Conservative churches are larger

An observant student said, “If you look at the bigger Baptist churches in Richmond, it seems as though those who are more conservative in nature are growing more than those of a more moderate nature. What makes them more attractive? My initial observation is the “program” offereings. Is there something more? ”

The programs offering may be one component. In today’s “Walmartization” of the church and the propensity to offer “McChurch” to attact folks in our consumer culture, people tend to shop for churches by what they offer in terms of “programs.” Often, they look more for what they “like” than for what they “need” in terms of their spiritual life.

But a second factor may be more telling. Conservative churches aim for that “adolescent faith” that likes to “belong” and likes to be told what to believe. Therefore, they can attract the masses, the lowest common denominator of spirituality. This is not a disparaging statement, I think it’s just the name of the game. And it’s not a statement that discounts the authenticity of that stage/style of faith, the sincerity of the people in those churches, or their right to choose a church that meets their spiritual needs. And it helps explain why moderate churches who shoot for more mature and informed membership will always be smaller numerically, and why moderate churches need to stop whining about the issue.

Ideally, a church should have room for all, but pragmatically, it just doesn’t work that way. Most people look for churches that meet their spiritual needs. And for most people, those needs are simple: “Help me feel like I belong, reassure me that God loves me, that there’s a purpose to my life and that all will turn out right, tell me what to do, don’t force me to think about my faith.”

“Entropy isn’t what it used to be.”