![Methodistcommunion2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d8/Methodistcommunion2.jpg)
The mainline Protestant churches (also called mainstream Protestant and sometimes oldline Protestant) are a group of
Protestant denominations in the United States that contrast in history and practice with
evangelical
Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...
,
fundamentalist
Fundamentalism is a tendency among certain groups and individuals that is characterized by the application of a strict literal interpretation to scriptures, dogmas, or ideologies, along with a strong belief in the importance of distinguishi ...
, and
charismatic Protestant
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
denominations. Some make a distinction between "mainline" and "oldline", with the former referring only to denominational ties and the latter referring to church lineage, prestige and influence. However, this distinction has largely been lost to history and the terms are now nearly synonymous.
Mainline Protestant churches have stressed
social justice
Social justice is justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, Equal opportunity, opportunities, and Social privilege, privileges within a society. In Western Civilization, Western and Culture of Asia, Asian cultures, the concept of social ...
and personal
salvation
Salvation (from Latin: ''salvatio'', from ''salva'', 'safe, saved') is the state of being saved or protected from harm or a dire situation. In religion and theology, ''salvation'' generally refers to the deliverance of the soul from sin and its ...
, and both
politically
Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that studies ...
and
theologically
Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...
, tend to be more liberal than non-mainstream Protestants. Mainstream Protestant churches share a common approach that often leads to collaboration in organizations such as the
National Council of Churches
The National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA, usually identified as the National Council of Churches (NCC), is the largest ecumenical body in the United States. NCC is an ecumenical partnership of 38 Christian faith groups in the Un ...
, and because of their involvement with the
ecumenical movement
Ecumenism (), also spelled oecumenism, is the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships among their churches and promote Christian unity. The adjec ...
, they are sometimes given the alternative label of "ecumenical Protestantism" (especially outside the United States). While in 1970 the mainstream Protestant churches claimed most Protestants and more than 30 percent of the American population as members, they are a minority among American Protestants, claiming approximately 15 percent of American adults.
History
Mainline Protestants were a majority of Protestants in the United States until the mid-20th century. A dip in membership across all Christian denominations was more pronounced among mainline groups, with the result that mainline groups no longer comprise the majority. In 2020, Public Religion Research Institute conducted a religious census, based on self-identification, finding that an estimated 16% of U.S. Americans identified as non-Hispanic white mainline Protestants, slightly outnumbering non-Hispanic white evangelical Protestants who were 14% of the US American population. In 2014, Pew Research completed and published the ''Religious Landscape Survey'' in which it was estimated that 14.7% of US Americans identified as mainline Protestant, excluding historically Black and African American denominations, while 25.4% identified as evangelical Protestants, also excluding membership in historically Black denominations.
The largest mainline churches in the United States, often referred to as the "Seven Sisters of American Protestantism", are as follows:
*
American Baptist Churches
*
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination in the United States and Canada. The denomination started with the Restoration Movement during the Second Great Awakening, first existing during the 19th ...
*
The Episcopal Church
*
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
*
Presbyterian Church (USA)
*
United Church of Christ
The United Church of Christ (UCC) is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination based in the United States, with historical and confessional roots in the Congregational, Calvinist, Lutheran, and Anabaptist traditions, and with approximatel ...
*
United Methodist Church
The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was a leader in evangelic ...
Smaller denominations also widely considered mainline include, but are not limited to, the
Reformed Church in America, the
Mennonite Church, the
Church of the Brethren
The Church of the Brethren is an Anabaptist Christian denomination in the Schwarzenau Brethren (german: link=no, Schwarzenauer Neutäufer "Schwarzenau New Baptists") tradition that was organized in 1708 by Alexander Mack in Schwarzenau, Germ ...
and the
Moravian Church in North America
The Moravian Church in North America is part of the worldwide Moravian Church Unity. It dates from the arrival of the first Moravian missionaries to the United States in 1735, from their Herrnhut settlement in present-day Saxony, Germany. They ...
, as well as many groupings of the
Religious Society of Friends
Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belie ...
(
Quakers
Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abil ...
).
The term 'mainline' has also been applied to Canadian Protestant churches that share common origins with their US counterparts. In Mexico, the Anglican Church is historically tied to and formed from the US Episcopal Church.
The term is also occasionally used to refer to historic Protestant churches in Europe, Latin America, and South Africa.
Mainline churches share an active approach to social issues that often leads to cooperation in organizations such as the
National Council of Churches
The National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA, usually identified as the National Council of Churches (NCC), is the largest ecumenical body in the United States. NCC is an ecumenical partnership of 38 Christian faith groups in the Un ...
