I am a practicing civil litigator from Texas. I have also been been speaking, teaching, blogging, and reading about Christian spirituality in the emerging culture for over five years. Aside from my passion for all things Dallas Cowboys, my interests are of a decidedly geek-ish bent: they include technology, quantum physics, PC gaming, and board games.The Barna Group, a firm that is well-known for sociological research on Christian America, has just published the results of a study on church participation, or, more specifically, the tendency of Americans to participate in Bible study, Sunday school, and small groups. The profile of the typical “participant” that emerges from the study is interesting, even if it is not too surprising. Generally speaking, people who participate in these activities tend to be:
- Women
- Married
- 45 or older
- Southern
- Protestant
- Politically conservative
- Members of larger churches
- Devotional Bible-readers
(Notably, as a percentage of their population, African Americans are highly involved in their churches, when compared to whites and other minorities.)
For me, Barna’s profile of a Church “participant” raises some interesting questions: Are those who don’t fit this mold choosing not to participate? Or do churches tend to cater to the needs of a particular sector of the population? In particular, I am wondering whether activities that are designed to satisfy the needs of middle class families (a population that probably helps to keep the Church budget in balance) tend to alienate the unchurched and younger singles (who, conversely, are less likely to be significant givers).
Any thoughts on the subject? In particular, I’d be interested to hear from those who don’t fit Barna’s profile.
