Future of US Methodists hinges on change - leaders
by Lillian Kwon, US Correspondent
Posted: Tuesday, March 4, 2008, 11:27 (GMT)
While membership in mainline Protestant churches in the US has been on the decline for decades, church leaders are sounding the alarm more loudly after a recent study offered a grim picture of the churches' future.
"There is no future for The United Methodist Church in the United States unless we can reach more people, younger people and more diverse people," said the Rev Lovett Weems, a researcher and professor of church leadership at Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, according to the United Methodist News Service.
Weems made his comment after viewing findings from the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life survey, which was released last week. The study showed nearly half of American adults said they left the faith tradition of their upbringing and either switched religious affiliations or left the faith tradition altogether.
Of the 53 per cent who left the Methodist Church of their childhood, 19 per cent went to evangelical churches, 11 per cent to other mainline Protestant churches 3 per cent to historically black churches, and 8 per cent to a non-Protestant religion. Moreover, 12 per cent say they no longer are part of any faith group.
Although the Pew study confirms previous data collected on The United Methodist Church and religion in the United States, many say the study provides a comprehensive and more detailed picture of the latest trends in the US religious landscape.
Of the 78 per cent in the country who are Christian, according to the Pew survey, 18.1 per cent belong to mainline Protestant churches - which are predominantly white and elderly - and of that, 5.1 per cent are United Methodist.
"For whatever reason, a sizable population raised in the Methodist tradition is no longer Methodist. Maybe we haven't done a good job of showing what is unique and special and important about being a United Methodist," said Scott Brewer, director of research for the United Methodist General Council on Finance and Administration, which collects statistics for the denomination, according to UMNS.
United Methodists in the United States have been decreasing steadily in number for at least four decades and the denomination is currently at around 8 million members.
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Added: Tuesday, March 11, 2008, 4:58 (GMT)
I have great sympathies for the Methodist Church generally worlwide, having had my education largely in a Methodist educational institution in Singapore, and on many occasions attended Methodist Churches in Singapore and diverse places.
One of my disappointing experiences, in the U.S, was attending a service in a suburbian church in L.A. and listening to a sermon being preached by a lady [no offense meant to ladies, it could have easily been a male pastor] pastor on a local political scenario devoid of any spirtual content. On the next week-end, on the other hand, visiting a Roman Catholic Church in the evening mass, an extremely enlightened Priest preached a most evangelical [Good News] message that John Wesley would have been proud of. Not only that, the Priest welcomed non Catholic "bretherens" and "sisters" to partake together, the Eucharist. Very encouraging and heart-warming indeed.
I lament when one hears of such phrases, "something more positive" , "vibrant market place", "spending money to reach", missing the mark entirely, when really all that Methodists, laity or the clergy, need is to only read on John Wesley and what he preached and taught and allowed, welcomed the great fire of the Holy Spirit , in order, as Rev. Jerry Campbell puts it, "Methodist tradition" may continue and where he mention [not apparantly, but in truth] God doesn't like static [even sliding backwards] environments.
The only tradtion worth keeping is the centrality of Christ and Him crucified and buried and raised and ascended to be with our Father on His right hand. That is what we ought to preach and disseminate and not veer from what we have been commissioned with by our dearest Lord.
Alas, John Wesley may find it difficult to recognize the church today that he founded through God's anointing him.
ong siong kai, Jakarta, Indonesia