. Because of their involvement with the
ecumenical movement
Ecumenism (), also spelled oecumenism, is the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships among their churches and promote Christian unity. The adjec ...
, mainline churches are sometimes (especially outside the United States) given the alternative label of ecumenical Protestantism. These churches played a leading role in the
Social Gospel movement and were active in social causes such as the
civil rights movement
The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional racial segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement throughout the Unite ...
and the
women's movement
The feminist movement (also known as the women's movement, or feminism) refers to a series of social movements and political campaigns for radical and liberal reforms on women's issues created by the inequality between men and women. Such is ...
. As a group, the mainline churches have maintained religious doctrine that stresses
social justice
Social justice is justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, Equal opportunity, opportunities, and Social privilege, privileges within a society. In Western Civilization, Western and Culture of Asia, Asian cultures, the concept of social ...
and personal
salvation
Salvation (from Latin: ''salvatio'', from ''salva'', 'safe, saved') is the state of being saved or protected from harm or a dire situation. In religion and theology, ''salvation'' generally refers to the deliverance of the soul from sin and its ...
.
Members of mainline denominations have played leadership roles in politics, business, science, the arts, and education. They were involved in the founding of leading institutes of higher education. Marsden argues that in the 1950s, "Mainline Protestant leaders were part of the liberal-moderate cultural mainstream, and their leading spokespersons were respected participants in the national conversation."
Some mainline Protestant denominations have the highest proportion of graduate and post-graduate degrees of any other denomination in the United States.
Some also include the highest proportion of those with some college education, such as the
Episcopal Church (76%),
the
Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
The Presbyterian Church (USA), abbreviated PC(USA), is a mainline Protestant denomination in the United States. It is the largest Presbyterian denomination in the US, and known for its liberal stance on doctrine and its ordaining of women and ...
(64%),
and the
United Church of Christ
The United Church of Christ (UCC) is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination based in the United States, with historical and confessional roots in the Congregational, Calvinist, Lutheran, and Anabaptist traditions, and with approximatel ...
(46%), as well as the most of the
American upper class.
compared with the nationwide average of 50%.
Episcopalians and Presbyterians also tend to be considerably wealthier and better educated than most other religious groups, and they were disproportionately represented in the upper reaches of US business and law until the 1950s.
In the 1990s four of the US Supreme Court Justices were Mainline Protestants:
Sandra Day O'Connor,
John Paul Stevens,
William Rehnquist
William Hubbs Rehnquist ( ; October 1, 1924 – September 3, 2005) was an American attorney and jurist who served on the U.S. Supreme Court for 33 years, first as an associate justice from 1972 to 1986 and then as the 16th chief justice from ...
and
David Souter
David Hackett Souter ( ; born September 17, 1939) is an American lawyer and jurist who served as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1990 until his retirement in 2009. Appointed by President George H. W. Bush to fill the seat ...
.
From 1854 until at least 1964, Mainline Protestants and their descendants were heavily
Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
. In recent decades, Republicans slightly outnumber Democrats.
From 1965 to 1988, mainline church membership declined from 31 million to 25 million, then fell to 21 million in 2005. While in 1970 the mainline churches claimed most Protestants and more than 30 percent of the population as members, today they are a minority among Protestants; in 2009, only 15 percent of Americans were adherents.
A
Pew Forum statistic revealed the same share in 2014.
Terminology
The term ''mainline Protestant'' was coined during
debates between modernists and fundamentalists in the 1920s. Several sources claim that the term is derived from the
Philadelphia Main Line
The Philadelphia Main Line, known simply as the Main Line, is an informally delineated historical and social region of suburban Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Lying along the former Pennsylvania Railroad's once prestigious Main Line, it runs ...
, a group of affluent suburbs of Philadelphia; most residents belonged to mainline denominations. Today, most mainline Protestants remain rooted in the Northeastern and Midwestern United States. C. Kirk Hadaway and Penny Long Marler define the term as follows: "the term 'mainline Protestant' is used along with 'mainstream Protestant' and 'oldline Protestant' to categorize denominations that are affiliated with the National Council of Churches and have deep historical roots in and long-standing influence on American society."
In the US, Protestantism is generally divided between mainline denominations and
evangelical
Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...
or conservative denominations. In other parts of the world, the term ''mainline Protestant'' is not used. Instead, the term "
ecumenical" is used to distinguish similar churches from evangelical denominations. Some have criticized the term ''mainline'' for its alleged ethnocentric and elitist assumptions, since it almost exclusively described white, non-
fundamentalist
Fundamentalism is a tendency among certain groups and individuals that is characterized by the application of a strict literal interpretation to scriptures, dogmas, or ideologies, along with a strong belief in the importance of distinguishi ...
