By Mike Willis
The May 1979 issue of Bible Truth contained the results of a survey taken by the paper among members of the church (predominantly, if not exclusively, among liberal brethren). In response to the survey regarding what brethren thought were “major problems facing Christians today,” the following six problems were listed in their order of importance as follows: (1) apathy/indifference; (2) divorce/remarriage; (3) liberalism/modernism; (4) church as social club; (5) evangelism; (6) legalism. Though it is interesting to see that the liberals have themselves become concerned about the liberalism which they spot among themselves (two out of the first six major problems confronting these brethren pertain to liberalism), one cannot seriously doubt that one of the major problems confronting all Christians in the 1980’s is apathy.
The Stark Statistics
Recent-studies have shown that church attendance in general is declining. The Dayton Journal Herald (29 December 1979) reported the results of a Gallup Poll which showed that, on a national average, only four out of ten Americans attend a church or synagogue in a given week. Not surprisingly, the percentage is even lower among our youth. The survey is given in more detail below:
Results of the study
ATTEND CHURCH
National 40%
Protestants 40
Catholics 52
Jews 20
New England 35
Mid Atlantic 39
East Central 44
West Central 49
Southeast 40
Southwest 44
Rocky Mountain 32
Pacific 33
Summary
East 38
Midwest 46
South 41
West 33
BY AGE
18 34
19 34
20 35
21-24 26
25-29 20
30-34 38
35-39 41
40-44 42
45-49 47
50-59 46
60-69 48
70 and up 46
Summary
18-29 29
30-49 42
50 and older 47
BY EDUCATION
College
Complete 43
Incomplete 40
Technical, trade, business school 42
12th grade 40
9-11 33
8th 43
5-7 47
Less than 5 43
Summary
College 41
High school 38
Grade school 44
Men 35
Women 45
White 40
Non-white 45
Married 43
Single 28
Divorced 29
Separated 29
Widowed 49
Parents 42
Non-parents 39
TREND SINCE 1955
1955 49
1956 46
1957 47
1958 49
1959 47
1960 47
1961 47
1962 46
1963 46
1964 45
1965 44
1966 44
1967 43
1968 43
1969 42
1970 42
1971 40
1972 40
1973 40
1974 40
1975 40
1976 42
1977 41
1978 41
1979 40
The problem of lack of interest in religion has been felt in almost every section of the country. After having a socalled “revival of religion” in the 1950s and 1960s (I lived through both of these periods and did not even know that we had one), since the mid 1960s, things have taken a rather abrupt turn downward.
. . . For example, in 1958, approximately 49 per cent of the population reported having attended church during an average week. For Catholics, the percentage attending reached 74 per cent, and Protestant attendance was 44 per cent. Giving to the churches rose considerably, and new church development had high priority in an attempt to minister to the growing suburban population.
Since the mid 1960s, beginning about 1964 or 1965, things have taken a rather abrupt downturn. Membership declines that are unprecedented in the religious history of the United States has beset mainline Protestant denominations . . . . Catholicism did not lose members during this period; however, there were sharp declines in Catholic church attendance. From the 74 per cent in 1958, Catholic attendance was down to 56 per cent by 1975. Protestant attendance began to decline from its 44 per cent high in the late SOs, and has hovered around 37 per cent since 1964. Giving has also declined in mainline churches, though not so sharply as has membership. And new church development has slowed almost to a halt (Jackson W. Carroll, “The Church in the World: Understanding Church Growth and Decline,” Theology Today XXXV:70-80, April 1978).
Certainly the trends toward religious apathy can be seen in the following chart reflecting membership in selected denominations from this same article:
|
Inclusive Membership In Selected Denominations, 1965-1975 |
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| 1965 | 1975 | Percentage Change | |
| American Baptist | 1,538,988 *a | 1,603,033 | 4.2 |
| Assemblies of God | 572,123 | 785,148 | 37.3 |
| Church of the Nazarene | 343,380 | 441,093 | 28.4 |
| Episcopal | 3429153 *a | 2,857,513 | -16.7 |
| Lutheran Church of America | 3,106,844 | 2,986,078 | -3.9 |
| Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod | 2,692,889 | 2,763,545 | 2.6 |
| Presbyterian, U.S. | 950,139 | 878,126 | -8.6 |
| Roman Catholic Church | 46,246,175 | 48,881,872 | 5.7 |
| Seventh Day Adventist | 364,666 | 495,699 | 35.9 |
| Southern Baptist Convention | 10,770,573 | 12,733,124 | 18.2 |
| United Church of Christ | 2,070,413 | 1,818,762 | -12.1 |
| United Methodist Church | 11082024 *b | 9,975,710 | -10.0 |
| United Presbyterian Church, U.S.A. | 3,034,321 | 2,657,699 | -12.4 |
| *a 1966
* b 1965 figure includes Evangelical United Brethren members who merged with the Methodist Church in 1968. Source: Yearbook of American Canadian Churches, 1977. |
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The one bright spot in these reports is the statistic which indicated’ that churches which are theologically conservative are growing in contrast with churches which are theologically liberal which are declining. In most cases, the rate of growth has not kept up with the population increase; however, they have not actually been losing members through these years.
In a religious poll conducted by Gallup for Christianity Today (21 December 1979), the following rather astounding results were found to be true:
Almost half – 69 million people 18 and over – are hoping to go to heaven only because of their personal faith in Jesus Christ.
More than eight of every ten persons believe Jesus Christ is divine. A whopping 84 percent – more than eight of every ten people believe the Ten Commandments are valid today.
What one might expect from these statistics is that Americans are a Bible believing and Bible reading people. However, these statistics were also a part of Gallup’s survey:
Only 11 percent read the Bible every day, compared to 10 percent who read it weekly and 7 percent monthly. Thirty-seven million adults never read the Bible.
Fewer than half (42 per cent) can name at least five of the Ten Commandments.
This basically says that a number of Americans know what the truth is or have some basic idea that the Bible contains the truth but do not care enough to search the Bible to find out what it says! That, my dear brethren, is religious apathy!
It is not only a major problem in religious denominations in America, it is also a major problem in the local church. If you doubt my word, compare your Sunday morning attendance with your mid-week attendance. In most cases, my point will have been ,proven by this simple comparison. If you would like more evidence, check to see how many students are attending their Bible classes unprepared; check to see how many students act interested in their Bible classes. How long has it been since someone other than the preacher conducted a home Bible study in your congregation? How many families are trying to have some kind of Bible instruction at home each night? These and a number of other similar questions testify to the tremendous problem of apathy which is presently facing us.
In this issue of Truth Magazine, I would like to consider the problem of apathy as it affects the local church. Let us face the temptation which the adversary is putting in front of us and overcome his subtle attempts to lead us to Hell. With the hope that these articles will help us overcome these problems, this material is presented.
Truth Magazine XXIV: 17, pp. 274-275
April 24, 1980