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A recent study released by the Barna Group—a leading research company focused on the intersection of faith and culture—has been the spark plug for a surge of editorials around the country because of the study’s eye-opening, statistical revelations regarding Christianity and divorce. Among the findings, divorce rates among conservative Christians are not only counter to Christian ideals, they are significantly higher than that of other faith groups, including atheists and agnostics. George Barna, the director of the study observed, “There no longer seems to be much of a stigma attached to divorce. (Instead), it is now seen as an unavoidable...

As I mentioned Monday afternoon, I've got a new book sitting here that will be a dynamic book to read and blog about. It's one of the most encouraging and myth-busting books of the last two decades. The book is by Bradley R.E. Wright, and he's a professor at the University of Connecticut where he teaches sociology.  Wright's book is called: Christians Are Hate-Filled Hypocrites...and Other Lies You've Been Told: A Sociologist Shatters Myths From the Secular and Christian Media .  Here's a big insight from Wright, and it speaks to me about something I know I've made a mistake...

Mainline Protestant churches seem to have weathered the past decade better than many people have assumed, but the future is raising serious challenges to continued stability, said a Christian pollster. George Barna analyzed data for The Barna Group's latest report examining mainline denominations. Weekend attendance at mainline churches has remained relatively stable, ranging from 89 to 100, over the past decade but the report suggests that they may be "on the precipice of a period of decline." Mainline bodies – which the research group identifies as American Baptist Churches in the USA; The Episcopal Church; the Evangelical Lutheran Church in...

Cultural Christians. Captive Christians. American Jews. Pantheists. Muslims. Spiritual Skeptics. Mormons. The U.S. can be broken down into seven main faith groups, according to the pollster George Barna in his latest book — “The Seven Faith Tribes” — which is at least his 40th. Even he may have lost count. “These have more to do with lifestyles and values and draws parallels with faith inclinations,” Barna said in a recent phone interview from his office in California, where he oversees The Barna Group, a research organization. The faith groups are not the nation’s seven largest but are rather clusters of...

It's a long and ignominious list. First there was Newt Gingrich. Then came Larry Craig, Mark Foley, David Vitter, Chip Pickering and Vito Fossella. Now starring John Ensign and Mark Sanford. Politically, sex scandals are equal-opportunity destroyers. For every David Vitter, there is an Eliot Spitzer. For every John Ensign there's a John Edwards. For every Bill Clinton there's... well, there's only one Slick Willie. But you get the point: Sexual scandal knows no party. Yet, a common denominator linking many political sex scandals of the last few years is the involvement of conservative Christian politicians who, it seemed, had...

What if America's greatest enemy is not al Qaeda or Iran, but America itself? The United States is hailed as a melting pot of ethnic and religious diversity. But could this trait actually stand in the way of a common vision that once made our nation so great? Researcher George Barna has spent 25 years analyzing faith and culture in America. In his new book "The Seven Faith Tribes," he breaks the nation down into seven belief groups: 1.Casual Christians 2.Captive Christians 3.Skeptics 4.Jews 5.Mormons 6.Pantheists 7.Muslims To renew America, each tribe must seek common ground, open dialog, and shared...

Nearly six out of ten Christians either strongly agreed or somewhat agreed with the statement that Satan "is not a living being but is a symbol of evil," the survey found. Forty percent strongly agreed with the statement while 19 percent of American Christians somewhat agreed. In contrast, about 35 percent of American Christians believe Satan is real. Twenty-six percent strongly disagreed with the statement that Satan is merely symbolic and about one-tenth (9 percent) somewhat disagreed. The remaining eight percent of American Christians responded they were unsure what to believe about the existence of Satan. Interestingly, the majority of...

The percentage of Hispanic Catholics in America has dropped, while the proportion of born-again Hispanics has increased, a new survey by the Barna Group found. Over the past 15 years, the proportion of Hispanics in America that is aligned with the Catholic Church has fallen by 25 percent. By comparison, the proportion of born-again Christians for this ethnic group has increased by 17 percent. “You cannot help but notice the changing relationship between Hispanics and the Catholic Church,” commented George Barna, whose company conducted the research. “While many Hispanic immigrants come to the United States with ties to Catholicism, the...

