Beyond the Ordinary

How Do Pastors Interpret the Bible?

By Joelle Anderson

In a recent blog post, we explored how worshipers interpret the Bible.  Do worshipers’ views about the Bible match their pastoral leaders’ views about these Scriptures? 

Catholic worshipers and priests:  Interpretation is based on the Church’s teachings.  As noted, in Catholicism the Vatican has the authority to interpret the Scriptures.  Catholic priests are even more apt than worshipers to subscribe to the official stance, with 86% of Catholic priests saying that the Bible is to be interpreted through its historical context and the Church’s teachings.  A small proportion chooses to interpret the Bible through its historical and cultural context.

 
Mainline Protestant worshipers and pastors:  Varied interpretation.  Fewer mainline Protestant pastors are Biblical literalists, compared to mainline Protestant worshipers; also, fewer mainline pastors interpret Scriptures using historical context and the Church’s teachings.  More mainline pastors interpret the Bible through its historical and cultural context. 

 
Conservative Protestant worshipers and pastors:  Literal interpretation.  Interestingly, virtually the same proportion of conservative Protestant worshipers and pastors (a majority of each group) take the Bible literally, word for word.  However, more conservative Protestant pastors interpret the Bible through its historical and cultural context, while more conservative Protestant worshipers interpret the Bible through its historical context and the Church’s teachings.

 

Protestant worshipers and pastors:  Different understandings of “the Church”?  Worshipers often follow their leader’s method of interpreting the Bible.  Catholic worshipers and priests most often interpret the Bible in light of historical context and Church teachings; conservative Protestant worshipers and pastors most often interpret the Bible literally.  However, more mainline and conservative Protestant worshipers than their pastors interpret Scriptures based on Church teachings.

When Protestant worshipers say they interpret the Bible in light of “the Church’s teachings,” they may mean that they rely on their pastor’s teaching (many see their own congregation as “the Church”).  Because Protestant pastors often have higher levels of theological training than most worshipers, they understand that the term “the Church” usually refers to Catholic teachings, and are less likely to say they interpret the Bible based on “the Church’s teachings.”

Bible interpretation is a complex endeavor for worshipers and pastors alike.  It is also an issue of high importance, as Bible interpretation influences worshipers’ views about God, humanity, and the world.  Identifying a personal method of Bible interpretation pays dividends by providing people with a framework with which to read the Bible, learn from it, and apply it to the daily life of faith.

 

Interfaith Activities

By Joelle Anderson

On August 1, Muslims began their annual celebration of Ramadan.  Ramadan marks a month-long period of fasting and spiritual focus for Muslims around the world.  Some Muslim groups in the United States will hold interfaith meals during Ramadan to teach others about their faith and practices.  These and other interfaith activities go a long way toward fostering understanding between religious groups.  What types of worshipers take part in interfaith activities?

More mainline Protestants are involved in interfaith activities.  One-third of all worshipers (34%) were involved in at least one interfaith activity in the past year.  More mainline Protestant worshipers participated in interfaith worship or prayer services, celebrations or programs, or service projects, compared to conservative Protestant and Catholic worshipers.  In fact, nearly half of mainline Protestants took part in some form of interfaith activity (48%), while only around one-quarter of Catholics and conservative Protestants did.

Beliefs support interfaith activities. Over half of mainline Protestant worshipers (52%) believe that “all different religions are equally good ways of helping a person find ultimate truth.”  Thus many mainline Protestants seek to bridge religious divides through interfaith activities.  In contrast, only 22% of conservative Protestant worshipers agree that all religions are equally good ways of finding truth.  Many conservative Protestant worshipers subscribe to the complete truth of their own belief system, and thus might fear that interfaith activities will threaten their beliefs. 

Interestingly, 60% of Catholic worshipers believe that all religions are equally good ways of finding truth, yet Catholics show low levels of participation in interfaith activities.  Their relative lack of involvement in interfaith activities could have less to do with religious beliefs, and instead reflect the low level of Catholic involvement in religious activities in general. 

During this season of Ramadan (and beyond), many will seek to interact with people of different faiths.  In various locations, community interfaith organizations actively promote religious understanding and fellowship.  Meeting people from different faith backgrounds will help worshipers understand the religious beliefs and practices of others and may challenge them to examine and solidify their own personal beliefs.  The opportunity to know and love your neighbors as yourself is right outside your door.

