Saved In America?

You know, many of today's American churches and congregations have good-sized budgets to send missionaries to developing countries. The belief is that we need to reach the lost, take the good news to the hopeless. You know ... save the world. America recently topped out at 300 million people. The U.S. is currently the fastest growing industrialized nation on earth. I've watched this growth over the years and wondered what kind of a nation we are becoming.

I recently ran across a statistic, from one of the major Christian denominations in the U.S. It estimates that more than two-thirds of the population of the United States does not know Jesus Christ. I assume they mean that as a measure of those who claim to be "born again." So to me it seems like a reasonably accurate statistic. If it is, it makes the United States the world's third largest unreached nation. So what other statistics are available about Christianity in America? Well, here's what I've found about Americans:

Church Attendance

• 31% of Americans attend church "every week"
• 27% of Americans "seldom attend" church
• 16% of Americans "never attend" church
• 13% of Americans attend church "monthly"
• 11% of Americans attend church "almost weekly"

Source: Gallup Polls

Where Americans Donate

• 50% give to churches & religious organizations
• 47% give to disaster relief agencies
• 35% give to community organizations
• 34% give to human services groups
• 30% give to youth & children's groups

Source: Harris Poll

Teen Awareness of Major Religions

• 76% identified Christianity
• 54% identified Buddhism
• 47% identified Judaism
• 41% identified Islam
• 32% identified Hinduism
• 10% named all five
• 15% couldn't name any

Source: Bible Literacy Project

Even of the teens who've been raised in a church and claim they are Christians, more than 85% of them don't attend any church ever by the time they are in college. (These are among the dropouts from Christianity.)

So I have a question. How is it that over half of Americans say they give to churches and religious organizations, a third claim to be in church every week, and most of our teens identify with Christianity --- and yet more than two-thirds of our nation do not belong to Christ? It would seem to me that perhaps the United States is one of the biggest ... and most overlooked mission fields in the world!

So how could we address this? Well, a recent study by the American Sociological Review found that nearly 25% of every American alive has no close friend. Not even one! Even those who do have close friends are losing them. In this same study 20 years ago, the average American said they had about three (3) close friends each. In this most recent study, the average American said they have about two (2) close friends each. So our circle of friends has shrunk by 33% each! We are getting lonelier, more isolated, and are engaging with each other less and less. And yet, we find that Christianity is a very relationship-driven proposition. Folks, this may mean trouble!

You want to understand some more truths about religion in America? Let's look at what else I've found recently.

• Where is the largest Christian church in the world? South Korea
• Where is the second largest Christian church in the world? Nigeria
• Where is the world's largest Buddhist temple? Boulder, Colorado USA
• Where is the world's largest Muslim training center (e.g. seminary)? New York, NY USA
• What country has the world's largest Jewish population? USA
• Where is the world's largest Transcendental Meditation training center (e.g. seminary)? Fairfield, Iowa USA
• In the USA, what ethnic group is the most responsive to the gospel? Asians

What is the historic dominant religion of the USA? Christianity, of course. Based on its heritage, it might be reasonable to expect that the United States would have largest Christian population in the world. But it doesn't. In fact, Communist China has more Christians than the United States! Do we really think that the United States can remain a Christian nation when Christians are so passive? Can we remain a Christian nation when every other religion is so aggressive? Me thinks not!

So are Christians responding in force? Is Christianity flexing its muscles at all? According to recent research, planting new churches is considered to be one of the most effective ways to reach unsaved Americans. But statistically, about 3,750 churches close in the U.S. every year. That means they go out of business and cease to exist. During that same twelve month period, only 1,300 churches are planted in the U.S. every year. You'd think that the Christians are losing ground based on numbers like this.

It seems that conversions to other religions and dropouts from Christianity are actually escalating. (No wonder the churches are closing!) Look at these numbers:

• Since 1900, those claiming to be "non-religious" have grown from 1 million to 26 million.
• Since 1900, those claiming to be atheists have grown from 2,000 to 1.4 million.
• The Muslim population in the U.S. has grown nearly 3% in just the past 9 years.
• Buddhism in America is growing three times as fast as Christianity.

Source: Lost in America by Tom Clegg

In addition to these sobering statistics, too many so-called Christians in American churches believe and behave identically to their unchurched counterparts. What would you call a person who believes in astrology, reincarnation and the possibility of communicating with the dead? According to a recent Gallup Poll, these are just some of the heretical beliefs held by people who call themselves Christians.

Okay, I'm all for saving the world and sending missionaries abroad. But Christians, we must stand up and act like Christians. We are called to be "salt and light" in this world. To that end, we are failing miserably. Let's get serious about making our faith real. If we don't, then what exactly is it that we have to offer those abroad?