National “Back To Church Sunday,” slated for September 12th, which is also the Solemnity of Brotherly Love in the Polish National Catholic Church. What a great way to put our brotherly love into action, by inviting those we know, people who once attended church – but who don’t anymore, and the “unchurched” and “dechurched” on this Sunday.
Last year, hundreds of churches took part in the first national “Back To Church Sunday,” which saw members invite more than 700,000 friends and family. This year, an estimated 1 million “unchurched” and “dechurched” people will be invited to the special day.
A survey by Outreach, Inc., a California-based church marketing company supporting the initiative, found that last year’s participating churches increased their weekend attendance on average by 19 percent.
“A recent survey of 15,000 Americans indicated that 67 percent would be open to an invitation to church coming from a member of their family,” said Ed Stetzer, president of LifeWay Research, an organization dedicated to church health and effectiveness. “‘Back To Church Sunday’ is a great opportunity for reminding and refocusing church members to reach out to their unchurched family members.”
In a separate study, the 2008 American Religious Identification Survey showed that 83 percent of American adults identify themselves as Christians. In contrast, another survey that same year by the Barna Group, a leading research organization focused on the intersection of faith and culture, indicated only about 20 percent of Americans attend a church on any given Sunday.
When Mount Sterling First United Methodist Church in Mt. Sterling, Ky., participated in “Back To Church Sunday” in 2009, response was well beyond expectations.
“Our sanctuary was full,” said Debi Lambert, the church’s evangelism and outreach leader. “We saw our attendance that day increased 40 percent over our normal attendance for that time of year.”
Unchurched families that visited that Sunday have become members, Lambert said. Others attend periodically. That’s why the Mount Sterling church anticipates an even greater response to the 2010 event. “Everybody at church has gotten on board and is excited and involved,” Lambert said.
Inviting newcomers is only part of the campaign. Churches are also encouraged to make their facilities visitor-friendly, paying attention to details important to those who haven’t tried church in a while.
In support of “Back to Church Sunday,” Outreach also supports the “Back To Church Sunday” Facebook page and a roster of participating churches on the Back to Church Sunday website. When churches go to the website and register their participation, their names and locations are added to the roster.