Church "Shopping" Becoming More Popular In The U.S.

In this story I am going to share with you, it seems we are reaping what we have sown in our country. In our individualistic and consumer driven culture in the United States, we are now seeing young people who have no problem going around and “shopping” for their spirituality. No longer are people loyal to denominations or even doctrines but now are treating church attendance the same way they would treat buying a new car, new clothes, or even groceries. In a story I found at PostBulletin.com it talks about how people are attending more than one church depending on their mood of the day. Here are some excerpts from the story.

Church shopping becoming the norm.

ST. PAUL, Minn.  — Sarah Koscielniak of St. Paul might worship in an Ethiopian church one Sunday morning and a Lutheran church the next. Then, she might decide to visit a church that’s affiliated with the Christian and Missionary Alliance denomination. The 22-year-old is part of a growing national trend — she’s a “church hopper,” people who sample a variety of worship styles. They could attend one church because they like the preaching or the style of music, and move on to another one for Bible study and youth programs.

“I didn’t want to necessarily tie myself to one specific denomination and church,” said Koscielniak, who attends all three churches. “They’re (denominations) important and distinctive, but in this time and age, it’s less so, especially for young people who didn’t grow up thinking their denomination was the absolutely correct one.”

So-called church hoppers typically worship at multiple Christian congregations, often of different denominations, according to a Minneapolis Star Tribune report. It’s a trend that worries some pastors, who say church hoppers miss out on a vital sense of community.

Over the past few years, Dan Frankot has attended three different metro churches. When he’s looking for a “contemplative” and “Quakerish” type of worship experience, he attends Missio Dei in Minneapolis, which is linked to the Mennonite faith. He also goes to Woodland Hills church in St. Paul, because he enjoys the “charismatic” services. And when he’s in the mood for “laid back” services, he goes to Solomon’s Porch, an emergent Christian church in Minneapolis where congregants sit on sofas around coffee tables.

Frankot said he wouldn’t feel nearly as fulfilled if he limited himself to a single congregation every Sunday.

Christians have traditionally worshipped at the same church week to week, but churchgoers are beginning to show less loyalty in their quest to meet their spiritual needs, said Scott Thumma, a researcher at the Hartford Institute for Religious Research in Hartford, Conn. ”I think that whole consumer and individualistic impulse in our society has also lapsed over into our religious life,” he said. “Denominational identities still exist and people still think of the differences. But in fact … that is breaking down, the power of that identity to shape the person.”

Evangelical Christians tend to be particularly active church hoppers, Thumma said, but mainline Protestants and Catholics do so, too. Religious scholars also note that church hoppers are less likely to volunteer or donate time or money.

source: http://www.postbulletin.com/news/stories/display.php?id=1502574

So what is so bad about church shopping?

I call it church shopping rather than church hopping because it truly reveals the mindset of the people engaging in this practice. It is a self centered practice. It has nothing to do with participating, growing relationships, or being a part of a called out group of believers. The word church in the Bible is the Greek word ecclesia which means a group of people called out by God to gather together as a body to worship together. You cannot be part of a body if you are absent all the time trying to fit into 3 or 4 different bodies depending on your mood or your perceived needs at the time.

When a person approaches church as just a place to get their needs met, without understanding that they are there to give just as much as to receive, then their spiritual growth is stunted. Individualism and consumerism is not a healthy ingredient in spiritual growth. This is an issue that we need to address as the body of Christ. The question of why Christians have to take on other characteristics and cultural norms different from the culture we live in has to be taught. We truly are reaping what we are sowing.

Are you a church shopper? Are you connected to a local body of believers and committed to them regardless if they have a smorgasbord of spiritual offerings to give you? Is it time for you to hear Jesus say where your spiritual home is? Leave me a comment below!

Blessings!

Pastor Duke