A new study from the Pew Research Center examines the reasons Christians select some congregations to attend over others and found that good preaching and a welcoming atmosphere were the two most frequently cited reasons.
Overall, 83 per cent of Americans said they sought good preaching in choosing a church to attend and 79 per cent said they sought a welcoming atmosphere. Conversely only 42 per cent cited volunteer opportunities as an important consideration, and 48 per cent wanted a congregation where friends and family attended. In the middle, 70 per cent cited the location of the church and 65 per cent said they wanted programmes for their children.
There were some differences between Catholics and Protestants in the survey. Catholics are far less likely to be searching for a new congregation in the first place: Only 41 per cent of Catholics said they had looked for a new congregation compared to 62 per cent of Protestants. 67 per cent of Catholic said preaching was important to their choice, compared to 92 per cent for Protestants. As well, although 63 per cent of Protestants selected a church in a different denomination, only 50 per cent of Catholics did, which analysts believe is linked to unique Catholic devotion to the Eucharist.
“Everything about a physical Catholic church - the look, the smell, the (lack of) sounds - is geared toward fostering an attitude of wonder, respect, and deference for the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist,” says Fordham Theology Professor Charles Camosy about the survey. “Simply by entering a Church and watching others around them, Catholics are taught this from a very young age and it becomes a part of who we are.
"It just isn't easy to give it up. One might not like the preaching or music. One might not like the Bishop or Pope. One might not like Church teaching on controversial issues. But, for many Catholics, giving up on the Eucharist just isn't an option.”
The principal concern for Catholics in seeking a new church was location, with 75 per cent listing that above other concerns. This finding dovetails with an earlier study by the Center for Advanced Research in the Apostolate (CARA) which found that in fast growing cities like Dallas, Atlanta and Phoenix, in which residential suburbs are spread out across a vast area, a lack of parking was the most frequently cited reason people gave for not attending church.
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