the Rise of Nones

Pastor and award-winning author analyzes popular ministry models that fail to reach the nones (those who claim no traditional faith) and offers proven tactics for bringing them into the church. The single fastest-growing religious group of our time is those who check the box next to the word none on national surveys. In America, this is 20 percent of the population. And most churches are doing virtually nothing to reach them. In this hard-hitting examination of our churches' current evangelism methods, which often result only in transfer growth--Christians moving from one church to another--rather than in reaching the nones, James Emery White calls us to discover the mission field right outside our doors. The pastor of a megachurch that is currently experiencing 70 percent of its growth from the unchurched, White knows how to reach this growing demographic, and here he shares his ministry strategies with concerned pastors and church leaders, answering questions like · Exactly who are the unaffiliated? · What caused this seismic shift in our culture? · How can our churches reach these people? If you long to see growth in your church that is the result of lost people entering into the family of God, this book is where you should start. "In an era of increasing complexity and religious apathy, James Emery White has written a book that is helpful, informative, challenging, and timely. Those who care about communicating the gospel in this complex culture and think the church must regroup and re-engage should read The Rise of the Nones."-- Ed Stetzer, president of LifeWay Research James Emery White (PhD, Southern Seminary) is the founding and senior pastor of Mecklenburg Community Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, often cited as one of the fastest-growing church starts in the United States. Former president of Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, White is the author of several books, including Rethinking the Church, What They Didn't Teach You in Seminary, and The Church in an Age of Crisis. The single fastest growing religious group of our time is those who check the box next to the word none on national surveys. In America, this is 20 percent of the population. Exactly who are the unaffiliated? What caused this seismic shift in our culture? Are our churches poised to reach these people? James Emery White lends his prophetic voice to one of the most important conversations the church needs to be having today. He calls churches to examine their current methods of evangelism, which often result only in transfer growth--Christians moving from one church to another--rather than in reaching the "nones." The pastor of a megachurch that is currently experiencing 70 percent of its growth from the unchurched, White knows how to reach this growing demographic, and here he shares his ministry strategies with concerned pastors and church leaders.