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'Identifying evangelicals and then developing an understanding of the mind and heart of the group is not a simple task. There is little uniformity to the belief patterns and lifestyle choices of evangelicals. The entire faith matrix of America is frighteningly complex'
In today's "depraved" America there are "corrupt politicians, dishonest journalists and media outlets, broken social institutions, immoral religious leaders, unconstitutional government programs and policies," and more, according to a new report on the nation's beliefs.
"The depth of the depravity is shocking," explains the American Worldview Inventory No. 4 from the Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University.
"The deterioration of this once-great nation begs the fundamental question: How did we get here? What happened to so quickly introduce new philosophies of life and ways of living that radically depart from the historical Judeo-Christian moorings and consensus of America?" it notes.
And, according to veteran researcher George Barna, "The indisputable cultural decline is a direct result of the spiritual collapse of Christianity in the nation."
He's chief of research at the CRC, and his conclusions align with the oft-cited sermon illustration that when darkness is overtaking a society, the darkness is not to blame; it's only acting in its nature. The problem is with the absence of light.
The center's report said research now shows that "much of this steep cultural decline flows from the dramatic transformation in the evangelical community of the United States in the past 30 years.
In reality, evangelicals are far fewer in number than typically reported, often are far less biblical in their thinking than one might think, and tend to vote in far fewer numbers than expected."
In fact, evangelicals choose lifestyles that are largely similar to that of their neighbors, who are not.
"Surprisingly, most evangelicals do not possess a biblical worldview—only about one-third do.
In fact, the data strongly suggests that evangelicals are more likely to be shaped by the culture around them than they are to influence or 'evangelize' it," the report confirms.
Defined by the National Association of Evangelicals, such people are those "who recognize their sinful life, rely upon Jesus Christ for their redemption, and receive practical life guidance and wisdom from the Bible in their quest to live under the lordship of Jesus."
While media reports claim that anywhere from 25% to 40% of American adults are evangelicals, the CRC report said those figures are suspect, because they are based on self-reporting.
The report said the American Worldview Inventory 2024 suggests only 10% of adults qualify as evangelicals, using survey data consistent with the NAE description of evangelicals.
Members of that group actually are making lifestyle choices that are "significantly different than those of the non-evangelical population," as only 3% identify as LGBTQ, they are less likely to be recovering addicts, they are much less likely to have been part of an abortion, and more likely to be located in southern states.
Nine of 10 believe "God is the all-knowing, all-powerful, just, and perfect Creator of the universe who still rules the world today;
God is the basis of all truth, and those truths are conveyed to us through the Bible;
the purpose of life is to fully know, love, and serve God with all your heart and soul, mind and strength;
the universe was created by God; Jesus Christ is an important guide for their life; that Satan exists—he is real and influential;
all humans are born into sin and can only escape the consequences of sin through Jesus Christ," the report said.
But the report explained some differences:
A large share of the theologically-defined evangelical segment rejects a number of perspectives popular within other worldviews. One example is the view held by Secular Humanists, Wiccans, and Satanists, among others, that "as long as you do no harm to others, you can do whatever you want." While half of non-evangelicals have adopted such thinking, it is common to just one out of five evangelicals. In like manner, three-fourths of evangelicals dismiss the popular idea that animals, plants, water, and the wind all have a unique spirit.
That notion is embraced by almost six out of 10 adults who attend an evangelical church. Seven out of 10 adults who are not theologically-defined evangelicals—a group that is a full 90% of the nation's adult population—adopts this view. Beliefs about absolute moral truth are pivotal for any society. While evangelicals are far from monolithic on this point—and the disagreement on this matter within the evangelical camp is a matter of grave concern—about seven out of 10 evangelicals reject the idea that truth is subjective and individual.
However, almost half of the adults attending evangelical churches (44%) believe that there is no absolute moral truth that is pertinent to everyone in all situations. It is even more dire among the non-evangelical public: Just one out of every four people (24%) in that vast population reject the idea that moral truth is always subjective and conditional.
The report noted the troubling contradiction involves the part of the Christian community that embraces core biblical teachings but still fails to have a Christ-like philosophy.
"Part of the explanation lies in the fact that a biblical worldview demands a coherent spiritual perspective that results in a lifestyle robustly aligned with those beliefs.
It is one thing to say you believe the Bible is God's word, and that it is true and relevant, but something else altogether to possess a comprehensive understanding of what the Bible says and consistently put those beliefs into practice."
It explained, "The study instead reveals that while evangelicals often get the 'big picture' of Christianity, they struggle to apply core principles to everyday situations, and are too often victims of catchy slogans and feel-good behaviors promoted by a culture propelled by competing worldviews."
But the failings are evident, it said, as "millions of evangelicals, do not vote (a practice of every good citizen and those seeking to serve their community); believe the animist and Eastern mystical perspective that that animals, plants, the wind, and water have unique spirits; do not pay much, if any, attention to news about politics and government that affects our lives; and who read the Bible on occasion, but not on a daily basis, even though the Bible encourages us to immerse ourselves in God's words to us."
It further warned about the responsibility held by Christians.
"Contrary to the media's depiction of the politics represented by people in evangelical churches, just one-third are very likely to vote in the 2024 general election, only half are consistently conservative in their socio-political views, and one out of every five prefers socialism to capitalism. "
Interesting in the study were the SAGE Cons—the Spiritually Active, Governance Engaged Conservative Christians.
"That segment represents 8% of all voters, but emerged as the biggest concentration of Trump voters in both the 2016 and 2020 elections.
Nearly half of evangelicals (44%) qualify as SAGE Cons. Put differently, most SAGE Cons (55%) are theologically-defined evangelicals.
The conservative political impulse of evangelicals was evident in the January study, when the Cultural Research Center asked which presidential candidate people would vote for.
Nationally, Donald Trump led Joe Biden 36% to 31%, with 11% opting for Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
The picture was significantly different among evangelicals: 61% were backing Trump, 8% sided with Biden, and 10% backed Kennedy."
Barna said, "Identifying evangelicals and then developing an understanding of the mind and heart of the group is not a simple task.
There is little uniformity to the belief patterns and lifestyle choices of evangelicals.
The entire faith matrix of America is frighteningly complex.
Other studies I have conducted underscore how unique each person's faith journey is, and that journey both shapes and is shaped by a person's belief structure and religious practices."
He noted journalists, the more influential ones, "do not have positive views of the Christian faith and Christians.
They are therefore comfortable seeing evangelicals as a group to be feared, a group that seeks theocratic rule in America, and thus a group to be thwarted by all means for the sake of democracy."
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