Disheartening new research shows that political beliefs are increasingly determining whether someone goes to church. While politics is keeping Republicans in the pews, it’s driving Democrats away. To bring them back, Republicans and pastors have to step up.
In an op-ed last week in the New York Times, University of Pennsylvania Assistant Professor Michele Margolis details the bleak picture. Most people determine their political affiliation before their religious community, and politics becomes an important factor in whether or not they go to church. While we typically assume the already-religious are drawn to the GOP, polling data that tracked people over decades found that members of the two parties started out equally religious, but Democrats left the church.
“In other words,” she writes, “those who were already Republican sought out kindred political spirits at church, while Democrats opted to spend their Sundays elsewhere.” For example, Democrats started attending church dramatically less often “between 2002 and 2004 — precisely the years when abortion and gay marriage rose to the top of the domestic political agenda.”
Politics aside, it’s important for society that as many people as possible go to church. Of course, the more members of God’s kingdom, the merrier. But for society, among other benefits, studies show people who regularly attend religious services are more likely to give their money and time to charity (including secular causes). Getting Democrats back in church is something that Republicans, Democrats, and pastors can all work on.
First, pastors should be less political, so that people of all politics feel welcome in their pews. That doesn’t mean they should never be political, but going out of the way to be political is a mistake. Every political comment, no matter how minor, can be the one that makes someone squirm and question how welcome they feel in a church. If a gratuitous political comment keeps them from returning, that comment might be the difference between a one-time guest or a long-term church member who develops a devoted relationship with Christ.
In the interest of free speech, Republicans are wise to call for an end to the Johnson Amendment, which keeps churches from endorsing political candidates. But even if it gets repealed, in the interest of getting more people in pews, pastors should choose their words carefully when talking politics.
Second, Republicans should be more careful with how they use religion. Invoking religion to make moral arguments is wise. Exploiting it for political points is unwise. What I’d advise against is a speaker at the Republican National Convention saying “Trump is sent from God,” even if Paul the Apostle wrote in Romans 13:1 that “those in positions of authority have been placed there by God.” Attorney General Jeff Sessions used that same chapter to defend separating illegal border-crossers from children, but didn’t adequately explain the justification. An explanation was especially necessary since Jesus occasionally broke religious and government rules to fulfill God’s will.
If you’re going to use the Bible to justify political actions, your explanation needs to be deeper than “because the Bible says so!” It should be “The Bible says so, and it’s right because…”
Third, Democratic politicians should invoke religion into their policy arguments more often (and I don’t mean questioning whether religion will get in the way of progressive goals). I say that as someone who’s unlikely to agree with their interpretations or policy prescriptions. But if using religion justifiably means their supporters become more comfortable in church, ask forgiveness for their sins, and grow closer to God and their church community, then having more diverse religious viewpoints in policy arguments is worth it.
Hopefully church attendance will soon be less connected to politics. As Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 12:12-13, “The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body. So it is with the body of Christ. Some of us are Jews, some are Gentiles, some are slaves, and some are free. But we have all been baptized into one body by one Spirit, and we all share the same Spirit.”
Were Paul writing in 2018 in the United States, he might write: “Some of us are Democrats, some are Republicans, some are Black, some are white. But we have all been baptized into one body by one Spirit, and we all share the same Spirit.”
So don’t let your politics keep you from church. And may the Democrats, Republicans, and pastors who can get you to church be blessed in their efforts to do so.
