Evangelism Research and Cultural Trends

Belief in God is highest among older people and increases with age, perhaps due to the growing realization that death is coming closer, reports Univ. of Chicago researchers. Summarizing data from surveys performed in 1991, 1998, and 2008 in 30 countries, the study found, on average, 43% of those 68 and older were certain God exists. By comparison, an average of 23% of people 27 and younger were firm believers in God. Over the past 20 years, belief in God has decreased in most countries, but the declines were modest. Israel, Slovenia, and Russia were 3 exceptions where belief in God had grown. Belief was highest in strongly Catholic countries such as the Philippines, at 94%, and lowest in Western Europe, with only 13% of former East Germans believers. In the U.S., 81% of people surveyed said they had always believed in God, and 68% support the concept that God is concerned with people in a personal way. (Reuters, Church Report 4/20/12)

Young Millennials Reject Religion
Findings of the Millennial Values Survey indicate many of the youngest Millennials are leaving their childhood faith and ending up mostly unaffiliated. Many 18- to 24-year-old Americans are rejecting religious doctrine and orthodoxy in general. Around one quarter don't identify with any religion, more than twice the 11% raised in households without any particular faith. (Church Report 4/30/12)

Plurals
Millennials just aren't kids anymore If they are no longer the youth population, what do we call the new generation of youth? Enter the Pluralist Generation. The oldest Plural is 14, turning 15 in 2012. The youngest is a newborn. Plurals are America's last generation to have a Caucasian majority, and based on immigration projections, they will also be America's first generation to be pluralistic, or have no majority race. In 2019, less than 50% of live U.S. births will be Caucasian. In just 30 years, our entire population will be less than 50% Caucasian. They are being raised in the environment of change and, in their 30s and early 40s, they will be the ones managing the transition into a truly pluralistic society. The consumer-centric Internet is all they will ever know. Their definition of marriage and family will differ. They are being raised by Xers, not Boomers. Without question that is going to create children who see the world differently. Begin to get to know them now in order to successfully serve them tomorrow.  (Engage Gen-Y 5/4/12)

Millennials enrolled in religious colleges are just as likely to leave the religious affiliation of their childhood as students enrolled at public universities, finds the 2012 Millennial Values Survey. "Among Millennials who have attended or are attending a religiously-affiliated college or university, only 5% were raised unaffiliated and 16% currently describe themselves as unaffiliated," said Public Religion Research Institute CEO Dr. Robert P. Jones. Among Millennial's, 11% were reared in unaffiliated households yet 25% are unaffiliated today. Catholics saw the greatest loss, from 28% in childhood to 20% today. Overall, college-age Millennials are more likely than the general population to be religiously unaffiliated. They also hold less orthodox religious beliefs; 23% believe the Bible is the word of God and should be understood literally, 26% believe it is the word of God but not all of it should be taken literally, and 37% believe it is written by men and is not the word of God. (Christian Post 4/20/12)

Religious Census
A decennial census of U.S. religions in America by the Assoc. of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies shows a dramatic increase in the number of Mormons and Muslims, a modest increase in the number of evangelical Protestants, and a drop in the number of Catholics and mainline Protestants. Muslims saw the greatest growth rate (66.7%) since 2000. Mormons were next (45.5%), followed by evangelical Protestants (1.7%). The number of Catholics decreased by 5% while mainline Protestants decreased by 12.8%. Nondenominational and independent churches combined are now the largest faith group with over 12 million adherents, according to the report. While evangelical Protestants and Mormons saw their greatest growth in large metro areas, Muslims grew at a faster rate outside of the major metro areas. In the 2000 census, at least one non-Christian religious congregation was found in 21% of America's counties vs. 31% in 2010, a nearly 50% increase. (Christian Post 5/2/12)

Highly Religious People are less motivated by compassion when helping a stranger than atheists, agnostics, and less religious people, according to a new study by MedicalXpress. The study found people who were less religious were driven to be more generous when they saw people suffering. UC Berkeley's Robb Willer, a social psychologist and co-author of the study, said people who are more religious "ground their generosity less in emotion and more in other factors such as doctrine, a communal identity, or reputational concerns." For less religious people, "the strength of their emotional connection to another person is critical to whether they will help that person or not." (Church Report 5/2/12)

Internet for Religious
Purposes Among American adults who use the Internet, 44% use it for religious purposes, according to a new study. This is particularly common among younger Americans. There is tremendous diversity in how the Internet is used for spiritual purposes, including interacting with religious leaders on social media, visiting church websites, going online for religious instruction, reading religious blogs, and numerous other methods. More

