Pastor of
Youth & Family Life
I participated in an online study today that measures how religious Christians are in six different dimensions, described as follows:
"The authors of the Inclusive Christian Scale have found over the course of previous research studies that religiosity could be thought of in terms of the following six dimensions: evangelical, Christian conservative, activist, golden rule, community involvment, and mystic.
The Evangelical dimension refers to a particular focus on prayer, evangelism or outreach, and faith as a source of strength.
The Christian Conservative dimension reflects a particular focus on avoiding acts seen as sinful, on a literal interpretation of the Bible, and on a transforming spiritual experience.
The Activist dimension refers to a focus on changing unjust structures in the world as a part of one’s practice of faith.
The Golden Rule dimension refers to a particular focus on attempting to live so that one treats others as one would wish to be treated. This dimension highlights a concern about many of the same issues found on the Activist dimension, but the focus is more on individuals and less on social structures.
The Community Involvement dimension underlines a particular focus on active participation in the church as a fellowship of faith.
The Mystic dimension reflects a particular focus on an intimate, pervasive relationship/connection to God."
My scores were:
EVANGELICAL: 72 %
CHRISTIAN CONSERVATIVE: 13 %
ACTIVIST: 69 %
GOLDEN RULE: 89 %
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT: 95 %
MYSTIC: 75 %
I was unsurprised at the low marks for "Christian conservative," but a bit taken aback to see that I scored higher for evangelical than for activist. I do know that, both as a pastor and as a person of faith, I set a lot of store in the faith communities I am and have been a part of, so that super-high mark for community seems accurate. I aspire to be somewhat of a mystic, so I'm sort of proud of that score.
What kind of Christian (or not) are you? I'd be really interested for other folks to take the instrument and post your percentages as a comment; I also wonder if it applies to people of other faiths, or those who are "spiritual but not religious" (you know who you are ;) ).
"The authors of the Inclusive Christian Scale have found over the course of previous research studies that religiosity could be thought of in terms of the following six dimensions: evangelical, Christian conservative, activist, golden rule, community involvment, and mystic.
The Evangelical dimension refers to a particular focus on prayer, evangelism or outreach, and faith as a source of strength.
The Christian Conservative dimension reflects a particular focus on avoiding acts seen as sinful, on a literal interpretation of the Bible, and on a transforming spiritual experience.
The Activist dimension refers to a focus on changing unjust structures in the world as a part of one’s practice of faith.
The Golden Rule dimension refers to a particular focus on attempting to live so that one treats others as one would wish to be treated. This dimension highlights a concern about many of the same issues found on the Activist dimension, but the focus is more on individuals and less on social structures.
The Community Involvement dimension underlines a particular focus on active participation in the church as a fellowship of faith.
The Mystic dimension reflects a particular focus on an intimate, pervasive relationship/connection to God."
My scores were:
EVANGELICAL: 72 %
CHRISTIAN CONSERVATIVE: 13 %
ACTIVIST: 69 %
GOLDEN RULE: 89 %
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT: 95 %
MYSTIC: 75 %
I was unsurprised at the low marks for "Christian conservative," but a bit taken aback to see that I scored higher for evangelical than for activist. I do know that, both as a pastor and as a person of faith, I set a lot of store in the faith communities I am and have been a part of, so that super-high mark for community seems accurate. I aspire to be somewhat of a mystic, so I'm sort of proud of that score.
What kind of Christian (or not) are you? I'd be really interested for other folks to take the instrument and post your percentages as a comment; I also wonder if it applies to people of other faiths, or those who are "spiritual but not religious" (you know who you are ;) ).
Measuring Religiosity
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
