Why People Don’t Go To Church!

… – 80% Australians affirm belief in God/Higher Being Yet many looking beyond Christianity

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Decline in Church attendance across Australia Growing unchurched population Growing number of non-believers

Australian Community Survey 8000 Australians surveyed

Feedback on past & present church attendance, feelings about spiritual issues/beliefs, church involvement, worship services, community involvement, etc

Church Attendances in Australia Attend monthly or more 20% Attend yearly or more 20% Never or hardly ever attend 60% Special service, rites-of-passage service, etc – 70%

Frequent attendance 1950 – 45% 1980 – 25% 2000 – 20%

20% frequent attenders 17% positive or sympathetic 36% neutral or apathetic 27% unsympathetic/antagonistic

General attitudes to the Church among Australians

Stated reasons for not attending Church among infrequent attenders and non-attenders Boring or unfulfilling church services 42% Belief of the churches 35% Churches’ moral views 35% No need to go to Church 34% Prefer to do other things 31% My beliefs are too weak 27% The way churches are organised 24% Too many other commitments 21% Bad experience of church people 16% Not enough time because of work 15% Uncomfortable with church people 14% No previous involvement 8% Family or friends don’t like church 6% No churches of my denomination nearby 4% No good churches nearby 4% Poor health/disability 3% No transport to get to church 2%

The most common response – 42% boring church services

– Rites of passage services is the major connection point [71%]

– More positive if attended a regular worship service

– They feel more positive about contemporary, shorter services where they have something in common with others there.

– So while “boredom” is a reality for many, for even more it is a perception issue

We need to hear and respond to these concerns .

But we also need to look deeper.

Behind The Statistics . Four Key Issues

Beliefs Relationships Attitude Background

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Declining denominational influence in continuing church attendance

Growing sense of choice and people experimenting with other religious forms .

Eg: 1.5million adult Australians in the past year have tried some form of Eastern meditation.

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The ACS study confirmed that the influence of parents is the most powerful predictor from a person’s childhood of their current religious involvement

Frequent attenders: 67% Non attenders: 33%

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A Matter of Demographics Who goes and who doesn’t go?

The under-represented: Men [39%] Young adults “Blue-collar” occupational groups Divorced, separated, de-facto relationships The lesser educated

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Most newcomers to Australian churches report friends as the primary reason for their coming to Church.

60% of non-attenders report they have no close friends who attend Church.

Significant challenge to all of us . the importance of developing growing relationships with friends outside the Church.

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And of the newcomers who attend our Churches, feelings of acceptance and belonging is a key factor in whether people stay or go!

Invitations to Church: NCLS – 33% have invited Yet only 2% newcomers

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* A key and growing factor to be considered in our engagement with the community

35% of those surveyed said they didn’t share the beliefs of the Church

Another 27% point to weakness in their own beliefs for not attending

35% also cite problems with the Church’s moral position as a reason for non-attendance

Less than 20% of infrequent attenders affirm believe in a personal God

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Only a minority of Australians accept a range of coventional Christian beliefs .

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Growth in beliefs integrally linked to participation in faith community

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The other key “belief gap” between the Church and community relates to moral values.

35% say they don’t attend Church because of differing moral views and many more say they have concerns about the Church’s stance on some moral issues.

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Some of the widest differences exist in areas of sexuality, living arrangements, abortion, euthanasia, enjoyment of life and wealth issues.

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There is a huge diversity among Australians when they are asked about their attitude towards the Church.

20% frequent attenders 17% positive or sympathetic 36% neutral or apathetic 27% unsympathetic/antagonistic

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There has been a loss of public confidence in the Australian Church.

1983 1998

Banks 87% 21%

Police 80% 69%

Education 65% 51%

Legal 61% 29%

Church 56% 39%

Fed Govt 55% 21%

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Most negative factors

Clergy sex abuse Issues of exclusion Moral viewpoints Boring services

Most positive factors

Place where community can be found Community benefit/support Helping people cope in difficult times

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Some Key Issues For Us!

1. We need to develop a greater missional mindset

What’s happening out there? What are people thinking? Attitudes to spirituality, faith, Christ?

2. We must focus on the vital importance of developing authentic relationships.

3. We need to continue to strengthen our community connections, presenting people with a positive profile of the local Church.

The Acts 2 picture : “. and the people liked what they saw”

4. We need to ensure we are a welcoming and inclusive church community.

5. We need to continue to develop a meaninful and engaging worship experience.

6. We need to maximise our opportunities.

7. We need to be open to new and creative entry points and discussion of life-related issues.

8. We need to remain committed to presenting biblical truth in relevant ways.

“- I am the way, the truth and the life!”

– People searching for truth

from http://www.google.com.au/search?q=cache:FJb30b7AhpoJ:baptistnsw.asn.au/minis try/church/CMS_files/WhyPeopleDontGoToChurch.ppt+%22boring+church%22&hl=en