Putting faces on the survey
Print ViewEverything I read lately seems to be citing the recent study by Pew Forum on Religion. Though there are many things happening on the religious front, few (including General Conference) are getting as much ink as this study.
o 28% of the American population has left the religious tradition of their childhood.
o 44% have left the denomination or tradition of their childhood.
o 8.3% of adults say they were raised Methodist. 6.2% are Methodist now. A loss of 2.1%
o 12.1% choose no religious affiliation at all.
How do you read those numbers? You know what they say “ 40% of the time, 90% of the statistics can be used to say whatever 18% of the people want to hear.” Or something like that. (That’s at least 75% right.)
I have seen these statistics used to write obituaries for mainline Christianity, calls to reform the confirmation process, arguments for changing the ordination process, influence the design of the new hymnal, shape leadership and any other favorite horse an author wants to ride. So where do we go? Do they really mean anything?
I suspect they do. Statistics like this are not just numbers though. They are people. They are our children, our neighbors, our friends and the person you see at the grocery store
1. Over a fourth of our children are leaving the faith of their childhood. If we managed a grocery store and 25% of our regular customers decided to go to a different store the owners would be pretty quick to make sure we followed them. (Just ask Darrin and Sue) Blame is useless. Guilt or embarrassment are erosive. Yearning for the “good old days” is not very productive.
This is not, at its root, an organizational problem, or a programming issue. No one is “organized” into a mature faith or “programmed” into discipleship. This is not fundamentally the fault of the youth ministry, the confirmation program or the Sunday school. This is a failure of the community. The Christian faith is not so much taught as caught. How Contagious is your faith?
2. The church used to be able to count on brand loyalty. I just spoke to a 92 year old woman today who proudly said “I was born a Methodist and I’ve been a Methodist for 92 years.” These statistics would indicate that very few of our children will ever be able to make that claim. If denominationalism is giving way to community, how do we become a “receiving” community rather than “sending” community?
3. With 44% changing faith communities, and 12% choosing no community that means we have a tremendous opportunity before us. 56% of our friends, neighbors and relatives may at some point be seeking a new community. Couldn’t we me that community? Of course we could . . . will we?
Obviously there are a hundred more conclusions you could draw from these statistics. I chose these three for a specific reason, though. I think they put the ball in our court. A survey is just a piece of paper. Statistics are just numbers. God's children, however, are people of infinite worth. When we put faces on the survey and names on the statistics we have a tool that can instruct us, guide us, and improve the way we care for one another.
What will we do? What will we become? How will we respond to the realities of today and the challenges of tomorrow? Let’s use this survey as a wake up call to push us off dead center and prepare for tomorrow.
God is not just a God of the wonderful memories of the past. God is not just a God for today. God is a God who is leading us into tomorrow, and all the tomorrows to come.
Ready, set, go!
I have met many people who distinguish between faith and religion. Words may differ, but essentially these people say that manmade religions are less important than belief in God. What percentage of these people are non-believers, I don't know, but suspect we malign the group by assuming the worst. Not all of them are aetheists. For this group of individual worshipers, by remaining alone, some damage is still done. In groups, we strengthen each other, whatever belief we follow. Man was made for social and active life, and he that isolates himself from his spiritually rich earthly friends invites spiritual decay. Why else would our good pastor Terry work so hard to visit and communicate with his brethren? It is up to us to join in that task and show, by example, that association with a modern established ministry like United Methodists is in no way like attending a fire and brimstone revival meeting like I, for instance, remember from my youth. It is a postitive, rewarding association that invites personal growth and better ability to cope with the problems of the times.
Posted by Jim Russell — Apr 17, 2008 00:00