Losing their religion: why US churches are on the decline

Sir Robbins · Jan 22, 2023

Losing their religion: why US churches are on the decline

As the US adjusts to an increasingly non-religious population, thousands of churches are closing each year – probably accelerated by Covid

www.yahoo.com

I'm sure this is nothing new to many of you but their claim of thousands a year seems a bit exaggerated but they are spot on the money with younger generations just not even bothering with attending and it seems to be having quite an effect. Will those laws in the USA pursuaded by Christianity all fall in the coming years as the old timers die off in the government? I seem to think it will happen. Disturbing trends are spreading across the country. Ministry has long since been seen as a global outreach program but I feel they need to look closer inside our borders now too as so many walk away or turn the other shoulder in these "minister's" own backyards.

Ignatius the Kiwi · Jan 22, 2023

Breakdown of religious community and the standards, combined with social atomization and a thoroughly secular state education from the age of 5 to 18 are the perfect ingredients to cause a decline in faith.

d taylor · Jan 22, 2023

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Not properly teaching The Bible and the truth The Bible is. For one, the many misteachings on how to receive God's free gift of Eternal Life. Also letting science dictate a teaching on God's creation can also be a factor. The turning the church into a social society and political machine has also affected its membership.

Ignatius the Kiwi · Jan 22, 2023

d taylor said:
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Not properly teaching The Bible and the truth The Bible is. For one, the many misteachings on how to receive God's free gift of Eternal Life. Also letting science dictate a teaching on God's creation can also be a factor. The turning the church into a social society and political machine has also affected its membership.

How do Churches avoid being political and social societies on a basic level? The Church has always been a society of sorts and always been engaged in the political to one degree or another. Which aspect of these is causing a decline?

Jesus is my Superhero · Jan 22, 2023

Nihilism - everyone has their own truth. Lack of character development which leads to being soft, shiftless, Self destructive.

Materialism - Since birth, being targeted with the need for new toys and material goods.

Hedonism - Bread(s) and circuses 24/7.

Sir Robbins · Jan 22, 2023

Ignatius the Kiwi said:
How do Churches avoid being political and social societies on a basic level? The Church has always been a society of sorts and always been engaged in the political to one degree or another. Which aspect of these is causing a decline?

I don't think it's the church per say, I think it's the modern political system in the USA that says you are one or the other, no in between. Democrats may be more likely to leave a church that is ultra conservative in their teachings while republicans may flee to a more liberal preacher like what I saw at my home church of many years. He ran off quite a few members being Obama's spiritual advisor at the time and others left when he was finally asked to step down. That church is still in recovery years later from what I see.

Ignatius the Kiwi · Jan 22, 2023

Sir Robbins said:
I don't think it's the church per say, I think it's the modern political system in the USA that says you are one or the other, no in between. Democrats may be more likely to leave a church that is ultra conservative in their teachings while republicans may flee to a more liberal preacher like what I saw at my home church of many years. He ran off quite a few members being Obama's spiritual advisor at the time and others left when he was finally asked to step down. That church is still in recovery years later from what I see.

What does the in-between of two fundamentally liberal parties that are both encouraging the decline (though in different ways) of Christianity in the USA look like? Quite often the things a community is for and against, such as your case of an ultra conservative Church, keep's it together.

Sir Robbins · Jan 22, 2023

Ignatius the Kiwi said:
What does the in-between of two fundamentally liberal parties that are both encouraging the decline (though in different ways) of Christianity in the USA look like? Quite often the things a community is for and against, such as your case of an ultra conservative Church, keep's it together.

