4: Perceptions of Faith, Christianity, and Churches
PERCEPTIONS OF FAITH, CHRISTIANITY, AND CHURCHES
What Unchurched People Think and Feel about Religion
As a culture on the run, heavily invested in technology and saturated with media messages, we form lasting perceptions based on ten-second video clips, 140-character tweets, fifteen-second sound bites, Instagram snapshots with short captions, and thirty-second commercials. We are too distracted to finish reading the books we start. We select our political leaders based on appearance and demeanor, and on their clever, if vacuous, replies to substantive questions. When asked to discuss the most significant issues of the day, most of us demonstrate only superficial knowledge of —or interest in —world-shaping matters. Yet, armed with minimal depth and concern, we form thousands of enduring impressions that serve as the basis for daily decision making in most areas of our lives.
It’s not surprising, then, that churchless people have formed such lasting perceptions of faith in general, of Christianity, of churches, and of Christians. Unfortunately, some of these images stand in the way of a churchgoing Christian’s ability to connect with the unchurched in a meaningful and potentially life-changing way.
Images of Faith
Unchurched people have little quarrel with the notion of faith. Two-thirds say they are spiritual people and more than half (57 percent) say their religious faith is very important in their life today.[7] About half also claim to be actively seeking something better spiritually than they have experienced to date. Forty percent of young unchurched adults talk about faith matters with friends and family during a typical week.
Few churchless people are anti-faith or harbor animosity toward God; the unchurched are more disinterested in or unimpressed with faith than hostile to it. (Yet with each new church scandal splashed across the headlines, they are less inclined to see value in a Christian faith community.) A large majority of the unchurched has positive perceptions of Jesus, but most have not deeply considered what impact his life, ministry, death, and resurrection should make on their way of life.
Images of Christianity
While virtually every unchurched person (99 percent) is aware of Christianity —remember, nearly two-thirds still consider themselves to be Christians, and three-quarters were formerly churched —just three out of ten hold a very favorable view of the Christian faith, and an equal proportion hold an unfavorable view. Just 30 percent of the churchless believe it is desirable to be known as a Christian in American society today. While only a slightly higher percentage of churched people hold that view (38 percent), churchgoers are more willing to buck public sentiment and embrace their Christian identity. The unchurched tend to view things differently. Without a definitive sense that participating in a Christian church is valuable, the unchurched may find their willingness to connect more deeply with the faith is inhibited by the negative image of Christians in contemporary culture.
Adding fuel to the fire, a majority of the unchurched agree that “Christianity is no longer the faith that Americans automatically accept as their personal faith.” The impression that Christianity is on the decline is increasingly held by both churched and unchurched folks. In a society where reputation and image count for so much, convincing outsiders to align with a group of people who are losing popularity and public trust is a genuine challenge.
Images of Churches
As we have seen, most churchless adults used to be churched. They parted company with their churches for various reasons, but for more than four out of five church avoiders, the decision was conscious and intentional. Motivating them to return is no small task.
{Insert bar chart, “Recognition of Religious Groups,” possibly as sidebar by the following paragraph}
Unchurched Adults’ Impressions of Denominations and Christianity
Favorable impression
Denominational group
Aware
Very
Somewhat
Catholic
94%
18%
27%
Baptist
93
21
33
Methodist
90
16
39
Mormon
88
8
22
Presbyterian
84
10
33
Lutheran
79
13
28
Christianity
99
29
40
Denominational group
Unfavorable impression
Aware but no opinion
Not aware
Catholic
33%
15%
6%
Baptist
14
23
7
Methodist
9
26
10
Mormon
31
27
12
Presbyterian
9
32
16
Lutheran
11
27
21
Christianity
27
3
1
Source: Barna Group, OmniPolls 1-11 and 1-12, conducted January 2011 and January 2012; sample included 1,535 unchurched adults and 2,112 churched adults
The names and denominational identities of various churches do not spring easily to mind among unchurched people. When asked to identify all of the denominations or religious groups they could recall, they were actually more likely to list non-Christian groups —Judaism (23 percent), Islam (21 percent), Buddhism (10 percent), Mormonism (10 percent), and Hinduism (5 percent) —than leading Christian groups. Among the Christian bodies named, Catholicism led the pack (46 percent), trailed by the generic label “Christianity” (40 percent). Specific denominations remembered were Baptist (18 percent), Lutheran (6 percent), Methodist (6 percent), Presbyterian (4 percent), and Pentecostal or Foursquare (3 percent). As shown in the table, unchurched folks’ perceptions of these Christian groups varied, with the Catholic church (33 percent) and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or Mormons (31 percent) leading in the unfavorable category, and Methodists (55 percent), Baptists (54 percent), Presbyterians (43 percent), and Lutherans (41 percent) leading the favorables.
