News

The Majority of American Megachurches Are Now Multiracial

‘The most segregated hour of the week’ isn’t as segregated as it used to be, study finds.

Illustration by Rick Szuecs / Source image: Envato Elements

American megachurches are more racially and ethnically diverse than ever, according to a new study from sociologists Warren Bird and Scott Thumma. The majority of the country’s roughly 1,750 megachurches are now multiracial (defined as 20 percent or more of a congregation belonging to a minority group).

In the pulpit, 94 percent of senior pastors are white. But in the pews, the percentages of white people, black people, Asians, and Native Americans closely correspond with their percentages in the American population. Latinos are underrepresented by about 8 points, and biracial people are slightly overrepresented.

Smaller churches are growing more diverse as well, though at a slower rate. The total number of all multiracial congregations, across Christian denominations, has grown from 7 percent in 2000 to 16 percent in 2020.

Also in this issue

Bible translation is fraught with challenges, especially when beloved passages are at stake. Producing Bibles gets even more challenging as publishers wade into the unavoidably subjective realm of study notes and margin commentaries. Yet through it all—and through storm and worldwide sickness—the Word of the Lord endures. Our issue this month pays homage to the timeless truth of Scripture, as well as to a few other books our team of judges loved this year.

Cover Story

COVID-19 Hurts. But the Bible Brings Hope.

Cover Story

Why There Are So Many ‘Miraculous’ Stories of Bibles Surviving Disaster

Cover Story

When A Word Is Worth A Thousand Complaints (and When It Isn’t)

New & Noteworthy Fiction

Our Attraction to Idols Remains the Same, Even When the Names Change

Review

A Christian Approach to Social Justice Is Slow, Careful, and Self-Reflective

Where Is the Gospel in God’s Judgments on the Nations?

Review

After Binging on the Internet in 2020, We Need a Major Knowledge-Diet Overhaul

Testimony

I Was Filming a Dangerous Action Scene When I Gave My Life to Christ

Reply All

News

Unearthing the Faithful Foundations of a Historic Black Church

News

Gambia’s Christians Take a Stand in the Public Square

News

Questions Continue for Women in Complementarian Churches

News

Gleanings: January 2021

Don’t Pack Away the Dinnerware During COVID-19

Our Jan/Feb Issue: Tomato, Tomahto, and the Bible

Timely and Eternal

Are the 81 Percent Evangelicals?

Can We Do Better than the Enneagram?

The Pro-Life Project Has a Playbook: Racial Justice History

5 Books on the Nature of Human Emotions

Excerpt

The Cross Is God’s Answer to Black Rage

Christianity Today’s 2021 Book Awards

View issue

Our Latest

Wire Story

Top ACNA Leader Faces Sexual Harassment Allegations

Following a string of scandals, the accusations against Archbishop Steve Wood come amid plans for the denomination to overhaul its abuse response.

The Russell Moore Show

 Listener Question: Should Communion Be Open to All Believers?

Russell takes a listener’s question about church membership and the Communion table.

Anti-Fragile Faith in Chaotic Times

Slow Theology highlights how a long obedience in the same direction grows.

News

Christian Colleges Object to Trump ‘Overreach’ on Higher Ed

The administration’s compact with universities would freeze tuition for five years and cap the number of international students, among other measures.

Will There Ever Be Peace in the Middle East?

An explainer on sectarianism, and how it keeps the region divided.

The Bulletin

Young Republican Texts, Anglican Split, and George Santos Released

Controversial Republican texts, Anglican Communion splits, and George Santos’s sentence is commuted.

Review

Do Evangelical Political Errors Rise to the Level of Heresy?

A Lutheran pastor identifies five false teachings that threaten to corrupt the church’s public witness.

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