For I know this,
that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you,
not sparing the flock.
Acts 20:29
"Pentecostal or charismatic Christianity is viewed by some Americans as an emotional, theologically suspect form of the Christian faith.It is widely thought to be a very vocal and visible, but numerically small slice of the grand religious pie in the United States. Two new surveys from The Barna Group, however, indicate that things
Growing Numbers of People
A decade ago, three out of ten adults claimed to be charismatic or Pentecostal Christians. Today, 36% of Americans accept that designation. That corresponds to approximately 80 million adults. (For the Barna survey, this included people who said they were a charismatic or Pentecostal Christian, that they had been "filled with the Holy Spirit" and who said they believe that "the charismatic gifts, such as tongues and healing, are still valid and active today.")
Charismatics are found throughout the fabric of American Christianity.
Although just 8% of the population is evangelical,
half of evangelical adults (49%) fit the charismatic definition.
A slight majority of all born again Christians (51%) is charismatic.
Nearly half of all adults who attend a Protestant church (46%) are charismatic.
Charismatic Churches
One out of every four Protestant churches in the United States (23%) is a charismatic congregation. While some of the most common charismatic denominations are well-known - such as the Assemblies of God, Foursquare or Churches of God in Christ - non-denominational churches emerged as one of the most common charismatic "denominations." Four out of every ten non-denominational churches are charismatic.
The profile of the typical charismatic congregation is nearly identical to that of evangelical, fundamentalist and mainline Protestant churches. Four out of five (80%) have a full-time, paid pastor in charge of the ministry. The senior pastor is, on average, 52 years old - the same as in other Protestant churches. And the weekly adult attendance is equivalent to that of other Protestant bodies (82 adults at Pentecostal gatherings compared to 85 adults among all Protestant churches).
Myths Exposed
The Barna study found that several widespread assumptions about charismatic churches are inaccurate.
- Many people believe that charismatic Christianity is almost exclusively a Protestant phenomenon. However, the research showed that one-third of all U.S. Catholics (36%) fit the charismatic classification. Framed differently, almost one-quarter of all charismatics in the U.S. (22%) are Catholic.
- Charismatic churches are generally thought to belong to a rather strictly defined group of denominations. The growth of Pentecostalism, however, has crossed denominational boundaries in recent years. For instance, 7% of Southern Baptist churches and 6% of mainline churches are charismatic, according to their Senior Pastors.
- One widespread view is that charismatic Christianity is found mostly in small, relatively unsophisticated congregations. The research suggests something different. Charismatic congregations are about the same size as those of non-charismatic Protestant churches. Most surprisingly, charismatic ministries are more likely than other Protestant churches to use five of the seven technological applications evaluated. Those included the use of large-screen projection systems, showing movie clips in worship services or congregational events, using blogs, and web-based social networking by the church.
- In the past, many have observed that the female pastors were more likely to be welcomed into the Pentecostal community. However, 9% of both charismatic and non-charismatic Protestant churches are currently led by a female Senior Pastor.