Our surveys reveal that about one-quarter (24 percent) of the unchurched believe the typical church experience is boring or tiresome. In addition, they don’t see church as a place of meaningful community. Churchless people are about 40 percent more likely to say that church services felt like “a group sharing the same space at a public event, but not a group of people that was connected to each other in any real way” than to say services felt like “a group that was united in belief, cared for and would take care of each other in practical ways.” The subgroups most likely to report this kind of disconnect within the faith community are adults under thirty, political liberals, and Hispanics.
The churchless are not completely down on churches, but they sure aren’t cutting them much slack. Consider these survey results:
All this data leads us to a direct examination of the reasons the unchurched avoid Christian churches. The biggest issue is a perceived lack of value. In a consumer-oriented society, value is a big issue —a variation on “what have you done for me lately?” Nearly half of churchless people attribute their lack of church attendance to an absence of value. (This figure is the sum of those who say they have no interest, have no reason, are too busy, can practice faith at home, and have not found a church they like. These are different ways of expressing that church involvement has thus far proved of little value to their lives.)
Reasons the Unchurched Avoid Church
Not interested; it’s too boring
15%
No particular reason; just lazy; not sure
13
Too busy; have other obligations
11
I am not Christian
10
I don’t believe in God/Jesus
10
Christians are hypocrites; they’re not genuine
9
I can worship/pray/practice faith from home
6
I’m disillusioned with organized religion
5
I have different (Christian) beliefs than they do
4
All churches want is my money
4
I haven’t found one I like/am comfortable with
3
They’re too controlling/judgmental
3
I am limited by health issues
3
Source: Barna Group, OmniPoll 1-13, conducted January 2013; sample included 898 unchurched adults
When we asked unchurched people to recall the most recent church service they attended, less than one in ten could identify anything from the experience that they considered insightful, valuable, helpful, or memorable. (Among churched people, about one-third identified something useful from their most recent experience.) In light of these disappointments, it’s understandable that returning for more church experiences may not seem particularly worthwhile to the unchurched.
Reflections on the Unchurched’s Images of Christianity and Churches
Few of us have a tight grip on “real” reality. That is, our sense of reality is largely shaped —mediated —by the media. A combination of personal experiences and media depictions forms the average American’s worldview and perception of reality. Unfortunately, the media depiction of churches is often negative, with fringe groups or ethical scandals getting the most press. A major challenge to local churches is the conflict between their desire to counteract the media’s negative portrayals and their desire to act with humility rather than chase accolades for their ministry’s good works. This conflict has created an environment where the good work and loving efforts of church people often go unnoticed, while any and everything negative becomes the “news” on which people base their lasting images of churches and Christianity. When unchurched people have had negative or valueless personal experiences of church, counteracting these impressions becomes doubly hard.
One way to change people’s minds about your church is to do things in and for your community that are valuable, visible, and memorable. Churched people have more favorable views of the church’s value because they have personally experienced the spiritual satisfaction and relational fulfillment that come with involvement in a healthy faith community. In chapter 14 we’ll look in more detail at the different ways churches provide value for the people involved in them. But why wait for unchurched people to join your church to offer them a valuable experience? The media’s relentless onslaught against faith communities is only believable when it agrees with a person’s firsthand experience. What does your church offer to churched and churchless people that is too valuable, too meaningful, for them to ignore?
Forward Thinking
• What surprised you most about unchurched people’s perceptions of Christianity and Christian churches? Why?
• What do you think about the gap between most churches’ priorities (teaching, worship, evangelism) and what unchurched people believe churches should prioritize (meeting practical needs within the community)? Do you think it’s important to close this gap? Why or why not?
• What is one ongoing service or ministry your church could offer to your community that is valuable, visible, and memorable? What obstacles must be overcome to launch and sustain such a ministry? How will you address these challenges?