a ghost doubled from 9 percent in 1996 to 18 percent this year.