New York Times best selling author Frank Schaeffer, recently wrote a strong critique of both the evangelical and progressive forms of Protestant Christianity in North America in which he claims that "The problem with North American Christianity is not the window-dressing– it’s the whole package." So What? Like Schaeffer, I believe the current trend of decline among Protestants in North America signals that Protestant Christianity as we have known it for the last hundred years has major Read More …
Trends
WEIRD Western Bias (#1146)
The global community includes an incredibly diverse population of humans, yet people often wrongly assume that every culture is similar to their own. Surprisingly this erroneous assumption appears even in research published in the top psychological journals. Robert Gonzales explains: The vast majority of psychological studies recruit test subjects who are Western, educated, industrialized, rich and democratic – or "WEIRD." Which is... well, weird, given that Read More …
Church without God (#1145)
Dan Merica's recent post, "Church without God - by design," explores gatherings of the Humanist Community at Harvard University, which is the brainchild of the school's Humanist chaplain: Greg Epstein. After meeting for the last several years in a "small three-floor walk-up off the bustling streets of Harvard Square," the community will transition to "a nearly 3,000-square-foot community center with an event space for nearly 100 people." So What? Epstein sees the transition in Read More …
Fatherhood: Churches over Bars (#1144)
University of Virginia sociologist W. Bradford Wilcox, recently wrote an article that overviews how fatherhood transforms men. These changes, however, do not impact all fathers equally. In reality, the positive changes associated with fatherhood apply only for men who live with or in close proximity to their child(ren). Those fathers who do not live with their children consistently share more in common with childless men. Fathers who live with their children are Read More …
Mormons Go Social (#1143)
Late last month leaders in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced a shift in missionary strategy. More specifically, the church will increasingly encourage missionaries to leverage social media rather than the traditional door-to-door approach. This change is significant for several reasons, including: the recent lowering of the minimum age for missionary work ( from 21 to 19 for women and from 19 to 18 for men), the old rules that limited Read More …
Happy Christian Tweeters (#1139)
While multiple research studies have sought to determine if Christians are happier than atheists, only one has considered this by relying solely on data from tweets. The results of this new study conducted by a research team led by University of Illinois psychologist Ryan Ritter are published in the June edition of Social Psychological and Personality Science. Ritter and his colleagues focused on over 877,000 tweets written by over 7,500 individuals following one or more of five well Read More …
Churches & Active Shooter Incidents (#1138)
In response to a number of recent shootings in school and faith communities, the United States government released its first ever Guide for Developing High-Quality Emergency Operations Plans for Houses of Worship (38 pages). The practical booklet offers information, including: assigning congregation members to assess immediate threats, determining the best places for shelter and useful hiding spots identifying who should run, who should hide, and who should fight back planning Read More …
1980s Technology & Ministry (#1136)
A few days ago I came across a Mashable post featuring 15 technology ads from the 1980s. It was during that era that I first fell in love with technology. As I scrolled through these old ads I realized just how much technology has changed in a few decades. My mind began to compare the rate of change in technology to the rate of change in the American church. So What? While there are significant limitations to broad generalizations, they are helpful as conversation starters. Read More …
College Educated 20-Somethings (#1135)
While it is widely known that more young people are attending and graduating from college than ever before in the United States, many people are less familiar with just how dramatic the change is for those in the 25-29 year old cohort. In a recent New York Times' article, Catherine Rampell notes that the National Center for Education Statistics data shows that the percent of 25-29 year olds with a bachelor's degree or higher rose more rapidly over the last two decades than in the Read More …
Deaths Outnumber Births (#1129)
Last week the U.S. Census Bureau released population estimates for 2012, including a population decline in non-Hispanic whites. More specifically, for the first time ever the country's dominant racial group experienced "a natural decrease — a straightforward calculation of births minus deaths." So What? Demographers have been commenting on the likely population shift for some time. While the decline in non-white Hispanics last year was a first, it will soon be the norm. What are Read More …