The cover story of the April 13, 2009 issue of Newsweek was “The Decline and Fall of Christian America.” The leading indicator is found in a survey showing those who claim no religion have almost doubled since 1990.
Numbers are a funny thing. It has been said that you can prove anything with statistics! Personally, I don’t know what “Christian America” means. No doubt the Founding Fathers drew on religious principles – though not necessarily Christian – in the drafting of the Constitution, but by definition, we are not and never have been a nation with an “official” religion. Were our values as a nation more “Christian” 50 years ago than they are today? Maybe so, maybe not. It depends on where you find your values.
Coincidentally, the April issue of National Geographic reports on the resurgence of the Orthodox Church in Russia. Does that mean Christianity is growing in Russia while it is declining in the United States? If you look only at numbers, perhaps. But remember, numbers are a funny thing. They reveal nothing about the soul of all those souls who are counted.
The Geographic article implies that the growth may be more an expression of nationalism than Christian discipleship. “The Russian Orthodox Church was rising everywhere from the ashes of the Soviet era, and millions of Russians were rushing to be baptized. Most were only dimly aware of the religious significance of the sacrament but eager to reclaim a past and an identity that the communists had for 75 years worked to erase … Would the Orthodox Church become a potent force for reform, speaking truth to the Kremlin’s power? Or would it resume the role it had played over centuries of tsarist rule and again become an ornament and tool of an authoritarian state.”
The numbers don’t answer those questions. Neither do these, but they put into perspective the talk about Christianity growing in Russia: “About 60 percent of Russians today identify themselves as Orthodox – they may be baptized, married, and buried in the church – but less than one percent actually enter a church at least once a month. [Some] sources put the figure close to 10 percent. One reason for the sparse attendance may be that the Orthodox Church is not entirely friendly to people who are casual or clueless about its hallowed traditions.”
I’m in no position to comment on the religious scene in Russia, but I’m not the least bit concerned about the declining numbers in the United States. My observation and gut feelings are that if our numbers are down, spiritual depth among the people of God is growing. Those who participate regularly in a church community do so because they are moved to do so, not because it is the “thing to do.” It is no longer important to your neighbor, your employer, your teacher whether or not you attend a church. They could care less! Yipee! Participation in the life of the church is much more a movement of the Spirit than it was when I first started ministry. There is much more integrity among those who sit in pews on a Sunday morning. To my way of thinking, that’s much better than being an ornament in the American way of life.
hey Bill, I will be in Russia and the Baltic countries which surround it for a study abroad semester this upcoming fall. While I am abroad I have to do an ethnographic study for my anthropology major, and if you would like I would be more than happy to share the notes I will have to take for that assignment of talks with my future peers (as most are Russian or eastern orthodox) on faith in the Baltic. I know it would only be a handful of students who would be represented, though perhaps it could give a better perspective on this topic of resurgent faith in Eastern Europe and Northern Asia which you have thoughtfully considered.
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