for example, my former church had a pastor who became Obama's spiritual advisor. He started inviting LQBT people into higher roles within the church and many members were not happy about this. Worship leaders brought into the youth area were covered in tattoos and members had issues with their kids being in the room with them looking like that. He was biblically conservative but socially liberal if that makes sense. He became a big advocate for them (nothing wrong with that) and it sends the right message but for most of the church to leave when he became the advisor, they felt politics became a part of his messages and doings behind the scenes. He is what I would call the "in between" type. Politically one way but religiously the other. As long as no one from the outside comes in and stirs things up, a church will likely stay as it is with no issues. Worship music had a cause for people to leave too. When I started at that church, it was pews and hymn books with one room on the ground and big stained glass window behind the choir. Now it's like a rock concert with vocal solos that no one can sing along to in an arena style building with balconies and single seater chairs. I hope this is making some sense. I know my generation (millenials) are into experiences and if something is not the way we think it should be, we go elsewhere. I feel that is a reason today for my age group (30s).

d taylor · Jan 22, 2023

Ignatius the Kiwi said:
How do Churches avoid being political and social societies on a basic level? The Church has always been a society of sorts and always been engaged in the political to one degree or another. Which aspect of these is causing a decline?

Teach The Bible, it may seem boring and will cause a drop in attendance. But people are hungry for truth and how to receive eternal life.

What is causing decline in relation to political involvement, that churches are involved in a political arena, this distracts from teaching of The Scriptures.

godisagardener · Jan 22, 2023

That is a very interesting article and one that points out something that has become obvious over more than just the past few 'pandemic' years. I think the comment about the life cycle of a church speaks volumes of truth.

I belong to an extremely small church, member-wise. It's at the point of closing. Why? Because it's gone through that cycle. The membership has slowly aged, people have moved away, a generation of members quit attending for whatever reason (I'm sure there were many), their kids didn't grow up in the church (any church) and the church has slowly died. If that generation that quit attending, and their kids and probably now grandkids, look for a church today, they're looking for something totally different. They want the big church that offers entertainment.

There's seems to be no happy medium when it comes to church. One is too liberal, the other is too conservative, this one doesn't teach biblical truth, you can't attend that one unless you're KJV only, the other doesn't allow women to teach, and on and on. There are too many schisms that drive people away.

And yes, many, many churches are closing. I was astounded to find out just how many have closed in my area, and how many are on the verge of doing so. But 2nd Thessalonians tells us that there will be a falling away, so it's really no surprise.

dzheremi · Jan 22, 2023

Christianity really does not meld well with America's hyper-individualistic ethos. Nevermind political discussion about 'in-between' types of people or churches, where is the middle ground supposed to be between "our life and our death are with our brothers" and "I don't need anybody to get between me and my concept of God", or even worse, "I'm a free-thinker, and it's obvious that religion is only for sheep"? There quite simply isn't one, so the stronger messaging that promotes anything but traditional Christianity is winning out. I do not doubt that if trends continue as they have been, America will one day be like Egypt, with a small but persistent Christian population. I just hope that what replaces Christianity in the USA is not as virulent and terrible as what replaced it in Egypt, but who knows. Nature abhors a vacuum, they say, and usually what ends up filling the void is ultimately worse than whatever was there before. Lord have mercy.

ByTheSpirit · Jan 22, 2023

The reason for Church attendance decline to me is the focus on churches becoming more seeker friendly. When the church offers nothing new to its people, they leave. People are taught come to God and your problems disappear, and when the problems persist, they leave.

Handmaid for Jesus · Jan 22, 2023

The Bible is the Word of God. It is written there will be a falling away.

Blade · Jan 22, 2023

Praise God.. the Church is going strong and growing every day. I share a pastor that has home Churches.. talks to some person in China where they see about a million or so a month coming to Christ. Just last weekend we were driving and 4 Churches.. 2 where like block a part were so packed!

So a "departure" is coming not a fallen

SavedByGrace3 · Jan 22, 2023

The pews were artificially inflated during the "good times." They are just sliming down as the hangers-on exit stage left.

Matthew 13:3-9
3. And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow;
4. And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up:
5. Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth:
6. And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away.
7. And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them:
8. But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold.
9. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.

Tuur · Jan 23, 2023

Jesus is my Superhero said:
Nihilism - everyone has their own truth. Lack of character development which leads to being soft, shiftless, Self destructive.