The majority of American Christians do not believe that Satan is a real being or that the Holy Spirit is a living entity, the latest Barna survey found. Nearly six out of ten Christians either strongly agreed or somewhat agreed with the statement that Satan "is not a living being but is a symbol of evil," the survey found. Forty percent strongly agreed with the statement while 19 percent of American Christians somewhat agreed. In contrast, about 35 percent of American Christians believe Satan is real. Twenty-six percent strongly disagreed with the statement that Satan is merely symbolic and about...

Skilled statisticians like George Barna and carefully researched studies from the Pew Reports all show a declining moral climate and a gradual but alarming number of youthful exits from the church in America. Is it chronic, should we be worried? Any writer, preacher, prophet or ordinary live a day Christian worth their salt is calling for America to come to her senses and return to the faith of our fathers. They are not moved by the rhetoric of socialisms priest and preachers whether found in academia, media, Hollywood or political office. They are driven by the proof shown to them...

Less than one percent of the youngest adult generation in America has a biblical worldview, found a new study examining the changes in worldview among Christians and the overall U.S. population. The Mosaic generation, those between the ages of 18 and 23, “rarely” have a biblical worldview as defined by The Barna Group. The research data found that less than one-half of one percent of Mosaics have a biblical worldview. A biblical worldview, as defined by the Barna study, is believing that absolute moral truth exists; the Bible is completely accurate in all of the principles it teaches; Satan is...

Image courtesy of istockphoto. click for info Christianity Is No Longer Americans’ Default FaithJanuary 12, 2009 (Ventura, California) - For much of America’s history, the assumption was that if you were born in America, you would affiliate with the Christian faith. A new nationwide survey by The Barna Group, however, indicates that people’s views have changed. The study discovered that half of all adults now contend that Christianity is just one of many options that Americans choose from and that a huge majority of adults pick and choose what they believe rather than adopt a church or denomination’s slate...

< snip > Evangelicals are a small proportion of the national population - just 7% of all adults. But they tend to capture the imagination and attention of the national media and political pundits. The survey data consistently show that evangelical Christians have among the highest rates of voting turnout. . . and are strikingly different from the rest of the population - even from other born again Christians who are not evangelical. As was true in the past two presidential elections, two-thirds of all evangelicals who were registered to vote (65%) were aligned with the Republican Party. One out...

As the nation’s culture changes in diverse ways, one of the most significant shifts is the declining reputation of Christianity, especially among young Americans. A new study by The Barna Group conducted among 16- to 29-year-olds shows that a new generation is more skeptical of and resistant to Christianity than were people of the same age just a decade ago. The study of Christianity’s slipping image is explored in a new book, entitled unChristian, by David Kinnaman, the president of The Barna Group. The study is a result of collaboration between Kinnaman and Gabe Lyons of the Fermi Project. Rising...

Washington, D.C. (AHN) - A national poll said on Wednesday that Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) is ahead of Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) among Christian voters.According to the Barna Group, a Christian polling organization, Obama leads McCain in all except one of the 19 faith groups identified in the poll. The Democrat leads among Christians overall, 43-34 percent. Twenty-one percent of voters were undecided. Obama holds the support of non-evangelical born again Christians, 43-34 percent, notional Christians, 44-28 percent, people aligned with faiths other than Christianity, 56-24 percent, Catholics, 39-29 percent, and Protestants, 43-34 percent. It is the first time in...

In recent presidential history, Republicans have swamped Democrats among voters who regularly attend worship services - and in the last two nail-biters they provided more than the margin of victory. But a new poll out is the latest to suggest that this November will not be a repeat. The Barna Group, which tracks faith groups, said Democrat Barack Obama is leading Republican John McCain 43 percent to 34 percent. Obama's campaign Tuesday highlighted the findings that, of the 19 faith groups tracked in the poll, McCain is only leading among evangelicals. Still, like other national polls, it shows the race...

