Bibby assesses status quo of evangelicals in Canada
LETHBRIDGE, AB—The results of a 2005 survey conducted by social science pollster Reginald Bibby suggests that church leaders looking to bring people into their church should concentrate more on family ministry in their communities rather than events and programs.
"The key is not in major crusades. Evangelicals are always looking for the magic solution– what's the flavour of the month," says Bibby, professor of sociology at the University of Lethbridge. "Family ministry should be front and centre. The moment parents find something is touching their family and their teenagers, they'll want to be involved. Leaders need to listen to people and try to respond."
Bibby, who was recently awarded the Order of Canada, has had his finger on the pulse of Canadian religious attitudes and habits since 1975. His 2005 findings have been published in The Boomer Factor: What Canada's Most Famous Generation is Leaving Behind released late last month.
After a cross-Canada mailout and number crunching, Bibby says that as a group the population of evangelicals has remained constant at eight per cent of Protestant Canadians.
"I'd say the Golden Age of evangelicals is right now."
Bibby reports that 65 per cent of Canadians who said they attend church less than once a month also admit they are open to more involvement.
"The bridge to those people is ministry to family. Nothing is more important than family life to this group—it's a logical connection of the dots," says Bibby, who cites the effective children's ministry at Ellerslie Road Baptist Church in Edmonton, which he refers to as his "home" church despite the four and a half hour drive from his home in Lethbridge.
"I have Edmonton Eskimo seasons tickets, which forces us to go to Edmonton," he says with a laugh.
He says that religious groups are able to be more public with their opinions now, and if other people squawk, they can justify themselves by saying "they're just another tile in the [Canadian] mosaic."
Other findings include the fact that our conception of God is more positive and that fire and brimstone is out. However, evil is "in," angels are "in," and there is an incredibly high level of prayer in all faith groups.
One of the most shocking Bibby bits was that 31 per cent of respondents said that would feel uneasy in the presence of a born again Christian, while a mere 18 per cent said they'd feel that way if it was a Muslim. However, Bibby qualifies the wording.
"Born again" seems to be associated with Americans—it's a stereotype. Canadians don't think of evangelicals as "born again," he says.
After mapping Canadian attitudes for 30 years, Bibby says he's not sure if there'll be a 2010 survey. But he hates to let it go because of the lack of religious data in our country.
"There's a real clamour for it—a real void. It helps us understand what's going on in our country. We continue to have a large number of groups that don't have an appreciation for the context under which they're operating. We have a U.S. context without a clear understanding of Canadian culture," Bibby continues, using Bill Hybels of the Willowcreek Association outside of Chicago as an example.
"There's an assumption that if it works in the U.S. it should work in Canada."
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