Largest Christian Populations
The 10 nations with the largest population of Christians are Congo (95.7%), Mexico (95%), Philippines (93.1%), Brazil (90.2%), USA (79.5%), Russia (73.6%), Germany (70.8%), Ethiopia (63.4%), and Nigeria (50.8%). (Pew Forum on Religion & Life 2010 Global Christianity report)

Most Persecuted
Christianity is presently the most persecuted religion on earth, according to analysis of Pew Research data by Open Doors. From the research, Dr. Carl Moeller concludes about 70% of the world's population lives in a religiously intolerant environment. 32% of the world's population experienced a rise in religious hostility either at the social or government level in recent years, fueled by illiteracy and some cases poverty, most notably in Islamic societies where an intentional misrepresentation of other faiths is primary. (Christian Post 5/5/12)

Proud New Dads
While moms used to be the social network standard-bearer of the family, fathers (particularly first-time ones) are engaging in the same types of social media activities new moms enjoy, finds a new Edelman and The Parenting Group survey. 42% of new U.S. dads who use social networks write family-related status updates on a daily basis. Plus, 56% of new dads post family photos at least a few times a week while 21% post family-related videos. (eMarketer 4/5/12)

More Multi-Generational Households
The number of Americans living in multi-generational households has been increasing steadily since 1980. During the recent recession, 12/07 to 6/09, the number of Americans living in multi-generational households rose from 46.5 million to 51.4 million, the largest increase in modern history. By 2009, 21% of 25 to 34s were living in multi-generational households, and the share had crept up 21.6% by the end of 2010. Among the total population, 17.5% were living in multi-generational households in 2010 vs. 15.2% in 2006. (Center for Media Research Brief 4/6/12)

Boomerang Generation
A new Pew Research survey of U.S. adults 18 to 34 finds 24% moved back in with their parents in recent years due to economic conditions. 40% of 18 to 24s currently live with their parents. Most say they did not move back home because of the economy because many never moved out in the first place. 25% say it was good for their relationship, 24% say it was bad, and 50% say it's made no difference. Only 12% of 25 to 34s currently live with their parents, but another 17% say they have moved back home temporarily due to economic conditions. (Center for Media Research Brief 4/6/12)

Cohabitation Increases Divorce
Recent studies indicate a causal relationship between the rise in divorce that has accompanied the rise in cohabitation. Drawing from research and experience working with young adults, researchers argue there is actually something internal to the practice of living together that can put a future marriage on shaky grounds. The decision to live together is often one that couples "slide" into simply because it is economical or convenient. After moving in, they feel "locked in" because of all the entanglements of living together. Founding relationships on convenience or ambiguity can interfere with the process of claiming the people we love. Studies also reveal men and women tend to go into a cohabiting situation with different mentalities with women seeing it as a "step towards marriage" and men often viewing it as "a way to test a relationship or postpone commitment." This gender asymmetry is associated with negative interactions and lower levels of commitment even after the relationship progresses to marriage. (NY Times 4/19/12)

Abstinence-Based Curriculum
A Montclair Univ. new study finds an abstinence education works. Researchers observed 1,100 9th graders in Georgia who used the Choosing the Best (CTB) curriculum in 2009–10 and data demonstrated significant impact of CTB at the end of 9th grade on commitment to abstinence, pro-abstinence beliefs and attitudes, intentions to maintain abstinence, and at the beginning of 10th grade on pro-abstinence attitudes. CTB has been used by more than three million middle and high school students in 48 states since 1993. (LifeSite News 4/4/12)

The Teenage Birth Rate in the U.S. has fallen to the lowest level since 1946, according to the latest data from National Center for Health Statistics. In 2010, babies born to women 15 to 19 numbered 367,752 vs. 409,802 in 2009. Teen pregnancy numbers began to drop when abstinence education became a national movement influencing teenagers and governmental leaders. (Baptist Press 4/19/12)

Population Tipping Point
The Census Bureau has made it official: White births are no longer a majority in the U.S. Non-Hispanic whites accounted for just 49.6% of all births between 7/11 and 7/12. During the same period minorities (including Hispanics, blacks, Asians and mixed race) reached 50.4%, representing a majority for the first time in the country's history. (NY Times 5/17/12)