The evangelical community is the only faith segment that Barack Obama has not won the majority support of, a new survey found. Out of 19 faith communities polled by The Barna Group, all but evangelicals favour Democratic presidential hopeful Obama over Republican John McCain, reveals The Barna Group survey released on Monday. Among evangelicals (carefully defined by Barna using a nine-question qualification process) who are likely to vote in November, 61 per cent supported McCain compared to 17 per cent for Obama. But Obama is significantly more popular among other faith communities, including nominal Christians (44 per cent vs 28...

Amazing … that there are that many of us voting Republican, that is. Didn’t we see some numbers in this vein not long ago pointing towards a more lopsided outcome? The atheist vote’s just a sexy detail in an omnibus poll of religious voters. The good news: Obama’s lost seven points among Christians since June and has seen his support soften considerably in several subgroups. The bad news: Pretty much everything else, especially the fact that McCain’s only gained one point in the same period and trails among every “faith segment� except one. If Obama has a “Catholic problem,� what...

< snip > Understanding Evangelicals One of the most frequently reported on groups of voters is evangelicals. Most media polls use a simplistic approach to defining evangelicals, asking survey respondents if they consider themselves to be evangelical. Barna Group surveys, on the other hand, ask a series of nine questions about a person’s religious beliefs in order to determine if they are an evangelical. The differences between the two approaches are staggering. Using the common approach of allowing people to self-identify as evangelicals, 40% of adults classify themselves as such. Among them, 83% are likely to vote in November. Among...

(Ventura, California) - A new nationwide survey of people’s candidate preference conducted by The Barna Group some movement over the past two months, with Sen. Obama maintaining a substantial 43% to 34% lead among those who are likely to vote in November, with 5% selecting minor party candidates. That lead is a decline for Sen. Obama’s since early June, when he led his Republican rival 50% to 35% among likely voters. In the past two months, more voters have gravitated to third-party candidates (5%) and a higher proportion is now undecided (up from 15% to 21%). Sen. McCain has struggled...

New research shows that a majority of churches use some type of emerging technology in their services, but the pace of technology adoption has slowed in recent years. Although 65 percent of Protestant churches now have a large screen projection system, that number is just slightly higher than in 2005 when 62 percent had such a system, according to The Barna Group. The use of large screens had jumped from the year 2000 when only 39 percent were using them. Since 2005, there was only a 5 percent increase in the adoption of a large screen projection system. The Barna...

Primary turnout and recent surveys show conservative "values" voters have abandoned the Republican Party. Illustrating a dramatic about face from past elections, a recent study shows that if the election were held today, 40% of all evangelical Christian voters would choose the Democratic candidate and just 29% would choose the Republican candidate. The remaining 28% are undecided, saying they would make their selection without respect to party affiliation. A Barna Group release titled: Born Again Voters No Longer Favor Republican Candidates cites figures that spell doom for the Republican Party, given that "in the past couple of elections, the born...

America is a religious nation in the eyes of the world. But a new study revealed that the majority of Americans do not rank their relationship with God as the most important personal connection in their life. Seven out of 10 American adults choose their earthly family over their Heavenly Father when asked to choose the most important relationship to them, according to a Barna study released Monday. One-third said their entire nuclear family is most important, while nearly a quarter (22 percent) named their spouse and one-sixth (17 percent) pointed to their children. An additional three percent of American...

George Barna, the beloved Christian pollster, recently announced to the world in his book “Revolution” that the institutional church was dead. That was not a problem, however, because Barna also announced a “New Reformation” that would sweep our land. He promised that this was going to “amount to a Third Great Awakening in the United States, but with a very different look, feel and outcome than previous religious upheaval.” According to Barna, the age of the local [read: institutional] church was dead and would be replaced by simple house churches and other non-traditional gatherings of believers. The book caused quite...

New research by George Barna, America's leading Christian pollster, is challenging assumptions about the political loyalties of born-again Christians. The findings are not likely to be pleasant news for the Republican Party.

