Did you know that 36% of Americans accept the designation of being Pentecostal or charismatic? The terms, by the way, as used in the Barna Group research that came up with the figures, indicate that these American believers claim to have been "filled with the Holy Spirit" and who believe that "the charismatic gifts, such as tongues and healing, are still valid and active today." That's no fringe group -- that's some 80 million people.And the research shows more items of fascinating interest. For instance, although only 8% of the American population is evangelical, just below half of all evangelical adults fit the charismatic definition. Also, Protestants can't claim them all. The research showed that more than a third of U.S. Catholics fit the charismatic classification. "Framed differently, almost one-quarter of all charismatics in the U.S. (22%) are Catholic."
Want more? How about the findings that 7% of Southern Baptist churches and 6% of mainline churches are charismatic? Or that 65% of the Protestant churches dominated by African-Americans are Pentecostal but only 16% of the country's predominately white Protestant congregations.
George Barna, author and the highly-efficient researcher, reflects on his organization's research:
The charismatic orientation is most popular among the non-white population - which is, of course, the sector of the population that is growing most rapidly. Also, the freedom of emotional and spiritual expression typical of charismatic assemblies parallels the cultural trend toward personal expression, accepting diverse emotions and allowing people to interpret their experiences in ways that make sense to them. It is not surprising that the Pentecostal community in America has been growing - nor do we expect it to stop making headway.
We are moving toward a future in which the charismatic-fundamentalist split will be an historical footnote rather than a dividing line within the body of believers. Young Christians, in particular, have little energy for the arguments that have traditionally separated charismatics and non-charismatics. Increasing numbers of people are recognizing that there are more significant arenas in which to invest their resources.
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