Free Republic

The continuing decline of the historic mainline denominations is much more than just a matter of losses from aging and growing secularization. A recent analysis by the Washington-based Institute for Religion and Democracy, an evangelical think tank, suggests that large numbers of disaffected members are switching to conservative churches. Between 1965 and 2003, the latest year full figures were available, membership declined by the following percentages: Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) shrank by a whopping 57.2 percent, to 770,793; Presbyterian Church (U.S.A), 43.5 percent, to 2.4 million; United Church of Christ, 37.4 percent, to 1.3 million; Episcopal Church, 35.8 percent,...

It's almost beyond satire: A resolution affirming that Christ is Lord put forward in the United Church of Christ is not expected to pass. "It is highly detrimental to the health and growth of UCC churches and extremely embarrassing for UCC pastors and members to be viewed as non-Christians," the resolution notes, adding that the denomination has long been viewed as being a magnet for "Unitarians Considering Christ." The Rev. Albert W. Kovacs, who supports the resolution, says that the denomination now has "significant numbers of clergy who don’t believe in God." The story added: "A Haworth pastor said the...