Protestant Americans from its origin to the late twentieth century.
''Mainline'' vs. ''mainstream''
The term ''mainstream Christian'' in academic usage is not equivalent to ''mainline Protestant'' and is often used as an attempt to find impartial sociological vocabulary in distinguishing ''
orthodoxy'' and ''
heresy
Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, in particular the accepted beliefs of a church or religious organization. The term is usually used in reference to violations of important religi ...
''. Hence in Christological and doctrinal reference ''
mainstream Christianity
The original Nicene Creed (; grc-gre, Σύμβολον τῆς Νικαίας; la, Symbolum Nicaenum) was first adopted at the First Council of Nicaea in 325. In 381, it was amended at the First Council of Constantinople. The amended form is a ...
'' is often equivalent to ''
Trinitarianism
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the ...
''. In the United Kingdom and Australia, the term ''mainline Protestant'' is not used, and ''mainstream'' does not mean ''progressive'' Protestant.
Denominations
![Augustana Lutheran Church - sign](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/13/Augustana_Lutheran_Church_-_sign.JPG)
The largest mainline churches are sometimes referred to as the "Seven Sisters of American
Protestantism
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
": the
United Methodist Church
The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was a leader in evangelic ...
(UMC),
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA),
Episcopal Church (TEC),
Presbyterian Church (USA) (PCUSA),
American Baptist Churches USA
The American Baptist Churches USA (ABCUSA) is a mainline/evangelical Baptist Christian denomination within the United States. The denomination maintains headquarters in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. The organization is usually considered mainl ...
(ABCUSA),
United Church of Christ
The United Church of Christ (UCC) is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination based in the United States, with historical and confessional roots in the Congregational, Calvinist, Lutheran, and Anabaptist traditions, and with approximatel ...
(UCC), and
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination in the United States and Canada. The denomination started with the Restoration Movement during the Second Great Awakening, first existing during the 19th ...
. The term was apparently coined by William Hutchison.
*
United Methodist Church
The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was a leader in evangelic ...
is the largest mainline Protestant denomination among the "Seven Sisters" with 6.3 million members in the United States in 2020.
*
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is the second largest mainline denomination with approximately 3.1 million members and 8,900 congregations at the end of 2020.
*
Episcopal Church is third largest, with 1.7 million active baptized members, of whom 1.6 million members are located in the United States in 2020.
*
Presbyterian Church (USA) is the fourth largest mainline denomination, with 1.2 million active members in 8,900 congregations (2020).
*
American Baptist Churches USA
The American Baptist Churches USA (ABCUSA) is a mainline/evangelical Baptist Christian denomination within the United States. The denomination maintains headquarters in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. The organization is usually considered mainl ...
is fifth in size, with approximately 1.1 million members (2017).
*
United Church of Christ
The United Church of Christ (UCC) is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination based in the United States, with historical and confessional roots in the Congregational, Calvinist, Lutheran, and Anabaptist traditions, and with approximatel ...
is the sixth and has about 770,000 members in 2020.
*
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination in the United States and Canada. The denomination started with the Restoration Movement during the Second Great Awakening, first existing during the 19th ...
is the seventh and has about 351,000 members as of 2020.
The
Association of Religion Data Archives The Association of Religion Data Archives (ARDA) is a free source of online information related to American and international religion. One of the primary goals of the archive is to democratize access to academic information on religion by making th ...
,
Pew Research, and other sources also consider these denominations, listed with adherents and members, to be mainline:
*
Cooperative Baptist Fellowship
The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship (CBF) is a Baptist Christian denomination in the United States. It is affiliated with the Baptist World Alliance. The headquarters is in Decatur, Georgia.
History
The Cooperative Baptist Association has its or ...
700,000 members
*
United Church of Canada
The United Church of Canada (french: link=no, Église unie du Canada) is a mainline Protestant denomination that is the largest Protestant Christian denomination in Canada and the second largest Canadian Christian denomination after the Catholi ...
388,363 members (2018), 2 million adherents according to 2011 Canadian Census
*
Anglican Church of Canada 359,030 members (2017), 1.6 million adherents according to 2011 Canadian Census
*
Religious Society of Friends
Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belie ...
(Quakers) 350,000 members
*
Reformed Church in America 194,064 members (2019)
*
Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada 111,570 members (2015)
*
Anglican Church of Mexico 100,000 members
*
Mennonite Church USA
The Mennonite Church USA (MC USA) is an Anabaptist Christian denomination in the United States. Although the organization is a recent 2002 merger of the Mennonite Church and the General Conference Mennonite Church, the body has roots in the Ra ...
