Bob's Blog

A few years back, I returned home to California to find that many things had changed since I last lived here. I grew up in a very diverse neighborhood of European, Latino, and Asian descent. Today, that same neighborhood is predominately Mexican with a variety of other Spanish speaking cultures mixed into the area. Some of these groups are immigrants or families of immigrants. There are many that are third generation (like me) and might speak only English (again, like me). The range of of education varies from those holding post graduate degrees to a few classes taken in high school. With the prediction that California will be a Latino majority by the year 2030, there are many wondering what impact this huge economic and culturally powerful state will have on our country.

My thoughts lean towards another direction. I wonder what the Church in California will look like and what its influence will be on our nation. A book I am reading by Ed Stetzer, Lost and Found: The Younger Unchurched and the Churches That Reach Them, has researched and surveyed nearly 800 young people across America, some of them being Latinos. Though, not an in depth look into the Latino culture (13 percent that were surveyed were of Latino descent), this book is one of a very small study of how unchurched Latinos, especially those in their twenties, think about Christianity. The findings might surprise you. I know it did for me.

• 84% of Latinos believe that God is real.
• There was the belief of 69% of Latinos that there is only one God and He is found in the Bible.
• 70% believe that Jesus died and came back to life.
• 85% believe that Jesus makes a positive impact on a persons life.

Those are pretty encouraging numbers but there is another side to the research. Dan Kimball's book, They Like Jesus But Not the Church, is very true. While most Latinos are very positive on God, they are not so with Christans. Around 40% say they do not believe their lifestyle would be accepted by the Church. A whopping 69% believe that churches are full of hypocrites. An incredible 89% believe they can live a good relationship with God without being involved in a local church. Finally, a finding that really broke my heart, only 7% believed that you could find out what it means to be a Christian at a church.

What does this all mean? With an increasing population of Latinos moving into the Southwest, we need to see that young unchurched Latinos are open to hearing the Good News (about 89% of all unchurched young people are open to hearing about Jesus). How we share Christ to this younger generation rests on how we as the Church live out our faith. They see the beauty, reality, and truth of Jesus but haven't connected our Lord to the Church.

This entry was posted on Saturday, August 22, 2009 at 6:24 AM. You can skip to the end and leave a response.