 

Religion in America: Pre- and post-9/11

 By Joelle Anderson

Do you remember where you were when you first heard about the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001?  I was sitting in my first class of the morning, during my senior year of high school.  (I hope this doesn’t make anyone feel old!)  After 9/11, religious and non-religious Americans alike sought hope and answers in religion.  

The first wave of the U.S. Congregational Life Survey took place in April 2001.  This turned out to be a providential date, because the results of the survey were not biased by the rise in religious activity after 9/11.  It also means that we can compare the pre-9/11 religious climate with the post-9/11 climate, since we conducted Wave 2 of the survey seven years after 9/11.  As our country prepares for the 10^th anniversary of this event, let’s take a look at worshipers’ opinions about religion in the U.S.—before and after September 11, 2001.

Signs of religious stability.  Years after 9/11, religion is no more important to worshipers’ personal lives than it was before the Twin Towers fell.  However, it continues to be very important for the vast majority of worshipers in the United States.

 
The events of September 11, 2001 did not change worshipers’ opinions about whether religion can solve societal problems. Nearly four out of five worshipers in 2001 and 2008 believe that religion can answer current problems.

 
Signs of religious change.  Although most worshipers still consider religion both relevant and important personally, fewer believe that religion has a growing influence on American life.  Before 9/11, half of all worshipers thought that religion was gaining influence on American life; yet by 2008, nearly half instead think that religion’s influence on American life is decreasing. 

How can we account for the change in how worshipers perceive religion’s influence on American life?  It seems unlikely that this change would be attributed to September 11, since our country became temporarily more religious following the terrorist attacks.

One possible explanation is that due to media coverage people are increasingly aware that religious affiliation and participation are declining in the United States (see David Briggs’ article in the Huffington Post for more about this religious decline). 

A growing number of Americans do not claim a religious preference (labeled religious “nones”).  Also, more people today consider themselves “spiritual, but not religious.”  Those who are “spiritual, but not religious” tend to reject organized religion for a personally developed, constantly evolving spirituality.  

Do you think religion’s influence on American life is increasing or decreasing?  What gives you hope for America’s future religious landscape?  

 

Why Don’t People Invite Others to Visit Their Church?

By Deborah Bruce

We’ve previously focused on the importance of a personal invitation in getting a new visitor in your doors for the first time and on the people who are evangelists for their congregation.

What about the six in ten worshipers who say they haven’t invited someone to their church in the past year? What reasons do they give?

Few opportunities. The most common reason worshipers give for not inviting others is lack of opportunity. Four in ten say that they have had few—if any—opportunities to invite others. 

Those invited are not interested. Two in ten say they have invited others, but that those they’ve approached have not been interested in visiting. At least they tried.

Lack of preparation. Another three in ten gave one of several reasons that suggest they are not ready to be effective evangelists for their church. Some think it’s not appropriate to discuss their faith outside the church, others lack the confidence to do so, and a few fear that doing so will damage their personal relationships.

 

What matters. Congregational leaders face the challenge of doing what they can to equip worshipers to recognize opportunities to invite others, to be comfortable talking about their faith, and to issue effective invitations. 

Here’s help:

• How to attract first-time visitors
• Making your church more inviting
• Service and mission as the entry point for new people
• Evangelism Sunday

 

How Educated is the Pastor?

How Educated is the Pastor?

By Deborah Bruce

Question:  How much theological education does the average pastor have? 

Answer:  It depends.

Almost all pastors have some theological training.  Only 3% report that they have none.  Yet, pastors serving different types of congregation have varying amounts of theological education. 

Most Catholic and mainline Protestant pastors have advanced theological degrees.  Almost all pastors who are serving as principal leader in Catholic and mainline Protestant congregations have an advanced theological degree.  For most, this is a Master of Divinity (M.Div.) or other master’s degree (e.g., master of theology).  Only a few have a doctoral degree such as a D.Min. (11% of Catholics and 16% of mainline Protestant pastors). 

Fewer conservative Protestant pastors have advanced theological degrees.  Half of pastors serving conservative Protestant churches have an advanced theological degree.  Four in ten have a degree from a Bible college or a certificate from a denominational training program, Bible college, or seminary. 

The importance of theological education to the congregation.  Theological training plays a less important role in conservative Protestant worshipers’ acceptance of their pastor’s leadership.  One-quarter of pastors in conservative Protestant churches—and twice as many in Catholic and mainline churches—say theological education is of great importance.

Pursuit of additional theological education.  Despite the relative unimportance of theological education to conservative Protestants, more pastors in these churches (9%) than those in Catholic (2%) or mainline churches (6%) are currently attending seminary or another theological school.