100,000 members
*
Church of the Brethren
The Church of the Brethren is an Anabaptist Christian denomination in the Schwarzenau Brethren (german: link=no, Schwarzenauer Neutäufer "Schwarzenau New Baptists") tradition that was organized in 1708 by Alexander Mack in Schwarzenau, Germ ...
98,680 members (2019)
*
Presbyterian Church in Canada 79,961 members (2019)
*
International Council of Community Churches 69,276 members (2009)
*
National Association of Congregational Christian Churches
The National Association of Congregational Christian Churches (NACCC) is an association of about 400 churches providing fellowship for and services to churches from the Congregational tradition. The Association maintains its national office in Oak ...
65,392 members (2002)*
*
Alliance of Baptists 65,000 members
*
Moravian Church in North America
The Moravian Church in North America is part of the worldwide Moravian Church Unity. It dates from the arrival of the first Moravian missionaries to the United States in 1735, from their Herrnhut settlement in present-day Saxony, Germany. They ...
60,000 members
*
Mennonite Church Canada 31,000 members
*
Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches
Universal is the adjective for universe.
Universal may also refer to:
Companies
* NBCUniversal, a media and entertainment company
** Universal Animation Studios, an American Animation studio, and a subsidiary of NBCUniversal
** Universal TV, a t ...
15,666 members (2006)
*
Latvian Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
The Latvian Evangelical Lutheran Church in America ( lv, Latviešu evangeliski luteriska Baznica Amerika; LELBA) is a Lutheran denomination, formed in 1957 as a federation, and reorganized in 1975 as a formal denomination. In 1978 Lauma Lagzdins ...
12,000 members (2007)
*
Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church Abroad 8,000 members
*
Hungarian Reformed Church in America 6,080 members
*
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Canada 2,606 members
* Congregational Christian Churches, (not part of any national CCC body)
Historically African American denominations are usually categorized differently from evangelicals or mainline. However, in 2014 the ''
Christian Century
''The Christian Century'' is a Christian magazine based in Chicago, Illinois. Considered the flagship magazine of US mainline Protestantism, the monthly reports on religious news; comments on theological, moral, and cultural issues; and revi ...
'' identified a group that "fit the mainline description."
*
African Methodist Episcopal Church
The African Methodist Episcopal Church, usually called the AME Church or AME, is a predominantly African American Methodist denomination. It adheres to Wesleyan-Arminian theology and has a connexional polity. The African Methodist Episcopal ...
2.5 million
*
African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church 1.4 million
*
Christian Methodist Episcopal Church 858,670 members
While no longer exclusively Christian, the
Unitarian Universalist Association, with 211,000 adherents, considers itself to be mainline.
Some denominations with similar names and historical ties to mainline groups are not considered mainline. The
Southern Baptist Convention (SBC),
Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod (LCMS), the
Christian and Missionary Alliance
The Alliance World Fellowship is the international governing body of the Christian and Missionary Alliance (The Alliance, also C&MA and CMA). The Alliance is an evangelical Protestant denomination within the Higher Life movement of Christianity ...
(C&MA), the
Churches of Christ and
Christian churches
In ecclesiology, the Christian Church is what different Christian denominations conceive of as being the true body of Christians or the original institution established by Jesus. "Christian Church" has also been used in academia as a synonym for ...
, the
Presbyterian Church in America
The Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) is the second-largest Presbyterian church body, behind the Presbyterian Church (USA), and the largest conservative Calvinist denomination in the United States. The PCA is Reformed in theology and presb ...
(PCA), the
North American Lutheran Church (NALC), and the
Anglican Church in North America
The Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) is a Christian denomination in the Anglican tradition in the United States and Canada. It also includes ten congregations in Mexico, two mission churches in Guatemala, and a missionary diocese in Cuba ...
(ACNA) are often considered too conservative for this category and thus grouped as
evangelical
Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...
.
*The National Association of Congregational Christian Churches is considered to be evangelical by Pew Research while the Association of Religion Data Archives considered it to be mainline.
Theology
Variation
Mainline Protestantism is characterized by theological and ideological
pluralism. While doctrinal standards and confessional statements exist, these are not usually interpreted in ways to exclude people from membership. Richard Hutcheson, Jr., chairman of the Office of Review and Evaluation of the
Presbyterian Church in the United States, observed that clergy candidates were more likely to be rejected due to "excessive narrowness" than for violating confessional standards.
Mainline churches hold a range of theological orientations—
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
, moderate and
liberal
Liberal or liberalism may refer to:
Politics
* a supporter of liberalism
** Liberalism by country
* an adherent of a Liberal Party
* Liberalism (international relations)
* Sexually liberal feminism
* Social liberalism
Arts, entertainment and m ...
