The data suggest that what happens to those Christians who have attended church is:
- They feel "cared for." 68% of the respondents feel "part of a group of people who are united in their beliefs and who take care of each other in practical ways." 23% feel "like a group sharing the same space in a public event but who were not connected in a real way." 9% were "not sure."
- They "connect with God." While attending church, 66% of the respondents feel they have had "a real and personal connection" with God. 33% have never felt God's presence while in a congregational setting. When asked about frequency, most of those who have attended church described these encounters as rare. 35% of all adults in the nation report connecting with God at least monthly via a congregational setting. Among weekly church attenders, 44% experience God's presence every week. 18% do so on a monthly basis.
- They "gain new insights." The last time they attended church, 61% cannot recall gaining any new spiritual insights or understanding related to faith. Even among those who attended church in the last week, 50% could not recall a significant insight they had gained.
- They "experience transformation." Of those Americans who had been to a church before, 26% said that their life had been changed or affected "greatly" by attending church. 25% described it as "somewhat" influential. 46% said their life had not changed at all as a result of churchgoing.
The survey's findings by size of congregation are identified in the table below:
The Motley Monk notes that these data reflect Americans who have attended a Christian church, in general, not Roman Catholics, in particular. Whether or not U.S. Roman Catholics share similar experiences is not known.
That said, The Motley Monk would note that attending church appears to connect a group of people in an important way. They seem to connect not only with other members of the congregation but also with God. That's good news! Whether it's intended or not, something appears to transpire in church breaks down barriers.
However, the data also suggest that those who attend church---whether regularly or not---are not being challenged to consider new spiritual insights or understandings related to faith. Stated positively, it may be that those who attend church are coming in the hope of being challenged to consider these matters.
This is perhaps the most disappointing finding for The Motley Monk. If ministers (and priests) are not getting those in the congregation to consider these matters, what then are they presenting in their sermons (and homilies)?
Might it be that these individuals are "hungering" for spiritual and faith-based nourishment and those God has called to provide it are leaving these individuals hungry?
Then, too, might this explain why these individuals aren't coming back to church?
Let the discussion begin...
To read the Barna Group survey report, click on the following link:
http://www.barna.org/congregations-articles/556-what-people-experience-in-churches
A couple of points about preaching in church and its consequences on the congregation. First, one should recognize the possibility at times of a disconnect between what people think they get out of a homily and what they actually get out of it. The faithful sitting in the pews may not be the best judges of the spiritual utility of what they have just heard from the preacher. A spiritually useful homily (as opposed to an entertaining, "uplifting" one) may seem to some in the pews to be hard news rather than good news. Nevertheless, such a homily may, in the longer term, prove more valuable to these people, even though they judge it to be of little use to them. Secondly, certain sermons/homilies may exercise a positive effect on certain individuals only after the passage of some time. Let's be a bit wary of using marketing techniques to measure the worth of homilies.
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