Thank you Aquila

[Apocrypha]

I wanted to thank Aquila for pointing out many of the strengths of the modern House Church movement to me. I always saw them as a fringe group who hated real churches.. but after reading the new Barna books with huge statistics on North American house church attendance and seeing some of the amazing new work the Southern Baptists are doing planting metro house church networks in North America my eyes are open to whats going on under the radar.

I am still reading a pile of books I have ordered from the various sites and digesting how it affects my understanding of how to do and order a new church plant... but either way its great stuff with the ability to affect many people in a positive way.

Just wanted to say thanks in a public forum since he got me started on the interesting new(old/ancient) thing here on AFF.

http://www.christianitytoday.com/le/...ing/25.12.html (interesting Christianity Today article on the subject)

[Aquila]

All praise and glory to our Lord Jesus Christ.

Thank you for your kind and gracious words. Let's move forward with the Spirit of the Lord in this last hour and together... we can change the world.

God bless.

[Justin]

Originally Posted by Apocrypha

I wanted to thank Aquila for pointing out many of the strengths of the modern House Church movement to me. I always saw them as a fringe group who hated real churches.. but after reading the new Barna books with huge statistics on North American house church attendance and seeing some of the amazing new work the Southern Baptists are doing planting metro house church networks in North America my eyes are open to whats going on under the radar.

I am still reading a pile of books I have ordered from the various sites and digesting how it affects my understanding of how to do and order a new church plant... but either way its great stuff with the ability to affect many people in a positive way.

Just wanted to say thanks in a public forum since he got me started on the interesting new(old/ancient) thing here on AFF.

http://www.christianitytoday.com/le/...ing/25.12.html (interesting Christianity Today article on the subject)

"While 20-somethings pull out of traditional churches, more people are leaving organized churches altogether, according to revolutionary pollster George Barna. Your new competitor is not the church down the street, but the house next door. Here is how Barna sizes up the House Church experience:

Average size of gathering: 20 people (including 7 children in gatherings with kids)

Gatherings including kids: 64%
Of those, kids meeting with adults for whole session: 41%

House churches meeting weekly: 80%

Average length of service: 2 hours

Include formal teaching: 76%

Eat as well as meet: 85%

Satisfaction with spiritual depth of the experience: 59%

Satisfaction with personal connectedness: 66%

Attenders who have met with their house church one year or less: 75%

—with info from Barna.org"

59% satisfied with spiritual depth seems kind of low...?

Is that number supposed to be lower in an "orgianized church building" when compared to home churches?

[Sister Alvear]

yes, thank you...I too enjoy the Biblical look of how it used to be!

[Aquila]

Originally Posted by Justin

"While 20-somethings pull out of traditional churches, more people are leaving organized churches altogether, according to revolutionary pollster George Barna. Your new competitor is not the church down the street, but the house next door. Here is how Barna sizes up the House Church experience:

Average size of gathering: 20 people (including 7 children in gatherings with kids)

Gatherings including kids: 64%
Of those, kids meeting with adults for whole session: 41%

House churches meeting weekly: 80%

Average length of service: 2 hours

Include formal teaching: 76%

Eat as well as meet: 85%

Satisfaction with spiritual depth of the experience: 59%

Satisfaction with personal connectedness: 66%

Attenders who have met with their house church one year or less: 75%

—with info from Barna.org"

59% satisfied with spiritual depth seems kind of low...?

Is that number supposed to be lower in an "orgianized church building" when compared to home churches?

I'd like to see the statistical comparison. Here's something I found off Barna's website:

Ventura, CA - December 7, 2009
When Baby Boomers were born, the Protestant landscape of America was dominated by the six major mainline denominations. (Those bodies are typically considered to be the American Baptist Churches in the USA; the Episcopal Church; the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America; the Presbyterian Church (USA); the United Church of Christ; and the United Methodist Church.)

Since the 1950s, however, mainline churches have fallen on hard times, declining from more than 80,000 churches to about 72,000 today. The growth among evangelical and Pentecostal churches since the 1950s, combined with the shrinking of the mainline sector, has diminished mainline churches to just one-fifth of all Protestant congregations today. In the past fifty years, mainline church membership dropped by more than one-quarter to roughly 20 million people. Adult church attendance indicates that only 15% of all American adults associate with a mainline church these days.

A new report issued by The Barna Group focuses upon changes in the mainline churches during the past decade. The report examines shifts in both the adults who attend those churches and the pastors who lead them.


