17 Reasons Why Church Attendance Keeps Falling


This title was on a news scroll and I could not stop myself from clicking to look at it. It is not really 17 reasons but merely half a dozen or so that have been discussed here several times. They include the public's increasing realization science does not confirm what is in the Bible. Fellowship from using the computer is preferred over that in church is noted plus preacher scandals and so on. What is interesting, however, is that while the explanations for the decline are known in the secular world, they remain largely unknown or ignored in punditry by religious writers.

This week in the world of Christian punditry there were several articles about sin. That sin is on the rise was screamed loudly. The one I linked to says our country's morals are in free fall. Is listed several news accounts that have nothing to do with the level of moral values in the U.S. For example, that Easter happened to fall on a predetermined date of Trans Visibility Day had nothing whatsoever to do with the morals in the U.S. That is pissed off some Christians does not make it immoral. 

That this screaming about sin is among the several causes of people no longer wanting to be affiliated with any religious organization, including Christian ones, should have been predicted. Brain power within Christian activists is, however, low.

The problem for Christianity is the very thing Christian activists enjoy most is the thing they should not do. That is looking down on others and condemning them for their sins. Whether it's women (Eve is where that started), black people, gays or trans, calling them unworthy or among the lessors is where the fun is. I've personally watched red-faced Christians screaming at women entering abortion clinics. It looked as if the days they spend doing this are the most important in their sad lives. 

Some of the falling away has to do with economics. Currently, lower income people are dropping out of church life faster than the upper middle incomes. This makes sense because going to church puts a guilt burden of donating on anyone present. The more difficult it is for an individual or couple to do this the less likely they are to continue to attend. The economic model of the church which includes a building to maintain and paid staff is a recipe that burns through a lot of money and leaves little benefit for those in the pews behind. 



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