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Being the Church in the Age of the Dispirited
Scott Thumma Hartford Institute for Religion Research
A Christian Nation of 350,000 Congregations
80% say they are sure there is a God & belong to a faith group
75% of Americans identify as “Christian”
65% claim an affiliation with a congregation
49% are claimed as adherents by congregations
40% tell surveys they attend weekly
20% of Americans actually attend weekly
A Christian Nation?
And how many of these are involved – leading and serving?
And in New England?
And in Lutheran New England
Not Quite Dying…
But Needing to Change
Getting Older
Less Appealing to the Young
The time spent on computers by 8-18 year-olds tripled from 1999 to 2009.
With More Competition for Their Time
Nearly 70% of US children (age 6-17) play team sports, three out of four teenagers play at least one team sport.
8-18 year-olds average 71/2 hours of entertainment media a day (over 53 hours a week).
7th-12th graders spend 11/2 hours a day sending or receiving texts.
And Ours
Getting Larger
and smaller…
MegachurchProliferation
A weakening of denominational labels and affiliation within churches
Less Vitality
So how can you thrive as the Church in the Age of the Dispirited?
Churches Have To Be Wiser…And Less Wistfully Nostalgic
The Challenge: Change or die a slow death.
Contemporary Worship
And/or/both Innovative
Embrace Technology
The first step in Transformative Change is:
“Establish a sense of urgency” (Leading Change John Kotter)
You must change in order to address humanity’s quest for meaning and community – To offer an authentic encounter with God
in this day and age and into the future.
Real Change Requires Rethinking Church
•Think of “church” in less building & worship service-centric ways. •Expand what counts as involvement in the congregation. •Ask yourself - what do our potential visitors’ value? •Make faith more meaningful in their everyday lives.•Be less denominational and more visionary, progressive, activist – outspoken!•Do your good works in the world.•Intentionally create real community.•Make sure members' time spent in church is spiritually meaningful.
A Conversation about Change and Innovation
Scott Thumma
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.hartfordinstitute.org
