"Changing Faiths"

I think it is interesting, especially in light of the sermon yesterday on why folks don't want to be a part of the church . . . b/c Christians are seen as judgmental, hypocritical, and insensitive to the needs of others . . . that this is the article I read this morning in my study time.

This article was spawned by the fact that Ann Rice, famous author, publically renounced her Christian faith. In Saturday's Charlotte Observer it read, "Ann Rice: 'I felt I had to step aside from Christianity'" and then in the article she expounded on why.

'In the name of Christ I refuse to be anti-gay. I refuse to be anti-feminist. I refuse to be anti-artificial birth control. I refuse to be anti-Democrat. I refuse to be anti-secular humanism. I refuse to be anti-science. I refuse to be anti-life.'

How sad that Christianity is seen as "anti" everything. Again, it is no wonder people do not want to be a part of a church.

It is the goal of the West Campus to refute that belief. We are not "anti" we are about love and grace, forgiveness and journeys! We are all in need of those things and we are each on a journey that will have great experiences and then times where we find ourselves searching for meaning and belonging.

Take a look at this excert from the Barna Group . . . it is definitely food for thought!

Why People Change Faiths
The survey also explored the top-of-mind reasons why people change faiths. The most common reasons for moving away from Christianity included life experiences, such as gaining new knowledge or education; feeling disillusioned with church and religion; feeling the church is hypocritical; having negative experiences in churches; being in disagreement with Christianity about specific issues such as homosexuality, abortion or birth control; feeling the church is too authoritarian; wanting to express their faith outside of church; and searching for a new faith or wanting to experience other religions.

Among those who were shifting toward Christianity, the most common motivations were going through difficult life events (such as divorce, a health crisis or death of a loved one); getting older and seeing life differently; wanting to connect with a church and grow spiritually; discovering Christ; or wanting to know what was in the Bible.

Age and Change
Most of the people who have made these changes did so as a teenager or young adult. The study discovered that the median age at the time they changed faiths or significantly altered their faith perspective was 22.

One-third of those who experienced a significant faith shift did so during their twenties and another one-third did so before age 20. In total, two-thirds of people who had a major faith change experienced that outcome before the age of 30 (68%). In fact, among respondents over 40, only 5% of them reported making a major shift in their religious affiliation after the age of 40.