.
About half of mainline Protestants describe themselves as liberal.
Mainline Christian groups are often more accepting of other beliefs and faiths, affirm the
ordination of women, and have become increasingly affirming of
gay ordination.
Nearly one-third of mainline Protestants call themselves conservative, and most local mainline congregations have a strong, active conservative element.
[Struckmeyer, Kurt. "Mainline Christianity. " ''Following Jesus'' Web: 13 Dec 2009] Mainline denominations are historically
Trinitarian
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the Fa ...
and proclaim
Jesus Christ
Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...
as Lord and Son of God.
In practice, mainline churches tend to be theologically moderate and influenced by ''
higher criticism,'' an approach used by scholars to separate the Bible's earliest historical elements from perceived later additions and intentional distortions. Mainline denominations generally teach that the Bible is God's Word in function, but that it must be
interpreted both through the lens of the cultures in which it was originally written, and examined using God-given reason. A 2008 survey conducted by the
Pew Research Center found that only 22 percent of the 7,500 mainline Christians surveyed said the Bible is God's Word and is to be interpreted as literally true, word for word. Thirty-eight percent thought that the Bible is God's Word but is not to be taken literally, word for word. Twenty-eight percent said the Bible was not the
Word of God but was of human origin.
It has been noted, even by members of mainline churches, that the leadership of denominational agencies and bureaucracies has often been more theologically and socially liberal than the overall membership of the mainline churches. This gap has caused feelings of alienation among conservative mainline Protestants. This dissatisfaction has led to the formation of various
Confessing Movement
The Confessing Movement is a largely laity, lay-led Conservative Christianity, theologically conservative Christian movement that opposes the influence of liberal christianity, theological liberalism and progressive christianity, theological pr ...
s or
charismatic renewal movements which are more conservative in tone.
Social justice
The mainline denominations emphasize the biblical concept of justice, stressing the need for Christians to work for
social justice
Social justice is justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, Equal opportunity, opportunities, and Social privilege, privileges within a society. In Western Civilization, Western and Culture of Asia, Asian cultures, the concept of social ...
, which usually involve politically liberal approaches to social and economic problems. Early in the 20th century, they actively supported the
Social Gospel.
Mainline churches were basically
pacifistic before 1940, but under the influence of people such as
Reinhold Niebuhr
Karl Paul Reinhold Niebuhr (June 21, 1892 – June 1, 1971) was an American Reformed theologian, ethicist, commentator on politics and public affairs, and professor at Union Theological Seminary for more than 30 years. Niebuhr was one of Ameri ...
they supported
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
and the
Cold War. They have been far from uniform in their reaction to issues of gender and sexuality, though they tend to be more accepting than the
Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
or the more conservative Protestant churches.
Social issues
![HarvardElizaSusanQuincy1836](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a3/HarvardElizaSusanQuincy1836.jpg)
Many mainline denominations are active in voicing perspectives on social issues. Almost all mainline denominations are gender-inclusive and ordain women. On abortion issues, the Episcopal Church (TEC), Presbyterian Church (USA) (PCUSA), Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA), and United Church of Christ (UCC) are members of the
Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice
The Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice (RCRC) is an abortion rights organization founded in 1973 by clergy and lay leaders from mainline denominations and faith traditions to create an interfaith organization following ''Roe v. Wade'', t ...
. The United Methodist Church (UMC) and Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) support exceptions, when abortion may be necessary, but do not endorse the procedure. Other denominations, such as the Church of the Brethren and Mennonite Church USA, are against abortion.
Regarding human sexuality, TEC, the ELCA, PC(USA), Society of Friends (Quaker), UUA, and UCC recognize same-gender marriages. Also considered mainline, the Anglican Church of Canada, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, and United Church of Canada bless or marry same-gender couples. In 2015, the Mennonite Church Canada saw its first same-gender marriage in one of its congregations. The American Baptist Churches USA does not perform same-gender marriages, but allows each congregation the freedom to decide for itself. Including the aforementioned denominations, the Mennonite Church USA, Metropolitan Community Church, and Moravian Church Northern Province license or ordain openly gay clergy. While the UMC does not nationally ordain gay or lesbian clergy, the New York Annual Conference, a regional body of the UMC, has ordained the denomination's first openly gay and lesbian clergy. The Western Jurisdiction of the UMC also elected the denomination's first openly gay bishop. Some congregations of the Church of the Brethren have also voted to perform same-gender marriages although the national denomination opposes this practice.
