Silence, sharing, sitting and singing.
Those are four reasons that men aren’t as likely as women to be found in church on the weekend.
Now, more than ever, there are large numbers of people who consider themselves to be followers of Christ but have given up on church. A lot of those people are men. The scriptures tell us not to give up meeting with other believers but for many, their belief in the God of the Bible doesn’t match up to their experience of church. What are they to do?
Sydney Anglicans published a great article about a month ago about the reasons that men don’t like going to church.
I particularly liked a quote in the article by church planter, Vince Williamson, who likens going to church to the awkward experience of going to a lingerie shop with your wife. “You sit looking for the other men, or enviously through the window to the powertool store across the road. But you can’t go there because you’re holding your wife’s purse!”
The article looks at a range of issues including ‘feminine’ church meeting styles, weak leadership, lack of risk, boredom and a lack of opportunity to get your hands dirty.
Obviously an article like that can only scratch the surface but the subject deserves a closer look. Most churches have a major gender imbalance with women making up 60% or more of the congregation.
My regular Wednesday morning guest on 98.5 Sonshine FM is Ross Clifford is the Principal of Morling College in New South Wales and current President of the Baptist Union of Australia. Each week we chat about a range of issues relating to spirituality and belief.
We looked at some of the issues of men and church this morning. Ross even drew a few lessons from a failed beer commercial. It was interesting to get his perspective on the problems churches face in attracting and engaging men. You can listen to our conversation now by clicking here.
What has your experience been? Are you part of a church that has been able to address the imbalance? Are you a guy who’s given up going to church?
I’d really appreciate your perspective. Please take the time to read through the article and listen to the MP3 of my discussion with Ross and then jot down your thoughts in the comments section below.
Posted by Rodney Olsen
Technorati Tags: Why Men Hate Church – Spirituality – Radio
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