According to the Family Research Council, a new Barna poll shows that the "born again," whatever that might this week, now overwhelmingly support Hillary (20% of the "born again" vote) and Obama (18%). How is it possible that seemingly devout Christians could support the party that stands like a phalanx behind partial birth abortion and redefining marriage into oblivion and opposes biblical free market principles? Look no further than "America's Pastor" and the Saddleback Church, where Obama and Hillary were guests last year. Rick Warren, while claiming to be acting in a Christian, conciliatory manner, treating these leftwing politicians as...

A new poll that shows Sen. Hillary Clinton drawing a large percentage of "born-again" voters is giving her campaign something to trumpet, but is also prompting questions: Did the pollster define born-again too broadly? And if so, are the results meaningful? California-based researcher George Barna found that Clinton, a New York Democrat, leads among born-again voters at 20 percent, followed by Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., (18 percent) and former Republican Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee (12 percent). No other candidate received double-digit support, and 30 percent of poll respondents were undecided. The poll also found that 40 percent of born-agains likely...

Image courtesy of istockphoto.com. click for info Born Again Voters No Longer Favor Republican Candidates February 4, 2008 (Ventura, CA)One of the most reliable constituencies of the Republican Party in recent years has been born again Christians. A new national survey of likely voters conducted by The Barna Group, however, shows that the Republicans have lost the allegiance of many born again voters. The November election is truly up for grabs - and if the election were held today, most born again voters would select the Democratic Party nominee for president, whoever that might be. Born Again Voting Pattern...

2007 Trends Analysis: Americans Reformulating Christianity By Audrey Barrick Christian Post Reporter Tue, Dec. 04 2007 09:34 AM ET As fewer Americans identify themselves with Christianity, research indicates that those who remain Christian are redefining what "Christian" means. Study: Christianity No Longer Looks Like Jesus Younger generations are not bound by traditional parameters of the Christian faith and instead are embracing values that are not necessarily based on biblical foundations, according to a recent analysis by The Barna Group. Although faith is an acceptable attribute and pursuit among most young people, their notions of faith do not align with conventional...

Changing our morality to fit the politically correct version of the day would cause our worship of God to be a mere vanity. In a national climate already inundated with ersatz, narcissism, vanity, pop culture nonsense and media fired tripe, who would willingly pull their feet off the only unmovable object left in the world, Jesus the Rock of our Salvation? He said “Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. (Mk 7:7)

(Ventura, CA) - Americans may be skeptical about the claims of politicians, but they remain confident that some of the most amazing stories in the Bible can be taken at face value. A new nationwide survey conducted by The Barna Group shows that six well-known Bible stories are accepted as literal truth by an average of two out of three adults. How People Read the Stories Survey respondents were asked if they thought a specific story in the Bible was “literally true, meaning it happened exactly as described in the Bible” or whether they thought the story was "meant to...

A majority of Americans believe in God's power and miracles, according to a new survey. Furthermore, most accept well-known Bible stories as literal truth, including the biblical account of Jesus Christ rising from the dead, The Barna Group found. Three out of four adults (75 percent) said they interpreted the crucifixion, death, burial and resurrection of Christ as literal truth. An earlier study also found that 75 percent of Americans who do not identify as born-again Christians believe Jesus literally resurrected, according to the Center for Missional Research of the North American Mission Board – the Southern Baptist Convention’s domestic...

Young Americans today are more skeptical and resistant to Christianity than were people of the same age just a decade ago, says a new study. Tue, Sep. 25, 2007 Posted: 11:19:17 AM EST Young Americans today are more skeptical and resistant to Christianity than were people of the same age just a decade ago, says a new study. Negative perceptions toward the Christian faith have outweighed the positive as a growing percentage of younger Americans associate with a faith outside Christianity. Only 16 percent of non-Christians aged 16 to 29 years old said they have a "good impression" of Christianity,...

