Disciples of Christ members protesting at the Iowa state Capitol.
Posted on 08/21/2019 1:01:13 PM PDT by lightman
Oldline Protestant denominations make for a competitive peer group, but the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) is on track to claim the top spot for fastest declining major U.S.-based church last year.
Total membership declined from 411,140 in 2017 to 382,248 (-7%) while average worship attendance declined from 139,936 to 124,437 (-11%) according to numbers reported for 2018. Baptisms dropped from 4,344 to 3,782 (-13%) while the number of other additions (including transfers in) declined from 7,441 to 6,969 (-6.4%).
At the current rate, the denomination will shrink by another 50 percent within a decade. This annual rate of decline exceeds that of the Presbyterian Church (USA) which reported a nearly 5 percent membership drop for the year 2018 and held the distinction of “fastest declining” for much of the decade.
The dramatic decline doesn’t appear to be registering among top denominational officials.
“I am genuinely hopeful for the future of this Church,” wrote the Rev. Teresa “Terri” Hord Owens, General Minister and President in an August 15 reflection following the denomination’s biannual General Assembly. “I saw signs of life and growth everywhere, of Disciples who are learning to abide whether that means waiting with expectation or tarrying a while in the Presence.”
Owens described the denomination’s members as “primed for growing into what the Lord has in mind for us – to become a healing, helping force for good in this fragmented world.” Addressing sustained decline that has shed 80 percent of members since the denomination crested in 1964 did not appear to be a concern: “We must continue to abide, to remain, to persist.”
Denominational officials strongly embrace social justice causes. At a post-Assembly rally at the Iowa Capitol, Disciples’ public policy groups joined with ecumenical and interfaith partners on the religious left to proclaim support for government directed poverty alleviation programs. The denomination also embraces a sanctuary movement to shield illegal immigrants from law enforcement, supports LGBT causes, and partners with an “Indigenous womxn-led collective” to “shift social and environmental paradigms by dismantling colonial institutions and replacing them with Indigenous practices.”
The Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II, co-leader of the Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival, spoke at the rally and Assembly closing celebration.
The July 20-24 General Assembly gathering in Des Moines, Iowa included a resolution to receive the gifts of those with “gender-diverse identities”.
“God is further known to us as the male-bodied Jesus embodying God’s feminine Wisdom; and as the non-gendered Spirit,” the resolution reads.
The shrinking denomination has not engaged in public discussion about a potential merger with another church body, but did vote to enter a full-communion ecumenical relationship with the United Church of Canada. The agreement allows for the free movement of clergy between the churches, and recognizes each’s sacraments of Baptism and Communion. Both churches already have a similar agreement with the United Church of Christ (UCC), which also shares a public policy office with the Disciples.
One of several groups that grew out of the Restoration Movement, begun in the early 19th century by Barton Stone and Thomas and Alexander Campbell, the Disciples are the smallest of seven historic oldline Protestant denominations. Prominent members have included Presidents Ronald Reagan, Lyndon Johnson and James Garfield. You can view my coverage of the Disciples’ 2016 membership report here and 2017 report here.
The 2018 numbers were provided by the Office of General Minister and President and appear in the 2019 Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) yearbook. One caveat with these numbers: the denomination changed to an online reporting format this year and experienced a small decline in reporting congregations. The denomination does not estimate for congregations that do not report, unlike some denominations that roll over the previous year’s congregational report if new information is not received.
Disciples of Christ members protesting at the Iowa state Capitol.
The falling away will continue.
Their standard belief is that Jesus is nice and Catholics aren’t. No standard moral norms except for divorce and abortion are OK if you think so and you must he baptized by full immersion to go to heaven unless you are muslim or Jewish and then you are ok. But Catholics who are baptized by infusion go to hell. Except there is no hell for anyone other than Catholics.
BTW: The creed is recited every Sunday, including the words: “I believe in the Holy Catholic Church.”
Denominational officials strongly embrace social justice causes.
I think I see the problem.
This group fell away a long time ago.
Also statues are forbidden except for statues of George Washington or Thomas Jeferson in the church courtyard or a Nativity scene on church lawn at Christmas (Thanksgiving Day - December 24), otherwise it is a sin to have a staute of Mary, except there is no consequence for sin unless you are catholic.
When you read a story like this, the first thought is that the decline is due to the church’s embrace of radical SJW values. Mainstream parishioners are saying “Whoa, I don’t think I’m ready for this in your face SJW attitude” and are backing away.
But are there other factors at play here?
Many mainstream congregations have experienced declines in attendance and participation - both on the Protestant and Catholic side. IIRC, even the more evangelical denominations have not increased their numbers.
So why are these denominations declining? Is it the growing secularization of America? Compared to 25 years ago, not as many attend church on a weekly basis. If in fact the radical SJW movement is having an effect on the denominations, where are this disaffected members going to?
Rev. Teresa “Terri” Hord Owens, General Minister and President.
************************
Well, I didn’t have to read too far to see a glaring problem.
Weird. I go to the Christian Church in my town and it is not only very active but growing.
However, I’ve never heard of the “Disciples of Christ” church.
Then again, my wife and I are not on any membership roll.
I don’t know that it’s so much the SJW mentality as the ongoing degeneracy of the leadership.
Yew must be goin ta a good baaaah-ble based church.
“Rev. Teresa “Terri” Hord Owens, General Minister and President : “We must continue to abide, . . . “ “
She might want to check with The Dude on that strategy.
Yet the Gospel still goes out.
The “c” in the “holy catholic Church” from the Nicene Creed is small. There was a book of prayers that capitalized Catholic and Apostlistic in the 17th century I believe, but that was quickly changed back to the “universal”/original version Church. Greek original equivalent was not “proper”/nor was the Latin translation capitalized.
Well there's a huge problem!
Denominational officials strongly embrace social justice causes. At a post-Assembly rally at the Iowa Capitol, Disciples’ public policy groups joined with ecumenical and interfaith partners on the religious left to proclaim support for government directed poverty alleviation programs. The denomination also embraces a sanctuary movement to shield illegal immigrants from law enforcement, supports LGBT causes, and partners with an “Indigenous womxn-led collective” to “shift social and environmental paradigms by dismantling colonial institutions and replacing them with Indigenous practices.”
And there's the rest of it.
Imagine the leadership prayers "Oh Lord, please bless our church as we spit in Your holy face and support everything that you are against. Surely You were just kidding when You called homosexuality abomination right?"
I think that is the main thing - to be Bible based. Our church (mainline Protestant) is part of a group that is a Biblically conservative wing of the otherwise liberal national church.
It is a large church and does a lot of mission work - both in our city and around the world. The church membership continues to grow in spite being in the least-churched area of the country (Seattle area).
What is really sad is to see these churches say that being LGBTQXYZ2 is okay. I believe that only by knowing the true Jesus can these people find healing and real meaning. They need to be accepted into worshiping with all the rest of us sinners, but loved enough to know that it is a sin, and God doesn’t want them living like that as it isn’t best for them.
The Methodists will be next.
...’The falling away will continue’....
Indeed it will...the Great Apostasy and the Great Deception are in play in a world ready to deceive itself.
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