Beyond the Ordinary

From the pews to the voting booth

By Cynthia Woolever

Citizens who go to worship also go to the voting booth. Eight in ten worshipers (83%) reported voting in the last presidential election. In contrast, only about six in ten eligible Americans (62%) actually voted for president in 2008. What accounts for this 20 percentage-point difference?

High levels of community engagement. Those who participate in congregations also engage with their communities in a variety of ways. They tend to pay attention to politics—that could affect the qualilty of life in their neighborhood.  Almost half of attendees (45%) put their faith in action through their involvement in social service or advocacy groups. In addition, three in four gave money to a charitable organization (other than the congregation) in the previous year.

Worshipers are also more likely than the average American to work with others to solve a community problem (20% of worshipers did so in the previous year; 33% of the American public has ever done so)and contribute money to a political party or candidate (16% of worshipers vs. 7% of the public in the previous year).

Encouragement from the pulpit. Congregational leaders play a role in raising the activism bar among worshipers. During religious services, worshipers in 91% of congregations are told about volunteer opportunities to assist others in the community. Four in ten worshipers hear information about voter registration, and one in four hear about opportunities for political activity (Note: Because the attendee survey occurred during 2008, an election year, the results might be higher than other years.)

Political demographics. Whites, older people, the well educated, and women register and vote more often than non-whites, younger people, those less educated, and men.[i] The demographic profile of voters lines up neatly with the demographic profile of the average worshiper—white (81%), older (69% are 45 years of age or older), educated (47% have a college degree), and female (61%).[ii]

  

 

	Worshipers	Voters	U.S. Population
White	81%	84%	76%
Age 45 and older	69%	60%	48%
College degree	47%	35%	27%
Female	61%	60%	51%

  

Engaged and mobilized people make a difference! Certainly, one recession-proof resource that congregations possess is the people who participate. Worshipers are making a difference in the lives of others and in their community. Potential members, especially young people, are often attracted to congregations where they can be engaged in ministry.

How does your congregation communicate to the people in the community that opportunities exist for them to make a difference? How does your congregation celebrate the contributions that current members already make to the larger community? How easy is it for new worshipers to find opportunities within and through your congregation to serve others? How open is the congregation to new ways of serving others?

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[i] Source for voter demographics

[ii] The average (median) age is calculated for those 15 years of age and older for both worshipers and in the U.S. population.

  

 

Quick facts about Wave 2 of the U.S. Congregational Life Survey!

By Hilary Harris

We planned for Wave 2 of the U.S. Congregational Life Survey for two years before the survey took place in the fall of 2008 and the spring of 2009. Here are some facts about the logistics of conducting Wave 2 of the U.S. Congregational Life Survey: 

• Total number of pens shipped: 334,890
• Total number of surveys shipped: 334,890
• Average number of surveys shipped per congregation: 214
• Total number of English surveys:  316,273
• Total number of Spanish surveys:  18,009
• Total number of Korean surveys:  608
• Most surveys sent to a single congregation: 5,000
• Fewest surveys sent to a single congregation: 20 or less

 Mother Nature had an influence on Wave 2:

• Number of congregations affected by natural disasters around their survey date: 6 (all completed the survey at a later date)
•  Weather events that affected congregations participating in the survey:
• Hurricane Gustav
• Hurricane Ike
• Midwest floods
• Western wildfires
•  Number of congregations experiencing a fire in their building on survey Sunday: 1 (the surveys were rescued from the fire)
• Louisville, where the U.S. Congregations office is located, was affected by a windstorm in September 2008 (the tail end of Hurricane Ike), an ice storm that closed the office for a couple days in January 2009, and flooding in August 2009.

 Despite these challenges, Wave 2 was a success:

•  Total number of congregations taking the survey: 1,564
• Location of congregations taking the survey: all 50 states, plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and Canada!
• Number of Christian denominations participating in the survey: 34
• Number of other religions participating in the survey: 3
• Number of days of the week the survey was completed: 4 (Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday)

 If your congregation was part of Wave 2—many thanks!

