Spirituality May Be Hot in America, But 76 Million Adults Never Attend Church
March 20, 2006(Ventura, CA) – Marketers devote billions of dollars to
penetrating the Baby Boomer market – the generation of 77 million
individuals that populate the nation. There is another market segment
equally as large that is of interest to the faith community: the 76
million adults who regularly avoid going to church.A new report based on its annual tracking survey by The Barna
Group reveals that one-third of the adult population (34%) has not
attended any type of church service or activity, other than a special
event such as a funeral or wedding, during the past six months.The Barna report described this “unchurched” population in relation to its spiritual and demographic background.
The Religious Profile of the Unchurched
Citing past research that discovered most unchurched adults were
formerly churched, the new study indicates that six out of ten
unchurched people (62%) consider themselves to be Christian, 4% say
they are Jewish, 4% are associated with an eastern religion, and 24%
say they are atheist. Denominationally, the largest share of unchurched
adults is made up of lapsed Catholics: almost three out of every ten
unchurched people (29%) associate with Catholicism. One out of every
five (18%) say they are Baptist.In the eyes of these individuals, absence from church life does
not indicate a lack of commitment to the Christian faith. Three out of
four unchurched adults who consider themselves to be Christian (77%)
contend that they are either absolutely or moderately committed to the
Christian faith….
Read the remainder of the Barna report.
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