Most Americans Find Churches to Have Positive Influence

Most Americans believe the presence of a church is positive for their community, a new study reveals.

In fact, more than half (53 percent) say the church's presence is "very" positive and a quarter say it's "somewhat" positive, the Barna Group found. Only five percent hold an unfavorable view of the church's influence on the community, saying its presence is negative.

Though the younger cohort (those aged 18 to 27) along with atheists, the unchurched and liberals are least likely to hold a favorable view of the church, the new study found that still a majority in each group, except atheists and agnostics, believe the church has a generally positive influence on their communities.

"Churches are perceived to be an important element of a community, even among the unchurched," said David Kinnaman, president of the Barna Group, in the report released Wednesday. "This positive view is partly due to the fact that most unchurched adults are de-churched, or former churchgoers. So, although they may be wary of personal involvement, they have an understanding of the service and assistance that churches can provide to their communities."

He also observed that most Americans who have no religious affiliation or belief "are not overtly hostile to churches."

"Their response is better characterized as benign indifference."

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