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The church for Men
How to create an innovative church ?
Why is the church losing the men ?
If you want your church to grow, men are more strategic. Studies have shown a clear statistical link between church growth and the enthusiastic participation of laymen. The more men a church has, the more likely it is to be growing. Meanwhile a surplus of female participants is associated with church decline.
“Are you saying that men are more important than women? No, more strategic! Men, women and children are all of equal value!
If you want to change society, men are more strategic. Men are much more likely to commit crimes, die violently, be addicted and go to jail. If we want to help men avoid these pathologies, the two best ways are: 1) get them married; and 2) get them into church, according to a study from the Heritage Foundation. Changed men change society.
If you want to change families, men are more strategic. One study found that when Dad was devout his children were more likely to remain lifelong churchgoers. Fathers have more influence on their children’s faith walk than mothers do, according to a survey from LifeWay Research. And when men begin following Jesus, many domestic problems begin to disappear.
Looking for a Resolution for your church? Try this one: Reach more men. You don’t have to create new programs. Just take what you’re already doing and make it man-friendly. Examine everything your church does through the eyes of an irreligious man, and ask the question, “Would this draw him closer to Christ, or would it repel him?” Then have the courage to make the needed adjustments. Most of your parishioners won’t notice the adjustments – but they will notice when the church begins growing.
More Church for men
Wild at heart – John Eldredge
Meer in het boek – De ongetemde man / More in the book Wild at Heart
In Nederland herkennen we de toepassing van deze principes bij de 4e musketier
Why men hate going to church
Less than 40 percent of adults in most churches are men, and 20 to 25 percent of… married churchgoing women attend without their husbands. And why are the men who do go to church so bored? This book reveals why men are the world’s largest unreached people group. It explains the problem and offers …
a critic
02 February 2012Hmm so I’m not so sure about this whole men business.
I’m a woman, and can’t help feeling (once again) overlooked by this.
For centuries, the church has been directed by men alone, and the church forms existing today (at least in traditional churches) are the outcome of almost pure male leadership and decision making. Isn’t it odd to say that exactly the kind of church that was created by men alone now isn’t good for men any more, because it somehow fails to attract them? And even odder to say that the remedy for this problem is to focus on men even more and to base church decisions on men’s opinions and needs? A bit ironic, in some ways…
As for the statistics, it all depends on what you make of them and how they were gathered.
Sure, a church congregation with a majority of women will more likely die out within, say, 30 years – because there is no procreation within the church. No men, no children. It’s that simple. So you shouldn’t conclude that “men are more strategic”. Instead, conclude that “an approximately equal amount of men and women are strategic.” Because they make babies.
Same for the family statistic. It all depends on how the study was made. One way in which “fathers have more influence on their children’s lives” is that there are way more single mums than dads. So the statistics are already looping to one side before any questions are even asked…
I also wonder in how far this whole “why don’t men go to church” business is tied up with our society’s stereotypes about masculinity and femininity. Girls and women are still told that they are (or at least should be) passive, listeners, carers. Men are told that they are (or should be) active, speakers and leaders. So sure, it’s harder for a man to admit that he’s sitting passively in a church pew, and following another man’s (!!!) commands, because that makes him look like a sissy. And no one wants to look like a sissy. For a woman, that’s just what society expects of her anyway…
So while I do agree that it’s important and wonderful to have an equal amount of both genders in church, I’m not sure calling for men as the more strategic “saviours of the day” is very effective.
In my view, complementarity between both genders is what gives any group the best outcomes. Don’t just focus on men alone – that’s the mistake the church has made for centuries!!! Let both genders work together, side by side, and make opportunities for church attendants in general to become more active…
Anyway, that’s my thoughts on this at the moment.
Randal
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