Congregant Statistics

Over the course of the past decade, the number of adults who attend a mainline church on any given weekend has remained relatively stable, ranging from 89 to 100. The current median is 99 adults. One reason why that average has remained steady has been the population growth of the United States, with the mainline churches attracting just enough newcomers to maintain attendance levels that are similar to the years when the nation’s population was considerably smaller.

The current attendance figure is lower than the norm during the heyday of the mainline bodies. Demographics suggest that the mainline churches may be on the precipice of a period of decline unless remedial steps are taken. For instance, in the past decade there has been a 22% drop in the percentage of adults attending mainline congregations who have children under the age of 18 living in their home. Also, the proportion of single adults has risen, now representing 39% of all adult attenders. That has been driven higher by a rise in the number of divorced and widowed adherents.

The numerical decline is also related to the relative difficulty that mainline churches have experienced in attracting young adults. For instance, young adults (25 or younger) are 6% of the national population, they are just one-third as many (2%) of all adults attending mainline churches. At the other end of the age continuum, the statistics show that about one-quarter (27%) of American adults are 60 or older, but more than one-third of mainline attenders (35%) are 60-plus.

Another hurdle for the mainline bodies has been attracting minorities. These churches struggle in reaching Hispanics and Asians. While Hispanics make up 16% of the US population, they are only 6% of the mainline population. Asians represent 4% of the American public, but only half that proportion among mainline congregants. The failure to add substantial numbers of Hispanics is especially significant, given both the rapid increase of the Hispanic population as well as the outflow of Hispanics from Catholicism to Protestant churches in the past decade. Most of the Hispanics leaving Catholicism for another faith community are settling into evangelical or Pentecostal Protestant churches.

There is a behavioral reason for the decline of mainline churches, too: just one-third (31%) of mainline adults believe they have a personal responsibility to discuss their faith with people who have different beliefs.


Commitment and Loyalty

Sometimes money can mask a serious problem. That may be the case within the mainline community. Cumulatively, these denominations generate more than $15 billion in donations each year. In fact, during the past decade the median church budget of mainline congregations has risen substantially – up 51%, to about $165,000 annually.

As positive as that sounds, though, chances are good that the upward pattern will not continue. One reason is the relative decline in the household incomes of mainline adherents. During the past decade, the educational achievement of mainline congregants has plateaued while the median household income level has suffered. In 1998, the median income was 12% higher than the national average, while in 2008 the median among mainline households was 2% lower than the national norm.

Money may be the least of the mainline’s challenges, though. A bigger worry is the decreasing engagement of congregants with church life. As noted earlier, weekly attendance figures have remained stable, but that hides the underlying problem of softer commitments. For example, adherents attend church services less frequency than they used to. Volunteerism in these churches is down by an alarming 21% since 1998. Adult Sunday school involvement has also declined, by 17% since 1998.

The tenuous ties that millions of mainline adults have with their church are exemplified by their willingness to consider other spiritual options. Just half (49%) describe themselves as “absolutely committed to Christianity.” Slightly more (51%) are willing to try a new church. Two-thirds (67%) are open to pursuing faith in environments or structures that are different from those of a typical church. Almost three-quarters (72%) say they are more likely to develop own religious beliefs than to adopt those taught by their church. And nine out of ten (86%) sense that God is motivating people to stay connected to Him through different means and experiences than in the past.

Evidence of waffling commitment is found elsewhere, as well. A minority of mainline attenders are presently involved in some type of personal discipleship activity. Less than half contend that the Bible is accurate in the life principles it teaches. Only half of all mainline adults say that they are on a personal quest for spiritual truth. And when asked to identify their highest priority in life, less than one out of every ten mainline adults (9%) says some aspect of faith constitutes their top priority.

http://www.barna.org/barna-update/ar...stant-churches

[Aquila]

It looks to me like the traditional church is loosing America.

Interestingly enough you'll most likely meet on the street dozens of Christians who believe in the Bible. However, over half will admit that they don't regularly attend church do to feeling like their needs aren't met, because of negative past experiences, and because of work scheduling. Most will admit that they listen to various Christian radio broadcasts and television programs. Most will also admit that they read the Word, use devotionals, etc. They regulary talk about faith with family, friends, and co-workers. The do enjoy attending special services during holidays.

In a sense... these "unchurched" Christians are essentially "house churching" for lack of a better term. The house church phenomenon isn't an organized movement. It's a way of personal and daily Christian practice. Typically when two or more Christians speak at length about the Lord or discuss/study the Word together, this is counted as fellowship. Just because they don't gather in a dedicated building of 200 or more people most argue they are forsaking the assembling. Truth be told... they are assembling in smaller more personal ways.