Most of the above denominations also ordain openly transgender clergy. While the national church has not approved of gay or lesbian clergy, the UMC has allowed transgender pastors.
Politically, mainline churches are also active. While no particular candidate can be endorsed, mainline churches often invite political speakers. At the 2016 General Conference for the
African Methodist Episcopal Church
The African Methodist Episcopal Church, usually called the AME Church or AME, is a predominantly African American Methodist denomination. It adheres to Wesleyan-Arminian theology and has a connexional polity. The African Methodist Episcopal ...
, a
historically Black denomination but also identified as mainline,
Hillary Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
was invited to offer an address for the delegates and clergy.
Statistical decline
The term "mainline" once implied a certain numerical majority or dominant presence in mainstream society, but that is no longer the case. Protestant churches as a whole have slowly declined in total membership since the 1960s. As the national population has grown these churches have shrunk from 63% of the population in 1970 to 54% by 2000, and 48% in 2012, ceasing to be the religious category for the majority of Americans. This statistic may be inaccurate due to the number of former or historically mainline Protestants who continue to espouse mainline Protestant values without active church attendance. American affiliation with mainline denominations declined from 55% of all Protestants in 1973 to 46% in 1998. The number of mainline congregations in the U. S. declined from more than 80,000 churches in the 1950s to about 72,000 in 2008.
[Report Examines the State of Mainline Protestant Churches](_blank)
The Barna Group. December 7, 2009. Web: 12 Dec. 2009
Various causes of mainline decline in population have been cited. Much analysis has taken place both from those within and outside mainline denominations. Key factors indicate that all types of churches can and do grow, regardless of hymnody or contemporary music, type of liturgy, average age of worshiper, or location On average, however, churches in rural areas, churches with older congregants, and churches with fewer young people involved struggle most to add members and grow churches. For example, of all churches founded since 1993, 54% are experiencing growth, while that is true for only 28% of congregations founded prior to 1900. As demographics change, the churches founded by earlier generations often struggle to adapt to changing conditions, including the declines or shifts in the age and ethnicity of local populations. Says David Roozen, Director of Hartford Seminary's Hartford Institute for Religion Research, "Location, Location, Location used to be the kind way that researchers described the extent to which the growth or decline of American congregations was captive to the demographic changes going on in their immediate neighborhoods." Age demographics cannot be overlooked as a real factor in congregational decline, with the birthrate for mainline Protestants well below what is needed to maintain membership numbers.
The Barna Group, an
Evangelical
Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...
surveyor, has noted, Protestant pastors who serve mainline churches serve on average half as long as Protestant pastors in non-mainline churches.
This may contribute to decline and may be influenced in part by the
United Methodist Church
The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was a leader in evangelic ...
practice of Itinerancy, where clergy are intentionally moved from one church to another as often as yearly in an effort to support and encourage the United Methodist tradition of strong lay ministry. Mainline churches have also had difficulty attracting minorities, particularly Hispanics. Hispanics comprise 6 percent of the mainline population but 16 percent of the US population. According to the Barna Group report, the failure of mainline Protestants to add substantial numbers of Hispanics is portent for the future, given both the rapid increase of the Hispanic population as well as the outflow of Hispanics from Catholicism to Protestant churches in the past decade, most of whom are selecting evangelical or
Pentecostal
Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement Protestant churches.
In general, however, decline can be a difficult thing to statistically quantify. Many older Protestant churches lived a vibrant lifetime and continue to evidence vital ministry and faith regardless of declining populations or birthrates. For example, giving and engagement with need and justice, both indicators of strong Christian faith, have increased despite the aging and loss of congregational members.
Contrast with other Protestant denominations
While various Protestant denominations have experienced declining membership, the most pronounced changes have occurred among mainline churches. Demographic trends for evangelical and historically
African-American church
The black church (sometimes termed Black Christianity or African American Christianity) is the faith and body of Christian congregations and denominations in the United States that minister predominantly to African Americans, as well as the ...
es have been more stable. According to the Pew Research Center, mainline churches could claim 14.7 percent of all US adults compared to 25.4 percent who belonged to evangelical churches in 2014.
[Chang, Perry. "Recent Changes in Membership and Attendance. " Presbyterian Church (U. S. A.) Nov. 2006. Web]
Presbyterian Church (U. S. A.)
