Zack Perkins, a blogger who is "trying navigate Christianity as a Millennial through the Orthodox way," recently shared a list of five uncomfortable issues the church needs to talk more about: addiction, sexuality, sincere doubt, mental illness, and loneliness. So What? Perkins is right when he suggests that the items appearing on his list are "issues that individuals in the Church are dealing with—issues that the Church Body should be talking about." I am thankful that I Read More …
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My 2014 Resolutions (#1283)
I rarely participate in the annual ritual of crafting resolutions for the coming year. I did commit to one in 2012. This time, for 2014, I have settled upon three: Participate in worship in at least 10 different communities of faith Write at least 200 blog posts and be more actively engaged on Twitter Read at least 100 books and write reviews for at least 50 So What? New years bring new possibilities. While I expect a fair degree of the unexpected in the months ahead, Read More …
Top Posts of 2013 (#1282)
According to the number of page visits during this calendar year, the most popular posts I wrote in 2013 are Top 10 Books of 2012 1,000 Posts Pastor of Innovation Social Media Shortcomings Review of When Spiritual but Not Religious is Not Enough So What? I truly appreciate the feedback readers provide. You vote by clicking, and your interest in posts and topics is confirmed by the time you linger on my site. While this data is helpful, it tells only part of the Read More …
US Megachurches (#1277)
Warren Bird, research director at Leadership Network, recently shared some incredible statistics about megachurches (those congregations with an average weekly worship attendance of at least 2,000) in the United States. 5 million - the number of people who worship at a megachurch during a typical week. 1,650 - the current number of megachurches in the United States. 0.5% - While almost 10% of Protestant churchgoers attend a megachurch, these churches represent only about Read More …
Christmas: Cultural or Religious? (#1276)
Just in time for Christmas, the Pew Research Center released information about how Americans view the holiday. While 92% of Americans celebrate Christmas, there is considerable diversity when it comes to the basis of such celebrations: 51% - more of a religious holiday, 32% - more of a cultural holiday, and 9% - both/other (which includes those who celebrate but did not comment on whether they felt it was more religious or cultural). So What? Notably there is a generational divide. Read More …
Religion in America: A Map (#1275)
This map, based on the 2010 census data, shows the largest religious groups in each county of the U.S. So What? While the Catholic Church is the largest religious tradition in more counties than any other group, the Southern Baptists are a close second and are a majority in the vast majority of counties in the s0-called Bible belt. Take a moment to review Read More …
The Decade of Christian Decline (#1268)
2000-2010 can best be labeled as a decade of decline for American Christianity. David Roozen's recent piece in the Christian Century provides an important look at just how rapid the decline was for conservative/evangelical Protestants, mainline/oldline Protestants, and Roman Catholics. As a percentage, the declines were oldline/mainline: 13% Catholic: 5% conservative/evangelical: 1% So What? After decades of progressive Christianity, it should not be surprising to see Read More …
70%+ Favor Higher Minimum Wage (#1266)
Recently, the Public Religion Institute shared the following graphic of the week: So What? Minimum wage is one topic that is talked about with some regularity in certain circles. It has, however, become a far more common conversation topic of late for an expanding group of people. Rarely do the majority Democrats, Independents, and Republicans all agree on changing anything, much less increasing minimum wage by at least 50%. The same can be said for a majority of Read More …
Get Off the Phone (#1265)
Rhett and Link, morning talk show hosts and self-proclaimed Internetainers, recently created a thought provoking music video: Get Off the Phone. To date, it has received almost 1 million views. So What? The type and number of tasks for which people rely on phones continues to increase. Given this trend, it is important that smart phone users occasionally consider the ways in which they use their devices to determine if such is appropriate. Are you pleased with the Read More …
Pope = Person of the Year (#1264)
Earlier this week, TIME named Pope Francis as the 2013 Person of the Year. I encourage you to read their article and watch the brief video explanation of why he was selected. So What? Pope Francis is a change agent. In his talking and in his doing, he continues to clearly communicate what he understands the role of pope to be as well as how the church should be participating in and caring for the world. I have blogged more about Pope Francis in 2013 than I have about all Read More …