Religious Products
A survey by Baylor Univ. reported 12% of Americans spend $50 or more a month on religious products, and another 11% spend between $25 and $29 per month. (Foster Network 5/12)

Christian Women are generous with their time and money, according to the recent Women Doing Well survey. Median giving among respondents was 10% of annual income vs. just 2.5%–3% among all U.S. households. An impressive13% gave 20% or more annually to charity. 93% had volunteered in the past 12 months vs. the national average of 26.3%. (Directions in Women's Giving 2012, Amy L. Sherman, Women Doing Well, 2012)

Boomers Paying for Parents & Kids Boomers are helping to pay grocery, medical, and utility bills for their aging parents, plus many are also chipping in for everything from car insurance to rent payments for adult kids they thought flew the nest. This is creating uncertainty their own financial well-being, according to Ameriprise Financial's study, titled Money Across Generations. (MSNBC.com, 5/07/12)

Degree but Jobless
A new AP study reveals 1 in 2 college grads is jobless or under-employed and burdened with big student loans. A new Generation Opportunity study showed 77% of 18–29s either have or will delay a major life change or purchase for economic reasons. (Charisma News 4/27/12)

Rise in Internships
Due to the worst job market in decades, many college grads are turning to unpaid internships to try to get a foot in an employer's door. While unpaid post-college internships have long existed in the film and nonprofit worlds, they have recently spread to fashion houses, book and magazine publishers, marketing companies, public relations firms, art galleries, talent agencies, and even to some law firms. While many internships provide valuable experience, some unpaid interns complain they do menial work and learn little. The Labor Dept. says if employers do not want to pay their interns, the internships must resemble vocational education, the interns must work under close supervision, their work cannot be used as a substitute for regular employees, and their work cannot be of immediate benefit to the employer. (NY Times 5/6/12)

• Robert E. "Bob" Whitaker Sr., 83, Whitaker House/ Anchor Distributors founder and president, died 5/3/12.

• 94% of all U.S. churches have fewer than 500 weekly worshipers.
• 86% of American adults believe Jesus Christ was a real person who walked this earth 2,000 years ago.
• 77% of U.S. adults believe Jesus Christ rose from the dead.
• While 58% of churches view their websites as tools for outreach, only 29% utilize them to reach their members.
• The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life reports 2.2 billion people of all ages worldwide self-identify as Christians.
• 34% of religious Americans are involved with charitable or volunteer organizations vs. 15% of non-religious people.
• 44% of U.S. adults do not belong to the same faith as when they were children.
• 68% of American adults favor federal government recognition of the National Day of Prayer.
• Gallup classifies 40% of Americans nationwide as very religious.
• Gallup reports 32% of Americans are nonreligious.
• Gallup finds 28% of Americans are moderately religious.
• 127,000 missionaries were sent from the U.S. in 2010 while 32,400 were sent to the U.S. in the same year.
• 70% of Americans consider Easter to be a religious celebration.
• One-third of U.S. working women are their family's breadwinner.
• Since 1960, the median age for marriage for young women has risen from 20 to 27.
• 1 in every 8 American children is born premature.
• Nearly a third of all Americans 65 and older live alone, and by their 80s more than half of women do.
• 5.4 million Americans have Alzheimer's or dementia.
• 13.5% of Americans 65-plus relied solely on Social Security income in 2010.
• The number of 50-plus unemployed for 6 months or longer spiked from 325,000 in 2007 to 1.8 million in 2011.
• 42% of older jobless workers in the U.S. were unemployed for more than a year during 2011.
• Obesity could affect 42% of Americans by 2030.
• Just 44% (a new low) of U.S. adults expect the nation's economy to grow stronger in the next 5 years.
• 77% of Americans support a ban on sex-selective abortion.
• Autism now afflicts more than 1 million, or more than 1 in every 88 children in the U.S.
• The average cost for a basic funeral in the U.S. in '09 was $6,560.
• Amazon controls about 60% of the U.S. e-book market.
• 80% of YA readers prefer physical books, according to Thomas Nelson research.
• 80% of students say they need financial education while only 20% of teachers feel comfortable teaching it.
• 20.3 million children in the U.S. live with only one parent.
• In 2011, Americans spent $2.7 billion on dolls, up 7% from 2010.
• 65% of Americans 65 and older say they feel younger than their age.
• The heaviest social media users are those 12–24 years old.
• For every dollar that U.S. newspapers gained online last year, they lost $10 in print advertising revenue.
• Millennial dads have more online friends than millennial moms.