(From a survey conducted by the Barna Research Group, and article written by Tim Ellsworth in 2002. If you understand the implications of the survey, you can understand how US Christianity has spiraled down to where it is today.)
Only 41 percent of adults in Americas twelve largest denominations could be classified as “born again,” according to a recent study released by the Barna Research Group.
As reported by the Florida Baptist Witness, the study’s findings identify an alarmingly high number of church members whose beliefs fall far short of orthodox Christianity. For example, only 41 percent of all adults surveyed believed in the total accuracy of the Bible. Catholics had the lowest percentage (23 percent) who believed the Bible to be accurate, while 81 percent of those attending Pentecostal churches held to the same belief. Only 40 percent of those surveyed believed Christ was sinless, while 27 percent believed Satan to be real.
“The Christian body in America is immersed in a crisis of biblical illiteracy,” said George Barna, president of the California firm that conducted the research. “How else can you describe matters when most church-going adults reject the accuracy of the Bible, reject the existence of Satan, claim that Jesus sinned, see no need to evangelize, believe that good works are one of the keys to persuading God to forgive their sins, and describe their commitment to Christianity as moderate or even less firm?”
The two denominations with the highest number of members who hold to orthodox Christian beliefs were Pentecostals and Assemblies of God. Catholics and Episcopalians had the lowest percentage of members reporting a belief in traditional Christian teachings. Just 20 percent of Episcopalians and 17 percent of Catholics believed Satan was real; 33 percent of Catholics and Episcopalians believed Jesus was sinless; and 26 percent of Episcopalians and 9 percent of Catholics believed works don’t earn salvation.
The numbers were better for Baptists than for the whole sample, but not by much. Of the Baptists surveyed, 57 percent believed works play a part in salvation, and 45 percent believed Jesus was not sinless. Only 34 percent of Baptists thought Satan was a real being, while 51 percent believed Christians have the responsibility to witness to others. Sixty-six percent of Baptists considered the Bible to be totally accurate, 81 percent considered their religious faith to be important and 85 percent believed God is the all-powerful creator of the universe. (There was no breakdown within the Baptist family of denominations, because, as Barna explained, many did not know with which group their churches were affiliated.)
“The report is a striking indictment of the loss of doctrinal confidence and the erosion of biblical beliefs that marks American Christianity,” said R. Albert Mohler, Jr., president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
“The trends Barna traces have been progressing for several years,” Mohler said. “Americans have been negotiating away the core doctrines of the Christian faith––all the while claiming to remain Christians. But Christianity is defined by certain definite and non-negotiable doctrines. Without these, there is no Christianity at all––just the emptying sanctuaries of declining churches and denominations.”
Barna said the study was not intended to report the official teachings of any denomination. “The data reflect what the people within those churches believe,” he said. “If nothing else, this outcome highlights the substantial theological shift that has been altering the nature of the Episcopal Church, in particular, as well as other Christian churches, in recent years.”
The study determined that evangelicals are scarce. Barna defines “evangelicals” as believers who say their faith is very important in their lives, believe they have a responsibility to witness to non-Christians, acknowledge the existence of Satan, contend that eternal salvation is possible only through God’s grace and not good deeds, believe that Jesus Christ lived a sinless life on earth, and describe God as the all-knowing, all-powerful, perfect Deity who created the universe and still rules it today.
Those who fit in such a category include only 8 percent of adults.
Fourteen percent of Baptists qualified as evangelicals according to this standard, compared to 33 percent from Assemblies of God churches, 29 percent from nondenominational churches, and 27 percent from Pentecostal churches. Only 1 percent of Catholics and 1 percent of Episcopalians could be classified as evangelicals.
“The most disappointing finding of the report is the loss of doctrinal clarity among evangelicals,” Mohler told the Witness. “We have come to expect doctrinal compromise in the liberal denominations, but we now see the same process at work among those who call themselves evangelicals. The Barna report helpfully defines evangelicals by beliefs, not by denominational membership, etc. For too many evangelicals, all that remains is emotional fervor and religious participation––not the living faith founded upon the truth of the gospel.”
Phil Roberts, president of Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, said one solution to such biblical illiteracy lies in pastors’ diligence in preaching truth and in their willingness to go house to house, if necessary, to inquire about each person’s spiritual condition. “The church needs to take seriously its shepherding role,” he said.
“The Barna report is a warning of what is to come, if these trends are not reversed,” Mohler added. The study’s results came from telephone interviews with a nationwide random sample of 6,038 adults.