Demographers Hout, Greeley, and Wilde have attributed the long-term decline in mainline membership and the concomitant growth in the conservative Protestant denominations to four basic causes: birth rates; switching to conservative denominations; departure from Protestantism to "no religion" (i.e. secularization); and conversions from non-Protestant sources. In their analysis, by far the main cause is birth rates—low for the mainline bodies, and high for the conservatives. The second most important factor is that fewer conservatives switch to mainline denominations than before. Despite speculation to the contrary, Hout, Greeley, and Wilde argue that switching from a mainline to a conservative denomination is not important in accounting for the trend, because it is fairly constant over the decades. Finally, conservative denominations have had a greater inflow of converts. Their analysis gives no support for the notion that theological or social conservatism or liberalism has much impact on long-term growth trends.
Evidence from the
General Social Survey
The General Social Survey (GSS) is a sociological survey created and regularly collected since 1972 by the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago. It is funded by the National Science Foundation. The GSS collects informa ...
indicates that higher fertility and earlier childbearing among women from conservative denominations explains 76% of the observed trend: conservative denominations have grown their own. Mainline denomination members have the lowest birthrate among American Christian groups. Unless there is a surge of new members, rising death rates are predicted to diminish their ranks even further in the years ahead.
Trends
![Forest Hills Gardens, Queens, NY](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b2/Forest_Hills_Gardens%2C_Queens%2C_NY.jpg)
Some other findings of the Barna Group:
* From 1958 to 2008, mainline church membership dropped by more than one-quarter to roughly 20 million people—15 percent of all American adults.
* From 1998 to 2008, there was a 22 percent drop in the percentage of adults attending mainline congregations who have children under the age of 18 living in their home.
* In 2009, nearly 40 percent of mainline church attendees were single. This increase has been driven higher by a rise in the number of divorced and widowed adherents.
* From 1998 to 2008, volunteerism dropped 21 percent; adult
Sunday school participation decreased 17 percent.
* The average age of a mainline pastor in 1998 was 48 and increased to 55 by 2009.
* Pastors on average remain with a congregation for four years compared to twice that length for non-mainline church leaders.
Recent statistics from the Pew Forum provide additional explanations for the decline.
* Evangelical church members are younger than those in mainline denominations. Fourteen percent of evangelical congregations are between 18 and 29 (compared to 2 percent), 36 percent between 30 and 49, 28 percent between 50 and 64, and 23 percent 65 or older.
Not paralleling the decline in membership is the household income of members of mainline denominations. Overall, it is higher than that of evangelicals:
* 25% reported less than a $30,000 income per year.
* 21% reported $30,000–$49,999 per year.
* 18% reported $50,000–$74,999 per year.
* 15% reported $75,000–$99,999 per year.
* 21% reported an income of $100,000 per year or more, compared to only 13 percent of evangelicals.
History
![First Parish in Hingham MA](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8d/First_Parish_in_Hingham_MA.jpg)
While the term "mainline" was not applied to churches until the 20th century, mainline churches trace their history to the
Protestant Reformation
The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and ...
of the 16th century. The largest and most influential Protestant denominations in Britain's
13 colonies were the
Anglicans (after the American Revolution called Episcopalians) and the
Congregationalists (from which the
Unitarians would later split). These were later surpassed in size and influence by the evangelical denominations: the Baptists, Presbyterians and Methodists. Sharing a common Reformation heritage with Episcopal and Congregational churches, these denominations together created the mainline. It was, according to historian Jason Lantzer, "the emerging evangelical movement that would help forge the Seven Sisters and which provides a core to the wide variety of theological and doctrinal differences, shaping them into a more coherent whole."
The
Great Awakening ignited controversy within Protestant churches between
Old Lights and New Lights (or
Old Side and New Side among Presbyterians). Led by figures such as the Congregationalist minister
Charles Chauncy
Charles Chauncy (baptised 5 November 1592 – 19 February 1672) was an Anglo-American Congregational clergyman, educator, and secondarily, a physician. He is also known as the 2nd President of Harvard.
Life
Charles Chauncy was born at Arde ...
, Old Lights opposed the evangelical
revivalism at the heart of the Awakening, while New Lights, led by fellow Congregationalist minister
Jonathan Edwards, supported the revivals and argued for the importance of having a
conversion experience. By the 1800s, Chauncy's followers had drifted toward forms of theological liberalism, such as
Universalism
Universalism is the philosophical and theological concept that some ideas have universal application or applicability.
A belief in one fundamental truth is another important tenet in universalism. The living truth is seen as more far-reaching th ...
,
Unitarianism
Unitarianism (from Latin ''unitas'' "unity, oneness", from ''unus'' "one") is a nontrinitarian branch of Christian theology. Most other branches of Christianity and the major Churches accept the doctrine of the Trinity which states that there i ...
and
Transcendentalism
Transcendentalism is a philosophical movement that developed in the late 1820s and 1830s in New England. "Transcendentalism is an American literary, political, and philosophical movement of the early nineteenth century, centered around Ralph Wald ...
