Who Are the "Church People" Anyway

 A lay pastor of an American Baptist (most liberal of the Baptists) church who sounds like an academic reviewed data on who attends church. It confirms data covered in this blog. It is that church going is not for the single, non-college educated or "blue collar" world. It is a place for college educated people with children.

The link goes into detail showing the statistics of the rise in church going among married professional people with children. The numbers come from a really big sample and the survey has been repeated with the same results. Why might this be?

Let's considered hypothetical sets of people who are mid career. For a single person or couple, working lots of hours at a dull job, how attractive is a dull church service where you are expected to part with your limited money. Add to unattractiveness if the couple is not married. We know unmarried couples are very common. If at church all or nearly all other couples are married would not an unmarried couple feel uncomfortable? Better to spend Sunday morning enjoying yourself. And, of course, lots of people have to work on Sunday so church is not even considered. 

Then consider a college graduated couple in a stable marriage with children. They would like their children to meet other children from similar homes. They themselves might benefit professionally from meeting new people and networking. The entire experience of church may well be a pleasant one. Statistics show this group dominates church goers today. 

Where does belief and theology fit into the college graduate church going population? We know there is a lot of "church shopping." Does this group move from church to church because of a church or denomination's dogma? Or is it whether the child care is first rate and the preacher keeps it light? Many answers no doubt. 

The link hammers home a preoccupation of Jesus. His statements are reported to by heavy with concern for the poor. Churches today are not filled with the poor but instead the nonpoor. Do churches sacrifice to provide for the poor? I'm sure many do. But the government remains the institution that provided the most resources and legislation for the poor. 

In general, church going appeals to demographic groups who perceive they receive some benefit from it. This is college educated people in stable marriages and with children. The message of the church is the same to the less educated and not married. But the latter groups seems not to care about the message. Perhaps the college educated do not care about it either.