It is widely known and frequently reported that the United States of America is becoming less and less Christian when considering the number of Americans who self-identify as Christian. For example, earlier this month I posted Christianity Declines by 25% in America, exploring the decline over the last 50 years. Current Breakdown Just how many Americans are affiliated with each religion? To answer this question, Becka A. Alper and Aleksandra Sandstrom frame the answer in a way that Read More …
16th Annual Top 10 Books of the Year (#2282)
Welcome to the 16th annual So What Faith’s Top 10 Books of the Year. This year I read 84 books published in 2024. The top ten are listed below in alphabetical order by author’s last name: Top Ten Top Two The two books on this year’s top ten that had the greatest impact on me are Prior Lists There are so many great books published in recent years. Two of this year's top authors appeared on prior lists: Incredibly this marks Diana Butler Bass' fifth Read More …
My Visit to Church of the Open Arms (#2281)
This morning I was a first time visitor at Church of the Open Arms in Oklahoma City. About Open Arms Church of the Open Arms is affiliated with the United Church of Christ and started in 1997 on the campus of Mayflower Congregational UCC. Interestingly, my first ever worship in experience in the state of Oklahoma was at Mayflower. The congregation purchased and moved into their current building in 2001. Open Arms called their current pastor, Rev. Kayla Bonewell, to serve as their Read More …
Christianity Declines by 25% in America (#2280)
Over roughly the course of my lifetime the percentage of Americans identifying as Christian has declined by 25%. According to data from the General Social Survey, So What? All conversations about decline in particular traditions or denominations or more granular discussion about particular churches or congregations should begin with a general awareness of this cultural shift. To learn more about how declining membership in Mainline Protestant denominations as well as in Read More …
Decline Upon Decline: Metropolitan Community Churches (#2279)
The Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches is the largest Protestant denomination birthed in and primarily serving the LGBTQ+ community. G. Samantha Rosenthal's recent Sojourner's article has been shared across many of my social media feeds often with significant commentary. Her piece notes the denomination's historical development since its founding in 1968, including My search for longer term traditional metrics about denominational decline led me to the Association Read More …
5 Star Books Published in 2025 (#2278)
Welcome to the seventh annual edition of So What Faith’s 5 Star Books of the Year! This list is comprised of books rated 5 or 5+ on a scale of 1 to 5. To be eligible the book must have been published in 2025 and I must have read and rated it this year. This year, just 14.4% of all books rated received a rating of 5 or 5+ to earn this honor (in prior years the percentage has ranged from 15% to 17%). Past Years Be sure to check out prior lists Best of the Best Stay Read More …
Is Religion Gaining Influence in American Life? (#2277)
According to a Pew Research Center report, religion is gaining influence in American life. More specifically, there was a tremendous increase in the percentage of survey respondents who believed religion was gaining influence in American life in 2025 when compared to 2024 and also when compared to recent years. Over the most recent one year period, the percentage of respondents who believed religion is gaining influence in American life rose from 18% to 31%. The 31% number is the highest Read More …
Great New Books for December 2025 (#2276)
The best new books I’ve read in the last month are A Beautiful Year Advent arrived just a few days ago, ushering in the beginning of a new church year. In her twelfth and newest book, Diana Butler Bass invites readers to journey through the Christian calendar week by week, offering timely reflections that gently reorient us toward the Way of Jesus. Whether you prefer to savor her wisdom one meditation at a time or, like I did, devour the entire book in a single sitting while Read More …
Now is the Time (#2275)
Today I preached and presided as the supply pastor for Central Lutheran Church (ELCA) in Dallas, Texas on the first Sunday of Advent. Central Lutheran Church is among the founding member churches of White Rock Center of Hope. Hope founder Donagene Christian was a member of this congregation. Sermon My message, “The Time is Now” is based on Romans 13:11-14 & Matthew 24:36-44.. You can watch on Facebook (sermon begins at 22:38) or read Read More …
Episcopal Church Unsure of Its Membership (#2274)
I, like so many others, have been actively monitoring the membership decline of Mainline Protestant denominations. Last year I wrote an article linking to more than 50 posts I wrote on this topic over the prior 15 years. While I've given limited attention to the Episcopal Church (see Another Decade of Major Decline in The Episcopal Church), I remain interested in its year over year decline. No Report I was shocked to learn that, for the first time, the Episcopal Church will not be Read More …