Um...Nihilism is "Nothing really matters." What you describe is subjective truth.

WolfGate · Jan 23, 2023

And yet there are churches in the US that are growing and thriving. Sure, a few are mega-churches that could be questionable, but there are thousands of other smaller ones that focus on building disciples. They teach the bible, including how it speaks to issues today, without getting caught up in political partisanship. Their stance on issues goes where bible takes them, which means they end up supporting efforts that each of the political parties support or oppose. They remove the meaningless written or unwritten rules found in many churches around appearance, or dress, or social and economic status, or style of music, etc. and instead adjust within the parameters of the bible for what builds up the people who walk in their doors. They allow people to question what they have been told and heard and read about Christianity and address the doubts with grace and words from the Bible. They teach people how to study and about application of grace and as they mature how to continue the cycle of building disciples with others.

IMO, the churches that are dying are too rigid in their tradition and too flexible in their application of what the Bible actually says. God's word never changes but society does. Churches who understand that and adapt accordingly are gospel focused and relevant, which if achieved is a recipe for creating and building disciples. We need more of those and that trend can be reversed. People still have spiritual desire - they are just looking to fill it in the wrong places.

Jesus is my Superhero · Jan 23, 2023

Tuur said:
Um...Nihilism is "Nothing really matters." What you describe is subjective truth.

noun
total rejection of established laws and institutions.
anarchy, terrorism, or other revolutionary activity.
total and absolute destructiveness, especially toward the world at large and including oneself:the power-mad nihilism that marked Hitler's last years.
Philosophy.

an extreme form of skepticism: the denial of all real existence or the possibility of an objective basis for truth.
nothingness or nonexistence.

(sometimes initial capital letter) the principles of a Russian revolutionary group, active in the latter half of the 19th century, holding that existing social and political institutions must be destroyed in order to clear the way for a new state of society and employing extreme measures, including terrorism and assassination.
annihilation of the self, or the individual consciousness, especially as an aspect of mystical experience.

parousia70 · Jan 27, 2023

I blame American evangelical hyper futurism.

If Pastors would get back to promoting sharing the gospel, loving their neighbor, welcoming the immigrant, Feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, nurturing the sick, and actually building the kingdom of God on earth today as our master has instructed us to, instead of teaching retreat and defeat because of some "soon coming antichrist and/or rapture" or other such nonsensense that never comes soon, You would see a complete turnaround of this trend in a dozen short years or less.

The average churchgoer can see right through the failed prophesies and false promises these Evangelical end time fanatics have been foisting on their congregations for decades now, and its causing them to be fed up with Church alltogether.

Tuur · Jan 28, 2023

parousia70 said:
I blame American evangelical hyper futurism.

If Pastors would get back to promoting sharing the gospel, loving their neighbor, welcoming the immigrant, Feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, nurturing the sick, and actually building the kingdom of God on earth today as our master has instructed us to, instead of teaching retreat and defeat because of some "soon coming antichrist and/or rapture" or other such nonsensense that never comes soon, You would see a complete turnaround of this trend in a dozen short years or less.

The average churchgoer can see right through the failed prophesies and false promises these Evangelical end time fanatics have been foisting on their congregations for decades now, and its causing them to be fed up with Church alltogether.

The focus on eschatology in the US isn't an evangelism thing. You may not remember it, but the US was so obsessed with eschatology in the 1970s that The Late Great Planet Earth had a good number of sale and it was adapted into a film narrated by Orson Wells. Grocery stores had small book racks in those days, and one chain in particular was full of such books. None of this would have happened if it was purely an evangelical thing.

It's strictly my own observation, but the eschatology obsession in the US coincided with a period of national decline, and practically ended during a period of national resurgence. That many in the US thought the world was coming to an end as the nation appeared to fade on the international scene isn't flattering, but there it is.

Losing their religion: why US churches are on the decline

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