What NZ people believe, in both society and church
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| by Dr Stuart Lange, National Director, New Zealand Christian Network. In recent weeks, two important reports have come out. 1. The 2023 Faith and Belief study was commissioned by the Wilberforce Foundation and conducted by McCrindle, a social research organisation. It explored the attitudes of New Zealanders towards faith and spirituality, with an in-depth survey of 1009 people drawn from the population at large. Some interesting points we noted…81% of participants resonated with some form of spiritual belief (and of those, 37% believe there is an ultimate purpose and meaning in life, 35% believe there is one god, and 27% believe in the spiritual realm) Two top factors that attract people to explore spirituality include a personal trauma or major life change, or seeing at first-hand those who live out their faith authentically. 31% consider themselves Christian, another 26% are warm towards Christianity, and 13% are neutral. Only 30% are cool towards Christianity. Gen Z people (aged 18-28) are the least hopeful generation, and are also the most spiritually open among the younger generations. Over 90% have a positive view of Jesus, and know at least one Christian. Most people have a positive view of churches, especially their good worksAll of that suggests that many New Zealanders are more open to spirituality (and to Christian faith) than we may assume, and that loving, respectful sharing of Jesus by those Christians who live out their faith with authenticity can still be very effective. 2. The 2023 Church Life Survey was an internal survey across many Christian denominations, with 20,357 respondents. Some findings…Many New Zealand churches are ageing, with a median age over 70 for respondents in several denominations (compared to 44 median age in NZ for those 15+). But independent churches, evangelical churches, and most likely Pasifika and Asian churches, the median age is much lower Migration is helping rejuvenate some churches 95% of respondents believe the Bible is the Word of God 20% look for opportunities to share their faith, 55% are happy to talk about faith if it comes up, and 34% have invited family or friends to church in the last year When it came to what priorities respondents wanted for the church, good community within the church and fostering spiritual growth were among the most preferred the least preferred priorities were ministry to children and youth, care for the needy, and encouraging people to share their faith. The first of these bullet points, and the last, are particular cause for reflection. Are they connected? |
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Mā te Atua koutou e tiaki e manaaki i ngā wa katoa May the Lord bless and keep you at all times |