Barna Group

faith

Doubts, Faith, & Belief

The Barna Group, an evangelical research organization has yielded some surprising findings about America’s Christian and spiritual beliefs:

Half of all adults firmly believe that the Bible is accurate in all the principles it teaches. That proportion includes the four-fifths of born again adults (79%) who concur.

Just one-quarter of adults (27%) are convinced that Satan is a real force. Even a minority of born again adults (40%) adopt that perspective.

Similarly, only one-quarter of adults (28%) believe that it is impossible for someone to earn their way into Heaven through good behavior. Not quite half of all born again Christians (47%) strongly reject the notion of earning salvation through their deeds.

A minority of American adults (40%) are persuaded that Jesus Christ lived a sinless life while He was on earth. Slightly less than two-thirds of the born again segment (62%) strongly believes that He was sinless.

Seven out of ten adults (70%) say that God is the all-powerful, all-knowing creator of the universe who still rules it today. That includes the 93% of born again adults who hold that conviction.

If the majority of Americans claim to be Christian, then this study brings to light about the faith of most Christians in America. In our Gospel text for this Sunday, we will examine the faith in the disciples who saw Jesus.

We find our disciples, who are living in fear of the Jews coming to finish off Jesus’ followers, living in a house on a Sunday. The doors are locked and as they are living in a cowardly state Jesus appears in the house.

Churches

Reports of the Demise of Mainline Churches Have Been Greatly Exaggerated

A fresh report from the Barna Group has yielded some surprising results: Mainline churches are not dying! I should be honest with you, nation wide, mainline churches are not growing either. In the past decade, the six mainline church denominations (American Baptist Churches in the USA, Episcopal Church, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America; Presbyterian Church (USA); United Church of Christ; and United Methodist Church) have experienced some stability. The Barna Group concluded:

Over the course of the past decade, the number of adults who attend a mainline church on any given weekend has remained relatively stable, ranging from 89 to 100.

In addition, some other encouraging news was reported:

One reason why that average has remained steady has been the population growth of the United States, with the mainline churches attracting just enough newcomers to maintain attendance levels that are similar to the years when the nation’s population was considerably smaller.

Even though these have been tough economical times, signs of finical growth occurred:

… during the past decade the median church budget of mainline congregations has risen substantially – up 51%, to about $165,000 annually.

This is fantastic! Although I am an American Baptist clergyman, I whole-heartily support and have great affection for “mainline churches” (I served in 3 different mainline denominations: ABC, UMC, & PC USA). For years, the mega-church moment has told Christians, “Come here! We are young, happening, and different. Your old corner church is weak and feeble.” Not really. I’m joking, but you get the picture. I have been very clear in past posts that I believe megachurches are not evil and are worshiping, faithful, and Godly communities – but they are not the end-all-be-all of “church.”

What does this Barna report mean for the mainline church? (There is also some bad news)

image

The Christian Image Problem

A recent ACORN undercover video has shown us how important “image” can be. The video depicted two individuals seeking assistance with their fictitious prostitution operation. ACORN workers gave pointers on how to avoid certain laws and tax rules. The result of the undercover video was a disaster for ACORN. Their funding was pulled by several government agencies and now the IRS is looking into their organization’s financials. ACORN’s image has been tarnished.

We too can have an image problem. How people perceive us is important to our job, family, and standing in the community. Even false accusations can ruin our life. We should be conscience of our image, but not obsessive about our image.

Christians have a problem… it’s our image. Time magazine reported:

Back in 1996, a poll taken by the Barna Group, found that 83% of Americans identified themselves as Christians, and that fewer than 20% of non-Christians held an unfavorable view of Christianity… Barna polls conducted between 2004 and [1997], sampling 440 non-Christians (and a similar number of Christians) aged 16 to 29, found that 38% had a “bad impression” of present-day Christianity.

Yikes! What is going? What is everyone’s beef with Christianity? The Time article explains:

Doubts, Faith, & Belief

Reports of the Demise of Mainline Churches Have Been Greatly Exaggerated

The Christian Image Problem

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