By Elliott Brack, editor and publisher | You don’t have to be a research scientist to realize that church attendance in this country is down. Not only that, but it seems that this is a problem which is getting worse.
Also: fewer weddings are in churches. Couples pick all sorts of sites, from mountain event venues, to the beach, country clubs, back yards, but less and less in church.
These two factors alone are enough to make us realize that the church is becoming less important in American lives.
Several national studies have shown this falling off of church attendance. Some point out that only about 40 percent of Americans consider themselves regular church attendees. Others think that a mere 23-25 percent are steady attendees.
The publication Church Leaders, says this:
“…..more than 40 percent of people say they go to church every week, but statistics show that fewer than 20 percent actually attend.. Between 2010 and 2012, half of all churches in the U.S. did not add any new members.”
Others point out that while lots of churches disband, there are also new churches springing up each year, though most of them are not from traditional backgrounds, but from individuals starting churches and seeking followers.
But, all in all, it’s apparent that our nation is no longer deeply-churched as it once was.
We have found this in a distinctive way: by reading the local obituaries.
Many people in Gwinnett, who are not from “around here,” seldom even glance at the obituaries, much less get a daily newspaper. They have few roots here. Knowing who died is just not important to them, unless it is one of their close friends. And these days, many will get that information by some social media.
Yes, we read the obituary pages carefully, recognizing someone at least once a week who died, or find people related to someone who died, like a friend’s parents who become deceased. It’s another way to keep up. And yes, we attend all too many funerals.
Another fact we have learned: fewer people are being buried out of the church. Often the deceased has a service at a local funeral home. Many have no funeral at all. People have memorial services at all sort of places, a country club, open field, beach or some other public space. Funeral directors say that it’s more unusual today for a funeral to be at a church.
Many deceased do not list themselves as having been a member of any church. (Rhonda Rich told us recently that when it says that a person was “of the Baptist faith” (or any other denomination), that means that they may have attended such a church, but that they were not a member of any church!)
Let me add a positive note here: most people who belong to liturgical churches (Catholics, Episcopalians, Lutherans, Greek Orthodox, etc.) tend to have their funerals within a church.
Add in too, that the growing Hispanic Americans tend to be buried out of a Catholic church. They are bucking this trend. And their church is growing in the United States.
So what does all this say? How can our nation, founded by people who were strong in religion, continue its course if we depart from our churchly background? Is this saying something about what course our nation will take?
Church membership and attendance may not be a panacea for our nation. Yet its decline worries lots of people. It may be a trend that continues steadily downward. And if so, that will not be beneficial to our nation. Lack of funerals and weddings in churches points that way.
- Have a comment? Send to: elliott@brack.net
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