The Pew Research Center recently released the "Modern Parenthood Report," which reveals the results of their latest polling that asks married and cohabiting parents with children under 18 to compare their workload at home with that of their spouses or partners. In an overview of the research, Kim Parker and Wendy Wang write: The way mothers and fathers spend their time has changed dramatically in the past half century. Dads are doing more housework and child care; moms more paid work Read More …
Trends
New $130 Million Church Campus (#1040)
First Baptist Church of Dallas is about to celebrate the opening of its new 500,000 square foot campus. The new facility cost $130 million, which is "believed to be the largest church building campaign in modern history." The celebrations will include: March 24 - lighting of the cross tower and fountain, March 31 (Easter) - grand opening, and April - a special guest or musician each Sunday as a way of celebrating God's faithfulness. The new campus is a "re-creation, Read More …
Worship Swap (#1038)
Earlier this month, the Pew Research Center reported that data from the General Social Survey shows a role reversal in worship attendance when comparing Catholics and Protestants. More specifically: In 1974, Catholics were more likely than Protestants to report attending religious services at least once a week (47% vs. 29%). By 2012, the situation had reversed: Protestants overall were more likely than Catholics to say they attend church weekly or more often (38% vs. 24%). So Read More …
Real Taxation Levels (#1037)
Earlier this year the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy released the 4th edition of "Who Pays: A Distributional Analysis of the Tax Systems in All Fifty States." This report finds that "virtually every state’s tax system is fundamentally unfair, taking a much greater share of income from middle- and low-income families than from wealthy families" (Executive Summary, p.1). The image at right illustrates the regressive reality of the national averages for the percentage of Read More …
What Are You Eating? (#1035)
Living in the information age, people often assume easy access to data. When it comes to food one may consider eating, however, this is not always the case. Recent changes by many large companies makes it easier to know what is in menu items at certain restaurants. All such establishments may be required to follow certain labeling guidelines if proposed FDA changes take effect. Those who choose to purchase food from grocery stores also often lack the data they desire Read More …
Christian Mega-University (#1034)
Liberty University was founded in 1971 by Jerry Falwell. While the school was well known and grew considerably under his direction, significant growth has occurred in the nearly six years since his death. Over that period of time, the school has doubled its enrollment not once but twice. Nick Anderson's recent Washington Post article explores this reality in-depth while also placing the school's current size in context. Notably: Current enrollment of 74,000 Read More …
Healthier Congregational Budgets (#1032)
A new study conducted by the Indiana University School of Philanthropy and Lake Institute on Faith & Giving at Indiana University School of Philanthropy, in partnership with the Alban Institute, the National Association of Church Business Administration (NACBA), Indianapolis Center for Congregations, and MAXIMUM Generosity finds that congregations are starting to recover financially after multiple consecutive challenging years. The research shows: Nearly two-thirds of churches Read More …
Ministry IQ (#1031)
MinistryBriefing.tv is a site overseen by Todd Rhoades and Matt Steen that seeks to connect church leaders with up to date information on what has happened "in ministry in the last month." One of the tools they have developed is a Ministry Current Events Quiz. You can complete the March 2013 version in just a few minutes. So What? As I took this month's quiz, I realized that this survey focuses on Evangelical stories, especially those featuring well known Read More …
Educational Debt – BS (#1030)
When I initially encountered Greg Henson and David Pohlmeier's new infographic on what incoming seminary students bring with them, I found myself gravitating toward the financial data. The data used to generate the graphic comes from surveys completed by 6,900 incoming students at 161 ATS schools during the 2011-2012 school year. Among the findings: 51% of all incoming students enter seminary with educational debt (the image at right shows the debt load of Read More …
Pastoral Stressors (#1028)
Bill Reichart, creator of Ministry Best Practices, recently shared an infographic about the pressures of pastoral ministry. The visual is based on data in Pastors at Greater Risk by H. B. London, Jr. and Neil B. Wiseman. So What? Pastoral ministry is a broad category of ordained ministers with varying responsibilities. Clergy, regardless of the amount or type of higher education they have received, must be mindful of and respond to the pressures associated with Read More …