(Ventura, CA) - Not too long ago, Catholics were seen as a different breed of Americans - mostly European immigrants, urban, blue collar and participants in a minority religion. When John Kennedy became the first Catholic president elected in the United States in 1960, his faith of choice was a significant issue in the campaign. Although the percentage of adults who describe themselves as Catholic has dropped from three out of ten to slightly more than two out of ten in the past two decades, Catholics remain the largest denominational segment in the country (22%). These days, however, they are...

Christians were shocked when George Barna reported in 1999 that married Christians were not only as likely to divorce as anyone else but actually get divorced more often than the godless hell-bound. Atheists, of course, were delighted and claimed they weren't the least bit surprised. These findings confirm what I have been saying these last five years. Atheist ethics are of a higher caliber than religious morals. It stands to reason that our families would be dedicated more to each other than to some invisible monitor in the sky. – Ron Barrier, national media coordinator, American Atheists Thus demonstrating once...

Church "hopping" is the ultimate "all about me" experience. I'm not talking about church "shopping" - say, moving into a new community, or deciding to start attending church altogether, and then visiting churches until becoming a member of one as soon as reasonably possible. And I'm not talking about leaving one's church after finding un-addressed scandal in a church's leadership, for instance, or when a person's conscience becomes persuaded that something foundational to the belief system of that church is very wrong. I'm talking about the growing tendency in America's evangelical churches for folks who decide, after they have officially...

A new evangelistic movement has emerged in America. Yet this effort does not spring from those loyal to a particular faith or religious view.The new evangelists are atheists. People who have determined there is no God or who doubt His existence (a group commonly known as agnostics) are adopting a more aggressive, intentional effort to discredit the notion that God exists and to critique people of faith. Widely reviewed new books such as The God Delusion and God is Not Great represent this movement.Beyond the bestseller lists, however, a new survey shows there is indeed a significant gap between Christians...

In Mark 8:36, Jesus asked, "For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?" Now demographer George Barna has demonstrated the wisdom of those words—on more than one level.In a recent survey, Barna’s staff asked respondents for their reactions towards 16 public figures, ranging from actor Denzel Washington to singer Britney Spears to best-selling author and pastor Rick Warren.Not surprisingly, far more people recognized movie stars Mel Gibson (95 percent) and Washington (93 percent) than anyone else. What’s illuminating for evangelicals is the lack of recognition of most of their leading...

Warren's The Purpose Driven Life is reportedly the biggest selling non-fiction book in U.S. history, aside from the Bible. He heads one of the largest megachurches in the nation - Saddleback Community Church - and is publicized by media around the world. The survey released Monday, however, found that 72 percent of adults say they have never heard of him. The megachurch pastor is also unknown among born again Christians with 63 percent saying they have never heard of him. Americans are a little more familiar with Christian psychologist James Dobson. Dobson, founder of Focus on the Family, hosts a...

Image courtesy of BarnaFilms. click for info Rosie O’Donnell Stirs Christians’ EmotionsNovember 13, 2006 (Ventura, CA) – “Radical Christianity is just as threatening as radical Islam in a country like the United States.” Those words were not spoken by Osama bin Laden but by comedienne turned talk-show hostess Rosie O’Donnell on a nationally broadcast program in October. Her statement generated a wide range of reactions. A new nationwide survey of that reaction, conducted by The Barna Group, suggests that although few Americans would challenge her right to make such statements, just as few share her point of view. Lost...

Christian pollster George Barna is offering some intriguing findings about the perceived and predicted influence of The Da Vinci Code, in both the written and theatrical form. In short, he says his findings indicate that reading the book -- or viewing the upcoming movie -- is more likely to confirm rather than change people's religious views. The best-selling novel by author Dan Brown has been read "cover to cover," says The Barna Group, by about 45 million adult Americans. That equates to approximately 20 percent of all adults, making it "the most widely read book with a spiritual theme, other...