Resource Center

by Deborah Bruce

 

I recently came across three resources that I thought you might find interesting and helpful: 

 

Thirteen Trends and Forces Affecting the Future of Faith Formation in a Changing Church and World

 

John Roberto (of LifeLong Faith) is working with a team of leaders from six denominations to examine what faith formation will look like in 2020.  The Faith Formation 2020 team pulled together this fascinating look at the trends that are affecting the church and the world.  Learn more about Faith Formation 2020.

 

 

50 Ways to Build Strength

 

The Lewis Center for Church Leadership provides ten resources with practical, actionable strategies to build strength in your congregation. The 50 Ways to Build Strength series provides tips for fostering effective ministry.

 

 

 

Church Effectiveness Nuggets

 

If your congregation has taken the U.S. Congregational Life Survey, you know that Herb Miller has been generous in allowing us to share several of his Church Effectiveness Nuggets with you.  Herb is an author of 16 books, a noted authority in congregational health and effectiveness, and one of three writers for The Parish Paper. He also wrote the leader guide that goes with the Strengths Report. 

 

Now, 34 of hisChurch Effectiveness Nuggets are available for free download on The Parish Paper Web site. Learn about growing your youth group, increasing financial giving, resolving conflict, and more!

 

 

 

Changing music preferences

by Deborah Bruce

 

A previous post highlighted one of the critical differences we found when comparing worshipers in 2001 to worshipers today:  They’re older.  Does that fact mean that there is little interest in contemporary music in worship?

 

We asked worshipers to tell us which two styles of music they most prefer in congregational worship.  From a list of nine options, traditional music was picked most often both in 2001 and 2008, although the figure dropped from 61% in 2001 to 56% in 2008.  Nonetheless, a majority of worshipers still enjoy traditional hymns during worship. 

 

Preferences for Music in Worship

Pick two:	2001	2008
Traditional hymns	61%	56%
Praise music	33%	31%
Contemporary hymns	25%	26%
Other contemporary music	13%	15%

 

But the pattern of preferences is different in congregations from different faith traditions.  Today a majority of worshipers in Catholic parishes (53%) and two-thirds in mainline Protestant churches (68%) include traditional hymns among their preferences.  The picture changes when we look at conservative Protestant churches—here there is no majority preference!  The most common choice is praise music (48%), with traditional hymns (40%) taking second place.  Also, worshipers in conservative Protestant churches are more likely than those in other churches to prefer other contemporary music.

 

Preferences for Music in Worship by Faith Group, 2008

Pick two:	Catholics	Main- line Prot- estants	Con- serv- ative Prot- estants
Traditional hymns	53%	68%	40%
Praise music	28%	27%	48%
Contemporary hymns	26%	25%	26%
Other contemporary music	12%	14%	25%

 

 

Not surprisingly, music preferences also depend on age.  Three-quarters of worshipers who are 65 or older (74%) prefer traditional hymns.  That figure drops to 29% among the youngest worshipers between 15 and 24 years of age.  Given that the median age of worshipers is now 54, it’s not surprising that traditional music is heard in so many congregations.  That fits the preferences of people in the pews.

Preferences for Music in Worship by Age, 2008

Pick two:	15-24	25-44	45-64	65 and older
Traditional hymns	29%	44%	55%	74%
Praise music	34%	38%	32%	23%
Contemporary hymns	22%	29%	32%	17%
Other contemporary music	28%	21%	15%	6%
Classical music	8%	7%	9%	12%
Music from a variety of cultures	12%	10%	10%	8%

It’s important to remember when looking at preferences for worship music that these results are based on responses of people in worship.  They tell us nothing about the preferences of those outside our doors.  We don’t know if the people we might want to bring into our congregations like traditional music as much as our current worshipers do.