The Pseudo-Decline of Christianity

The latest USA Today poll shows that the total number of Christians is down 10%. This is indeed alarming for believers. Or, is it?

Adam in his blog crunches the numbers of this poll.

The big loser are mainline Christian denominations. They made up 18.7% of the population in 1990, and today only make up 12.9% of the population. The mainline denominations are Episcopalians, Methodists, Lutherans, and the United Church of Christ. These denominations tend to be: more theologically liberal, more focused on social programs and the social gospel rather than the Gospel, and require less reliance on belief in the scripture.

A Jeffrey Hadden poll in 1998 showed 13% of Lutheran Ministers, 30% of Presbyterian Ministers, 35% of Episcopalian Ministers, and 51% of Methodist ministers doubted the truth of the resurrection...

...However, that’s not the full story, the number of Americans identifying as Pentecostal/Charismatic is up from 3.2% to 3.5%. Non-Denominational Christians up from 0.1% back in 1990 to 3.5% today. Christian-unspecificied category has risen from 4.6% to 7.4% and Evangelical/Born Again with no specific denomination has tripled from 0.3% to 0.9%

I find this fascinating. I think one of the most important things one can draw from Adam's analysis is the causes for decline. While no doubt it is more complex than this, we see that when churches forget, abandon, or lessen the mission Christ gave the result is a loss of influence, specifically conversions.

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An Open Question to Christians on Social Issues

Two days ago, the Iowa Supreme Court legalized gay marriage in my state. The web is a buzz over the issue. Across America, pastors addressed this topic in their sermons today. In this post, I do not want to speak on the legality or rationality of this decision. Rather, I have some questions for Christians about their involvement in social issues.

American Christianity has always been involved in politics. Believers have not just participated but been leaders on issues such as slavery, women’s rights, prohibition, abortion, and gay marriage. American Christianity is full of victories and failures in the realm of social activism. How effective have we been and what have we lost in this pursuit?

1. Some have attributed Christianities Christianty's loss of respect as being directly connected to her involvement in social issues. Is this a result of the churches actions or the secularization of society?
2. American Christianity has fought for many issues. It seems to me, that we been the most effective (and respected I might add) for fighting for the rights of others such as slavery and women’s rights. When we have tried to legislate morality (going to church, paying tithe, prohibition, abortion, and homosexuality), we have had mixed results at best and some outright failures. Is this a principle to go by?
3. Some would argue that Christianity has the responsibility to be actively engaged in the political arena. John Piper on the other hand states that we should live as though these issues are unimportant. Vote but do not be especially concerned about the outcome since our inheritance is in heaven. Do you agree?
4. The last question is have we lost opportunities to evangelize because of our focus on social issues?

These are areas that I have been thinking about lately. I am interested in your take so leave comments below.
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