.
The
Second Great Awakening
The Second Great Awakening was a Protestant religious revival during the early 19th century in the United States. The Second Great Awakening, which spread religion through revivals and emotional preaching, sparked a number of reform movements. R ...
would inaugurate a period of evangelical dominance within American mainline Protestantism that would last over a century. The Second Great Awakening was a catalyst for the reform of society. Efforts to improve the rights of women, reforming prisons, establishing free public schools, prohibiting alcohol, and (in the North) abolishing slavery were promoted by mainline churches.
After the
Civil War
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
, however, tensions between evangelicals and non-evangelicals would re-emerge. As the practice of
historical criticism spread to the United States, conflict over
biblical inspiration
Biblical inspiration is the doctrine in Christian theology that the human writers and canonizers of the Bible were led by God with the result that their writings may be designated in some sense the word of God. This belief is traditionally ass ...
erupted within Protestant churches. Conservative Protestants led by
A. A. Hodge,
B. B. Warfield
Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield (November 5, 1851 – February 16, 1921) was professor of theology at Princeton Seminary from 1887 to 1921. He served as the last principal of the Princeton Theological Seminary from 1886 to 1902. After the death o ...
and other
Princeton theologians argued for
biblical inerrancy
Biblical inerrancy is the belief that the Bible "is without error or fault in all its teaching"; or, at least, that "Scripture in the original manuscripts does not affirm anything that is contrary to fact". Some equate inerrancy with biblical ...
, while liberal theologians such as
Charles A. Briggs of
Union Theological Seminary were open to using historical criticism to understand the Bible.
As 19th–century evangelicals embraced
dispensational premillennialism and retreated from society in the face of mounting social problems caused by industrialization, urbanization and immigration, liberal Protestants embraced the
Social Gospel, which worked for the "regeneration of society" rather than only the conversion of individuals.
The
Fundamentalist–Modernist Controversy of the 1920s widened the division between evangelical and non-evangelical Protestants as the two sides fought for control over the mainline denominations. The
fundamentalists lost these battles for control to the modernists or liberals. Since the 1920s, mainline churches have been associated with liberal Protestantism.
Episcopalians
Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...
and
Presbyterian
Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...
WASPs
A wasp is any insect of the narrow-waisted suborder Apocrita of the order Hymenoptera which is neither a bee nor an ant; this excludes the broad-waisted sawflies (Symphyta), which look somewhat like wasps, but are in a separate suborder. ...
tend to be considerably wealthier
and better educated than most other religious groups in America,
[Irving Lewis Allen, "WASP—From Sociological Concept to Epithet," ''Ethnicity,'' 1975 154+] and are disproportionately represented in the upper reaches of American
business, law and politics, and for many years were especially dominant in the
Republican Party. Numbers of the
wealthiest and most affluent American families, such as the
Vanderbilts
The Vanderbilt family is an American family who gained prominence during the Gilded Age. Their success began with the shipping and railroad empires of Cornelius Vanderbilt, and the family expanded into various other areas of industry and philanthr ...
and
Astors,
Rockefeller Rockefeller is a German surname, originally given to people from the village of Rockenfeld near Neuwied in the Rhineland and commonly referring to subjects associated with the Rockefeller family. It may refer to:
People with the name Rockefeller f ...
, who were Baptists,
Du Pont,
Roosevelt
Roosevelt may refer to:
*Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919), 26th U.S. president
* Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945), 32nd U.S. president
Businesses and organisations
* Roosevelt Hotel (disambiguation)
* Roosevelt & Son, a merchant bank
* Rooseve ...
,
Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...
,
Fords,
Mellons,
Whitneys, the
Morgans and Harrimans are Episcopalian and Presbyterian families.
Through the 1940s and 1950s,
neo-orthodoxy
In Christianity, Neo-orthodoxy or Neoorthodoxy, also known as theology of crisis and dialectical theology, was a theological movement developed in the aftermath of the First World War. The movement was largely a reaction against doctrines of ...
had become the prevailing theological approach within the mainline churches. This neo-orthodox consensus, however, gave way to resurgent liberal theologies in the 1960s and to
liberation theology
Liberation theology is a Christian theological approach emphasizing the liberation of the oppressed. In certain contexts, it engages socio-economic analyses, with "social concern for the poor and political liberation for oppressed peoples". I ...
during the 1970s.
See also
*
Nicene Creed, sometimes called the "mainstream Christianity"
References
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* Hollinger, David A. ''Protestants Abroad: How Missionaries Tried to Change the World but Changed America'' (2017
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