In a telephone survey of 1,503 U.S. adults conducted on Nov. 28 – Dec. 4 for the Pew Research Centre, 55% said they mark Christmas as a religious holiday. The figure in 2013, when Pew last asked this question, was 59%.

“Nine in 10 U.S. adults say they celebrate the holiday, which is nearly identical to the share who said this in 2013,” said the survey, whose results were released on Dec. 12. “About eight in 10 will gather with family and friends. And half say they plan to attend church on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day,” it said. Those numbers, Pew added, are roughly the same as those of 2013.

“Most respondents in the new poll say they think religious aspects of Christmas are emphasized less in American society today than in the past. But relatively few Americans both perceive this trend and are bothered by it,” the Pew survey said.

“Overall, 31% of adults say they are bothered at least ‘some’ by the declining emphasis on religion in the way the U.S. commemorates Christmas, including 18% who say they are bothered ‘a lot’ by this. But the remaining two-thirds of the U.S. public either is not bothered by a perceived decline in religion in Christ-mas or does not believe that the emphasis on the religious elements of Christmas is waning,” it added. One flashpoint is how Americans think store clerks should greet customers at this time of the year. “Merry Christmas” is the preferred choice of 32%, down from 43% in 2012, the last time Pew asked the question. The generic “Happy holidays” or “Season’s greetings,” went up from 12% to 15%, while 62% said it doesn’t matter, up from 45% in 2012. “One of the most striking changes in recent years involves the share of Americans who say they believe the birth of Jesus occurred as depicted in the Bible,” the Pew survey said.