The LCMS: Not as Conservative as We Think We are

According to the section on Members of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod, 1% of Americans belong to the LCMS, about the same as for Episcopalians and Anglicans.  It also informs us that we are mostly Midwesterners (at 58%; 8% from the Northeast; 19% from the South; and 15% in the West) and that we tend to be old (47% over 65; 30%, 50-65; 17%, 30-49; 5%, 18-19).  But we knew that, the age demographic being of greatest concern.

The tab on “Beliefs and Practices” is a mixed bag.  Among us members of the LCMS, 96% believe in God (72% are “absolutely certain”; 24% do but are “not absolutely certain”), with 4% not believe in God at all.  A similar 95% believe in the soul, with 4% not believing and 1% not saying.

Then again, only 80% believe in Heaven, while 17% don’t, with 4% not answering.  While 75% believe in Hell, 20% don’t, and 5% not answering.

When it comes to the Bible, 84% believe it is “important” (63% “extremely important”; 21% “somewhat”), while 16% believe it is “not very.”

And yet while most LCMSers believe in the importance of the Bible, they don’t read it very much:  27% read it at least once a week; 10% read it once a month; 8% read it several times a year; and 55% seldom or never read it!

Among LCMS members, 32% say they are “very religious,” while 53% say they are “somewhat religious,”  with 15% saying they are “not too” or “not at all” religious.  So more than half of the members of this confessional church body are only “somewhat” religious.

At least they aren’t buying into the distinction between “spiritual” and “religious,” so that they can say they are “spiritual but not religious.”  The researchers’  two categories track each other for LCMS members almost exactly, with 36% saying they are “very spiritual,” 51% saying they are “somewhat spiritual,” and 12% saying they are “not too” or “not at all” spiritual.

Here is a category pastors should be aware of:  Researchers asked their LCMS respondents about their “frequency of feeling spiritual peace and well-being.”  Only 43% say they felt spiritual peace at least once a week; 20% said twice a month; 17% said several times a year; and 20% said they seldom or never have spiritual peace!  

The tab on “Social and Political Views” is also telling.  When it comes to politics, 53% of LCMS members are conservatives, 39% moderates, and 6% are liberal.  As for political parties, 66% are Republicans or lean that way; 30% are Democrats or lean that way, with only 3% not leaning one way or the other.  This shows greater political diversity than most categories of “evangelicals,” perhaps in line with Lutherans’ Two Kingdoms resolve not to mix church and politics.

But the “Social” views–that is, positions on today’s controversial moral issues–may be alarming.  According to its doctrinal positions, the LCMS is strongly, strongly pro-life.  And yet over half of LCMS members, 54%, believe that abortion should be legal all or most of the time!  While 45% believe it should be illegal in all or most cases.

In principle, 53% believe there are absolute standards of right and wrong, with 46% believing it depends on the situation.  And yet, half of LCMS members, 50%, believe homosexuality should be accepted, with only 42% saying it should be “discouraged,” 8% not answering.  Same with same-sex marriage, with 50% favoring it, and 47% opposing.

Interestingly, despite this tolerant attitude, there are hardly any homosexuals in the LCMS, if this study is to be believed.  For the obligatory “sexual orientation” question, 98% said they were heterosexual, with less than 1% saying gay, bisexual, or other, and 1% not answering.

What do we make of this?  I think it’s useful to compare these LCMS findings with those of another church body with strong and specific teachings on sexual morality and the evil of abortion:  namely the Roman Catholic Church.

According to the Religious Landscape Survey of Catholics, despite the teachings of their church, 54% believe abortion should be legal in all or most circumstances, while 39% oppose it.  Nearly three-quarters of Catholics, 74%, believe homosexuality should be accepted, with 23% saying it should be discouraged.  On same-sex marriage, 70% favor it, and 28% oppose it.

Catholics and Missouri Synod Lutherans accept abortion at the same level, while Catholics are support homosexuality at a higher level.  But another Pew study found that among Catholics who attend mass weekly, 67% oppose abortion.  According to the latest RLS, that’s only 29% of the nation’s Catholics.

In the LCMS, 34% attend service once a week, with 18% attending once or twice a month, a total of 52% of our members who attend with some frequency.  But 22% attend just once or twice a year and 26% seldom or never attend, a total of 48% who are on the church rolls but are basically inactive.

That number is close to that of the LCMS respondents who reject the church’s teachings about abortion, homosexuality, and same-sex marriage.  I haven’t seen any studies for the LCMS correlating adherence to church beliefs with church attendance, but I suspect the findings would be similar to those for the Catholics.

But that probably doesn’t explain everything.  And it begs the question of why so many members do not attend.  And clearly some of those who do attend are not taking it in as they should.

Why are so many LCMS members not reading the Bible?  Why do nearly one-fifth lack spiritual peace?

On moral issues, are we plagued with that old Lutheran heresy of antinomianism?  Do we need better catechesis, both for the old as well as for the young?  Is it pastoral care that people are lacking?  Or are these findings just what we should expect as we try to be a faithful church in an increasingly secularist cultural context?

What do you think?  Any suggestions?

Illustration:  Logo of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod by cruzacalles via OpenClipArt, CC0 1.0