How have churches been affected by “the great dechurching?” How can we help people stay connected to the local church? And, just as important, how does the great dechurching affect immigrant and Asian American churches?

Michael Graham, co-author of the book The Great Dechurching, spoke to SOLA Council President Steve Chang and SOLA Editorial Board member Kevin Yi about the phenomenon of dechurching.

His findings on Asian Americans leaving the church were particularly alarming:

“Because Asian American dechurching is is worse than any other ethnicity. The dechuching that's going on there is twice the rate of, of those who are Hispanic and Latino. And I think 40 or 50% faster than those who are Anglo or African American.”

But Graham was also quick to point out that it was hard to draw further statistical conclusions about Asian Americans leaving the church, simply because there isn’t a lot of data about Asian American Christians.

Other topics they discuss include:

Declining religious affiliation among Asian Americans

Church attendance and pastoral care for congregants who are mobile and don’t stay in one church their whole lives

Assisting newcomers connect with the church

Parental influence on church attendance

Telling a better story

We hope that this conversation helps all Christians to think about how we can better study the Asian American church. We also hope it will encourage pastors to think about how to serve their congregations to prevent dechurching and help former members to return and find true community.

Video and article:

https://sola.network/article/asian-american-christians-and-the-great-dechurching-interview/

Links: