Why Do Afro-Americans Have More Soul? (salvation, disciples, churches, atheist)

[sun]

I recall seeing the results of a poll that showed that a greater percentage of Afro-Americans believe in God and are also more likely to belong to a church than caucasian Americans.
IIRC, it was somewhere around 80% and was the highest of any racial group.
Any thoughts as to why that is?

[Jazzedforhim]

I think that of believers black folk seem to have a deeper faith that they are not ashamed of and very willing to share!

[Padgett2]

I going to sound a bit snobbish about this....please over look that and try to see what I am saying.

Was the poll taken in a representative group of Blacks? could it be that there was a higher percentage of lesser educated people interviewed? I think that there have been studies (I may be wrong) that the college educated are less inclined to be church-oriented than those with only high school or less educated.

They are also only a few generations removed from those to whom salvation and eternal life was their only thing to look forward to. Their lives were hard, very hard. Church is more apt to be a family tradition in such communities.

[MaimounaKande]

"Afro-American"? Was this post written in 1972?

[urbanlemur]

Black americans are more vocal and are not afraid to show their emotions when it comes to spiritual matters. They are deeply devoted to their faith as I see this in my own church.

[jeffncandace]

Originally Posted by MaimounaKande

"Afro-American"? Was this post written in 1972?

LMAO! The intentions are good, I think.

Why do white people do certain things? Or any other race? Because we are all fearfully and wonderfully made to be different, by our Creator.

[sun]

Here's 2 interesting poll results:

white black Hispanic Asian
Read the Bible in the last week 36% 59% 39% 20%
Attended religious service in past week 41% 48% 38% 23%
Prayed to God in the past week 81% 91% 86% 46%
Participated in a small group, past week 16% 31% 27% 13%
Bible is totally accurate (strongly agree) 36% 57% 40% 24%
Satan is not a living being (strongly disagree) 30% 27% 30% 14%
Jesus Christ sinned while on earth (strongly disagree) 37% 49% 35% 22%
Born again Christian 41% 47% 29% 12%
Atheist or agnostic 12% 5% 7% 20%
Aligned with a non-christian faith 11% 12% 10% 45%
Subgroup size 1695 330 360 94
Based on nationwide surveys among more than 2600 adults, the study concludes that the African-American population is the segment with the most traditional Christian beliefs and practices, and that Asians are generally the least in-tune with Christian perspectives....

The Barna survey examined eight elements of religious behavior and discovered that blacks were at the high end of religious activity for half of those activities (reading the Bible, praying to God, giving money to churches and watching Christian television). Blacks were also notably less likely than others to be unchurched....

A dozen belief-oriented measures were studied in the research. Once again, black adults emerged as the segment most likely to parallel Christian or biblical teachings. The African-American segment is the most likely to contend that the Bible is accurate in its teachings, that religious faith is very important in their life, that they have a personal responsibility to evangelize, that Jesus Christ lived a holy life, that divorce except in cases of adultery is sin, and to possess an orthodox biblical view of God.

Interestingly, while blacks are the most likely to be born again (47%, compared to 41% among whites, 29% among Hispanics and just 12% among Asians), they are only half as likely as whites to be evangelical (9% versus 4%, respectively)....

Not surprisingly, blacks were the group most likely to say they are "deeply spiritual" and absolutely committed to their faith....

Upon examining the findings, researcher George Barna noted that these outcomes are consistent with a multi-year research project he recently completed on the interaction between black churches and the lives of black people. "Upon dissecting the role of faith in the lives of black Americans, we discovered that their faith in Christ has empowered millions of blacks to overcome challenges that might otherwise have been debilitating. The local church has been a major source of strength and directive leadership for the black community." Barna noted that black churches have helped blacks to focus on different values and priorities than those promoted by popular culture. "As a result, millions of blacks have found the inner strength to withstand hardships. Our study identified significant links between black people’s ability to remain spiritually and emotionally strong despite cultural challenges and the kinds of leadership, discipleship development, and extended community provided by effective churches."....

"What distinguishes blacks in this nation from other racial groups is their more overt need for - and openness to - Jesus in the midst of a culture that until recently has been comparatively unsympathetic to their needs. As the nation’s culture becomes more challenging for people of faith, and as the economic and demographic balance of the nation shifts, the lessons and victories won by black churches will likely serve as a beacon for all ministries in a time of increasing spiritual confusion and searching." ....


