Posts Tagged ‘spirituality’
Aug 11 2013  |
Eat, pray, read the Bible. Congregations with high levels of spiritual vitality and that placed a lot of emphasis on spiritual practices such as prayer and scripture reading were more likely to have significant numbers of young adults, according to a new report analyzing data from the 2010 Faith Communities Today study. The report provides insights into the distinctive characteristics of religious communities where 21 percent or more of participants were ages 18 to 34.
[Read Full Column...]Feb 18 2013 |
How tough have times become for religious leaders? Benedict XVI became the first pope to resign in six centuries, declaring both strength of mind and body are necessary to oversee the church “in today’s world, subject to so many rapid changes and shaken by questions of deep relevance for the life of faith.” Yet there are also more hopeful trends about the health and mission of houses of worship. The latest wave of the U.S. Congregational Life Survey, now available for download and exploration on the Association of Religion Data Archives, shares elements of growth and ongoing strengths in congregations.
[Read Full Column...]Oct 27 2012 |
Even as more people appear to be turning away from organized religion, a new study finds that the number of Americans who definitely believe in religious miracles increased 22 percent in the past two decades, The increased belief in miracles crosses all religious traditions, with the strongest gains reported by those who attend services infrequently.
[Read Full Column...]Oct 4 2011 |
The optimists’ perspective of the coming retirement crunch facing U.S. churches is that many older clergy will have the income to leave full-time positions, but the health and sense of vocation to serve smaller rural and urban churches unable to afford full-time clergy. The pessimists’ perspective is that many spiritual leaders, financially ill-prepared for retirement, will stay on in pastorates as long as they can, exacerbating the clergy age gap and impeding efforts for denominational revitalization. There is evidence to support both viewpoints. What is not in dispute, however, is that the time to address the issue is now.
[Read Full Column...]Dec 2 2009 |
Many Americans pamper and spoil their pets. Even worse, some would argue, the attention amounts to an unethical distribution of resources in a world where many human beings lack the basic necessities. A closer look at the evolving relationship between people and their pets, however, also shows a growing value placed on other living creatures, and an increasing theological and environmental awareness of our responsibility to care for all of those in need.
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