The Church Report is pleased to announce this year’s list of The 50 Most Influential Christians in America. Thanks to the readers of the magazine as well as the online readers for contributing over 150,000 nominations. Each of the people on this list is most deserving of this recognition. As with all types of lists, there are those who are not on the list – not because they weren’t deserving – but simply because we did not have enough space to publish a list of the 100 most influential. The staff of The Church Report did not choose this list;...

The Barna Group on Tuesday released a report on the top religious trends for 2005 based on studies conducted this year. While the evangelical research group found that churches don't minister or worship properly, it found that there is a hunger in the younger adult generations, who have chosen to satisfy that hunger in new ways. Lack of Ministry, Prayer, & Authentic Worship According to The Barna Group Founder George Barna, most local churches (80 percent) essentially ignore ministry to children and families, both of which are critical to church growth. These two ministries are important because "families are meant...

Here is how Christians can change Hollywood, according to Jonathan Bock: "Go to more movies." As a publicist, the founder of Grace Hill Media, Mr. Bock might be biased, but here is his reasoning, as explained in the book Behind the Screen: Hollywood Insiders on Faith, Film, and Culture (Baker): "If Christians would go as a demographic bloc to a movie on opening weekend, we could make that movie a hit. And the studios would make more films just like it." The movie industry has been in the economic doldrums, with declining ticket sales and a smaller demographic slice going...

Christianbook.com: Briefly describe the Revolution that is taking place in the Kingdom of God. George Barna: There is an enormous, and growing, body of Christians in this country who love God and want more of Him in their life, but cannot satisfy that need through the local church or the other means they have relied upon. Consequently, they put together a series of relationships that enable them to get more of God in their life, and to be the Church rather simply go to church. Our research shows that these folks tend to emphasize their spiritual life in terms of...

Dr. George Barna is the most quoted Christian authority in America, and this week he has released a brief bombshell of a book, "Revolution" (Tyndale House), that announces the impending arrival of a world you will hardly recognize. For 21 years, Barna's huge audience has been the traditional, institutional church leaders of all denominations. After they finish reading "Revolution," that audience may all fit into the back seat of a Corvette. http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=46879

For decades the primary way that Americans have experienced and expressed their faith has been through a local church. That reality is rapidly changing, according to researcher George Barna, whose new book on the transitioning nature of America’s spirituality, entitled Revolution, describes what he believes will be the most massive reshaping of the nation’s faith community in more than a century. Growth of A New Church Relying upon national research conducted over the past several years, Barna profiles a group of more than 20 million adults throughout the nation labeled “revolutionaries.” He noted that although measures of traditional church participation...

The Barna Group, one of the pre-eminent polling firms--particularly on religious matters--has now released a new survey on The Books and Authors That Have Most Influenced Pastors. This is of great interest to me because of the authors mentioned as well as the types of books that were cited. I can't say I am surprised that The Purpose-Driven Life was cited by so many pastors, as it has been perhaps the top-selling religious book of the past year. But I am saddened by this:When the books designated as the most helpful were categorized, there were three types of books that...

Radio evangelist Chuck Baldwin, WorldNetDaily, and Whistleblower magazine have recently revisited findings by Christian opinion researcher George Barna that only 9% of born-again Christians have a Biblical perspective on life. “The problem with America’s Christianity today is that, for the most part, it doesn’t exist!” Baldwin said, in a June 1 broadcast. We should revisit these figures too. They first appeared in a Barna Update December 1, 2003: “A Biblical Worldview Has a Radical Effect on a Person’s Life.”[1] Barna defined a Biblical worldview as belief in eight propositions: Absolute moral truths exist. The Bible defines moral truth. Jesus Christ...

A new Barna survey is shedding some light on why some Christian children are losing their faith in modern-day America – it's the parenting, stupid. Conducted by the California-based research organization in November, the poll asked over 1,000 American adults (comprised of 707 parents, including 366 self-identified born-again Christians) various questions relating to parenting and how best to raise the next generation. Tragically, the survey highlighted one disturbing fact: When it comes to parenting, there is little difference between Christians and unbelievers. George Barna, who spearheaded the research project, didn't mince words in his rundown of the poll's results: "You...