Direct link to this poll:

Welcome to The Barna Group! (http://www.barna.org/FlexPage.aspx?Page=BarnaUpdate&BarnaUpdateID=169 - broken link)

One of the most remarkable findings of the research is the significance of faith in the lives of black Americans. Reliance on the principles of their Christian faith, more than anything else, explains how this segment has been able to maintain a positive outlook on life in the midst of challenging experiences.

For instance, when asked to identify their goals in life, the top-rated goal - listed as "very desirable" by 94% - was to have a close, personal relationship with God. That goal surpassed even such tangible, culturally acceptable desires as having good health and living comfortably.

The depth of faith among blacks was further demonstrated by the conviction, held by 92%, that in times of crisis they are "absolutely certain" that they can count on God to answer their prayers. A similar percentage of black adults also say that their faith is a source of emotional strength.

A majority of African-American adults even go so far as to maintain that the only reason to live is to know, love and serve God. That is a much higher proportion than is found among either whites or Hispanics. Black adults are also substantially more likely than any other ethnic group to believe that the Bible is totally accurate in all that it teaches.

Further, half of all black adults directly attribute their ability to handle prejudice and to endure the injustice that they encounter to their focus on their anticipated life after death, based on their faith in Christ.

There were numerous indicators of the centrality of the Christian church in the lives of black adults. Among the most telling findings was the fact that two-thirds of all African-American adults listed pastors as the most important leaders and primary spokespeople for the black community. Among the black pastors interviewed, the most commonly listed church priority was helping people in crisis. Another dominant role of the church was to bring black people together and connect them around a common purpose.

The profile of blacks' attitudes and their faith commitment stands in stark contrast to the profile of the Caucasian population of the U.S. "Placing the profile of whites and blacks side by side is like looking at people from different sides of the planet," commented George Barna, the president of the organization that conducted the research. "While whites tend to be self-reliant, blacks are more likely to rely on God. Whites persevere on the basis of their drive to achieve; blacks, on the basis of their faith. Whites turn to business leaders and government officials to represent them in the world; blacks support their religious leaders. These two groups have very divergent strategies for interpreting and dealing with virtually every aspect of life."




These findings are based on a report about blacks entitled "African-Americans and Their Faith," written by George Barna. The report is based upon a series of surveys conducted with African-American adults, African-American teenagers and the pastors of black churches. In total, the report includes data from interviews with more than 1100 black adults, approximately 400 black teenagers and 400 pastors of black Christian churches across the nation. All of the interviews were based on random sampling techniques and were conducted via telephone.

Direct link to this poll:

Welcome to The Barna Group! (http://www.barna.org/FlexPage.aspx?Page=BarnaUpdate&BarnaUpdateID=42 - broken link)

[magellan]

Originally Posted by sun

Here's one interesting poll result:

white black Hispanic Asian
Read the Bible in the last week 36% 59% 39% 20%
Attended religious service in past week 41% 48% 38% 23%
Prayed to God in the past week 81% 91% 86% 46%
Participated in a small group, past week 16% 31% 27% 13%
Bible is totally accurate (strongly agree) 36% 57% 40% 24%
Satan is not a living being (strongly disagree) 30% 27% 30% 14%
Jesus Christ sinned while on earth (strongly disagree) 37% 49% 35% 22%
Born again Christian 41% 47% 29% 12%
Atheist or agnostic 12% 5% 7% 20%
Aligned with a non-christian faith 11% 12% 10% 45%
Subgroup size 1695 330 360 94






Direct link to poll:

Welcome to The Barna Group! (http://www.barna.org/FlexPage.aspx?Page=BarnaUpdate&BarnaUpdateID=169 - broken link)

That's interesting. More white people call themselves "born again" than believe the bible to be "totally accurate" (41 to 36%), and the ratio is opposite for African Americans (47 to 57%). Wow, more than 1/2 of African Americans believe that the Bible is totally accurate.

[MontanaGuy]

One of my best friends is a black woman who's talked alot about their church services to me. They seem to be much more emotional and often use their own style of music from old time gospel music to upbeat soul and r&b. There are some great musicians and singers in many black churches and they express their beliefs in a beautiful way. My friend also happens to be the daughter of a famous blues musician, James Cotton.

[Jason_Els]

You kidding? Gospel services are fun! They focus on redemption, on the promise of the joy in God. They sing about the happiness in life. Gospel services are a big plate of gratitude handed to God for the feast he has given the spirit. People leave these services elated and full of spirit and when they sing hymns, they SING hymns! The people who attend these services have no doubt about their place with God. Such firm faith after a history of oppression amazes me but there it is. Perhaps we only truly appreciate God when we're nearer to losing everything else.