Calvin Synod Herald, 2017 (118. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
2017-07-01 / 7-8. szám
Should We Continue on the Path of Extinction? How does the future look in your local congregation? If the answer is uncertain, you are most likely a mainline Protestant congregation in the United States. Is your congregation in survival mode? Is the membership in decline? Is the congregation made up of members over age 50 or age 60? Are you struggling with finances? You are a mainline Protestant congregation in America on the path to extinction. Membership statistics First, let’s look at the numbers to see where we are. I know some of you will say we should not. It’s too depressing. We are happy and content to be a small church. Ignore the numbers and don’t change things. We will be ok. But the numbers say we are not going to be ok. Pew Research did an extensive study in 2014 regarding religion in America and concluded the following: About two-thirds of all US citizens believe in God and 70.6% consider themselves Christians. Of the remaining 30%, about 15% say that they have no religious beliefs. Of the 70.6%, 46.5 say that they attend a church. Catholic Church membership makes up 20.8% of the US population, the largest group. There are 36 million people (14.7%) who are Protestant members. This is down by 5 million people from 2007 (41 million). Notice that the percentage of Protestant members is now less that those who have no religion. It is also important to note that the study reveals that the Protestant denomination has the lowest of all denominations in retention rates. That is only 45% of those raised in a Protestant church continue in that faith. They leave, for whatever reasons by adulthood. A look at our own denomination is even more disturbing. In 1965, when the denomination began, the United Church of Christ reported 2,070,413 members. In 2015, the membership was 914,871. That is a loss of 1,155,542 members which is 55.81%. In the decade from 2005 to 2015, membership in the UCC declined 25.27% and the total number of churches decreased by 535 or 9.61%. All the numbers are taken from the UCC annual statistics reported by the congregations. Our own Calvin Synod Conference of the United Church of Christ has even more shocking statistics. In 1965, there were 42 Calvin Synod congregations with 7,099 members reported in our annual meeting minutes. In 2015, there were 25 congregations with 1,211 reported members. That is a decrease of 82.94%. In the decade from 2005 to 2015, membership decreased by 693 members or 36.39%. So our Hungarian Reformed congregations declined at a higher rate than of our denomination since the merger with CALVIN SYNOD HERALD____________________________ the Congregational Christian Churches. Is now the time to “Sound the Trumpet? ” Reason for Decline There are many reasons for this decline. You may have your own list, but surely we can all agree that there are combinations of reasons, not just one simple reason. Perhaps the most common is the death rate in our congregations combined with the lack of baptisms and lack of new members. We simply do not replace the loss of members who die. A natural process that we cannot control. The changes in American society also contribute to the decline. The liberal vs. conservation Christian debate has hurt many mainline Protestant churches. Despite the numbers, you will find Christian churches that are growing in America. Most are evangelical or bom again non-denominational churches. Many are conservative in Christian values. Many oppose same sex marriage and abortion, being more in line with the Roman Catholic Church, but without the hierarchy. This move away from the Biblical Christianity has had an impact on membership. Also, the trend of the “me” generation where individualism rules over social and community involvement. People just want to be able to go and worship or pray when they want and not be part of a congregation. And of course the secularization of America is much more ingrained into today’s society. The moral compass of America has changed. Religion is not a part of everyday life anymore. Sunday morning is football and soccer game day; church is simply not a priority. The last reason I would share may hit a nerve with some, but it is factor that must be mentioned. That is the church itself. It is amazing that Christian churches can be unfriendly and unwelcoming. Many leave the church because of the church; the people, the structure, the organization, the policies. Change in itself is a difficult thing to do when you are content in your own world. No need to elaborate on this. It is sad that it happens, but it does. Is now the time to “Sound the Trumpet? ” Attempts to Revitalize There have been many attempts to grow and revitalize our churches. Our denomination has numerous materials as well as many people out there attempting to stop the bleeding of membership. Our own Calvin Synod has spent much time, money, and effort on revitalization. But the results are spotty. And the decline continues.... One of the largest efforts came in 2003 when we all joined together to “Declare a Holy Fast!” It was a collaborative program with the Calvin Synod Conference of the UCC, the Hungarian Reformed Church in America, Continued on page 8 _________________________________________________________________________7
