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SecularMotion

(7,981 posts)
Mon Jul 29, 2013, 07:26 AM Jul 2013

Is the Presbyterian Church (USA) going to collapse?

The Presbyterian Church (USA) recently released the findings of its "Religious and Demographic Profile of Presbyterians 2011" (the report). More than 6,000 clergy and members of the PC (USA) were asked to participate in the study for a three-year period. The goal was to sketch a broad landscape of the denomination in demographic and theological terms. The report is available here in its entirety. In many respects the report is grim reading. In fact, it points to the coming collapse of the PC (USA)demographic and theological realities will force the denomination to accept a new, diminished future.

The report reveals, perhaps unsurprisingly, that the PC (USA) is old and white. 94% of the randomly selected members reported their race as "white or Caucasian," as did the randomly selected Ruling Elders. Of clergy, 91% of pastors and 89% of specialized ministers (chaplains, professors, etc) reported their race as white. For all categories of respondent, more than 90% were born U.S. citizens. The study notes, most alarmingly, that the racial-ethnic makeup of the denomination has remained virtually unchanged in the last forty years. This discontinuity makes the future of the denomination untenable since it has not reached either immigrant communities or people of color in any meaningful way. While there are flickers of light in the 1001 New Worshipping Communities initiative, it seems to be rather too late for this to significantly offset coming losses.

The denomination also continues to age. The median age of members rose from 60 to 63 between 2008 and 2011. That means that if you were to list the ages of each of the member respondents, half of them would be older than 63 and half younger. The number is similar for ruling elders. The report also indicates that almost 50% of church members are not employed, while only 7% of members report being "full-time homemakers." Could it be that almost half of our church members are retired? Perhaps the PC (USA) should be called the AARP at prayer?

http://www.virtueonline.org/portal/modules/news/article.php?storyid=17839
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dipsydoodle

(42,239 posts)
1. I always associate the Presbyterian Church here in the UK with Scotland.
Mon Jul 29, 2013, 07:31 AM
Jul 2013

Is there the same connection in the US ?

Historic NY

(37,449 posts)
3. I got a church here For Sale....
Mon Jul 29, 2013, 08:35 AM
Jul 2013

after 250 yrs it shuttered its doors. Its an 1880's replacement rather nice, very quiet respectable neighbors. The congregation dwindled off and they sent in a minister to shut the place down. As the article says there wasn't enough people to keep the lights on. All old, I was told one old lady, told the minister she gave them a dollar a week for more than 50yrs.

Nice church if anyone's interested - new roof.

 

kestrel91316

(51,666 posts)
4. The Presbyterian church might attract more young people
Mon Jul 29, 2013, 10:58 AM
Jul 2013

if they were a little less conservative when it comes to gays.

I was raised Presbyterian but I don't attend.

ButterflyBlood

(12,644 posts)
7. PCUSA is pretty liberal on gays
Mon Jul 29, 2013, 01:51 PM
Jul 2013

You might've been from a more conservative Presybterian denom like Presbyterian Church in America. But the PCUSA has made great strides on this.

hunter

(38,264 posts)
5. They seem to be a lively and viable church in our majority Catholic community.
Mon Jul 29, 2013, 11:50 AM
Jul 2013

The Presbyterian Church is near the downtown high school, with many after school programs, and has a modern media savvy face.

It also looks like they have a large population of divorced former Catholics. I'll speculate that our unusually liberal and cosmopolitan Catholic community is sometimes a depressing place for divorced people. Frankly, unmarried and (sometimes unsuccessfully...) celibate Catholic clergy are frequently clueless about issues of marriage and divorce.

Reading the article in the original post it seems less like the church has had trouble attracting immigrants and "people of color" and more likely they stayed put in their buildings as the younger community left town for greener pastures.

cbayer

(146,218 posts)
6. This writer and this site appear to be very much against GLBT equality.
Mon Jul 29, 2013, 01:05 PM
Jul 2013

I guess the organization represents anglicans in the UK? It's really hard to say.

Anyway, while he shows that the presbyterians in this survey are old and not at all diverse, he appears to try and make the case that this denomination is failing because of the progress in the area of GLBT civil rights.

I find the whole thing really confusing and wouldn't trust much of anything from this site anyway.

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