Since Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1963 comment, “it is appalling that the most segregated hour of Christian America is 11 o’clock on Sunday morning,” we have made relatively little progress. According to the latest statistics, “between 5% to 7.5% of churches in the U.S. are considered to be racially diverse, a designation meaning that at least 20% of a church’s members don’t belong to the predominant racial group there.”
These statistics make sense when you consider white American’s social networks. Currently, 3 out of 4 (75%) white people have “entirely white social networks without any minority presence.” And, the average white American has just 1 black friend compared with 91 white friends.
So What?
The statistics are frightening. As a white person I am deeply troubled to learn that the majority of white people in the United States have no black friends. As a follower of the Way of Jesus I am discouraged when a worship gathering fails to reflect the demographic diversity of the surrounding geographic community.
For those of my readers who are white and/or attend worship in a context that is all or nearly all white
- How many of your friends are black?
- What percentage of your worshiping community was black on the occasion of your most recent service?
Currently, black people do a far better job of befriending white people (with an average of 8 white friends) than white people do of befriending black people (with an average of 1 black friend).
- Why do you think this is?
- What can you do to start overcoming this practical friendship segregation in your own life?
- Does your congregation claim to “welcome all” and/or value diversity? If so, how does such a priority translate into action?