Bernie Sanders Embodies Trend Of The 'Spiritual But Not Religious' American

Sen. Bernie Sanders , I-Vt., made history on Tuesday when he became the first Jewish candidate to win a presidential primary election.

If elected, he would become the first Jewish president in U.S. history. But that fact, alone, doesn't tell the whole story. The presidential hopeful was raised Jewish, believes in God , says he doesn't participate in organized religion , and he has a substantial following among atheists.

Jane Sanders, the senator's wife, shed light on Sanders's faith in a recent interview with HuffPost Live's Caroline Modarressy-Tehrani. 

"Faith is important to us, personally," she said. "I'm a Catholic, he's Jewish, and our basis, our foundation come from the tenets of those faiths."

Like a growing number of Americans who identify as "spiritual but not religious," Sanders said she and her husband are "spiritual" but don't participate in organized religion. But their faith backgrounds and moral convictions, she said, influence their actions and beliefs.

"The sense of our responsibility to take care of those more vulnerable than ourselves, to treat people with respect and to treat others as we would have them treat us, comes from that faith basis," Sanders said.

More and more Americans identify as "religiously unaffiliated ," meaning they do not participate in organized faith, though many are still spiritual . Millennials, who have demonstrated overwhelming support for Sanders's campaign, constitute the largest group of these religious "nones."

Check out Jane Sanders's interview with HuffPost Live above.

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