Feb. 13, 2020: Religious affiliation decline slowing, religious voters in NH primary, pastors' top concerns
Thursday, Feb. 13, 2020:
Here are the latest headlines, brought to you by The Christian Post.
— US decline in religious affiliation may be slowing
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The much-documented decline in religious affiliation among United States citizens may finally be slowing down, according to recent research.
Melissa Deckman, a Public Affairs professor at Washington College and affiliated scholar with the Public Religion Research Institute, found in her examination of religious trends that “the percentage of Gen Z Americans who identify as religiously unaffiliated is similar to the Millennials,” which is at 38 percent.
“In other words, it appears that the rate of younger Americans departing from organized religion is holding steady,” she said.
— NH primary results: Who religious voters supported
In Tuesday’s New Hampshire Democratic primary election, Sen. Bernie Sanders came out on top, followed by Pete Buttigieg and Sen. Amy Klobuchar, respectively.
As for who religious voters backed, exit polls show that 28% of those who attend religious services weekly chose Klobuchar and 16% chose Buttigieg. Meanwhile, 34% of those who never attend religious services voted for Sanders and 22% backed Buttigieg.
— Church of England apologizes for racism
Leaders of the Church of England unanimously passed a motion on Tuesday apologizing for past racism against minority ethnic Anglicans, including blacks and Asians.
The motion called for research on the impact of discrimination and how to better achieve racial reconciliation.
Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby lamented that they are “still deeply institutionally racist” and called for changes to their “hostile environment.”
https://www.christianpost.com/news/church-of-england-officially-apologizes-for-racist-past.html
— Florida county allows atheists to give invocations at meetings
The Brevard County Board of Commissioners in Florida reached a settlement that will now allow atheists to give invocations at the start of government meetings. The board also agreed to pay $490,000 as part of the settlement.
Earlier, the commissioners had banned atheist invocations, which led to a lawsuit. Judges at the district court and appeals levels ruled against the board’s policy of excluding certain groups.
— Pastors worry most about reaching next generation
A study by Barna revealed that 51% of Protestant pastors are worried about “reaching the younger audience.” Thirty-four percent ranked it among their top three concerns.
Another major ministry issue that half of the pastors identified was “declining or inconsistent outreach and evangelism.”
More than one-third of the pastors also said “declining or inconsistent volunteering” as well as “stagnating spiritual growth” are of major concern for them.
The findings are part of Barna’s State of the Church 2020 project.
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