There are many similarities and a few interesting differences in the religious backgrounds of Presbyterians across racial-ethnic groups. About four in ten white, African-American, and Korean members, and half of Hispanic members, were raised in the Presbyterian church. Those not raised as Presbyterians were raised in a wide variety of other faith traditions. Among the white majority, the most common other denominations mentioned were Methodist (16 percent), Baptist (10 percent), and Lutheran (6 percent). Among African- American members, 36 percent were raised as Baptists, and 11 percent in either the African Methodist Episcopal or African Methodist Episcopal Zion church. Hispanics who were not raised as Presbyterians were most likely to report growing up in the Roman Catholic church (31 percent). Two in ten Korean members were raised as Buddhists (19 percent), 9 percent were raised as Methodists, and 7 percent were raised as Confucianists. Interestingly, only among Korean members do a notable number (11 percent) report being raised outside any faith tradition; among the other racial-ethnic groups no more than 4 percent were raised outside any church.
| PCUSA Members | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| African- | White | ||||
| American | Hispanic | Korean | Non-Hisp. | ||
| Raised Presbyterian | 37% | 51% | 44% | 44% | |
| Average years a Presbyterian | 24 | 15 | 10 | 24 | |
| Avg. years member of current congregation | 19 | 14 | 7 | 14 | |
| Spouse raised Presbyterian | 20% | 24% | * | 33% | |
| Spouse currently Presbyterian | 67% | 75% | * | 90% | |
| Spouse member of same congregation | 64% | 72% | 88% | 88% | |
| Median size of congregation | 138 | 105 | 123 | 500 | |
| Median distance from congregation (in miles) | 3 | 3 | 10 | 3 | |
Korean members, and to some extent Hispanic members, are relative newcomers to the Presbyterian Church. White and African-American members have been affiliated with the denomination an average (median) of 24 years; Hispanic members, 15 years; and Korean members, just 10 years. Note that almost all Korean Presbyterians are foreign-born, having lived in the U.S. an average of just 18 years.
In terms of membership in their current congregations, however, the relative longevity of African-American members stands out (19 years). White and Hispanic members average 14 years as members of their current congregations, while Korean members average just 7 years. The larger discrepancy between time as a Presbyterian and time in their current congregations for white members suggests greater congregational switching among this group than among any of the other racial-ethnic groups.
Fewer spouses were raised in the Presbyterian Church than the members themselves. The biggest difference is found for Hispanic members--while one- half of Hispanic members were raised Presbyterians, just one-quarter of their spouses were.
Nonetheless, the majority of spouses in each group are currently Presbyterian, ranging from two-thirds of the spouses of African-American members to 90 percent of the spouses of white members. Furthermore, most members and their spouses belong to the same congregation.
In general, racial-ethnic members attend smaller congregations than do white Presbyterians. While only 6 percent of white members attend congregations with less than 100 members, 28 percent of African-American members, 35 percent of Hispanic members, and 37 percent of Korean members do. About 40 percent of all PCUSA congregations have less than 100 members. It is also interesting to note that racial-ethnic members are less likely than white Presbyterians to indicate that they don't know their congregation's size.
On average, Presbyterians--including those who are white, African American, or Hispanic--travel three miles or less from their home to the church. Koreans, on the other hand, average a ten-mile trip to church. In fact, one-quarter of Korean Presbyterians travel more than 15 miles to church. Fewer than one in ten in the other groups lives that far from their congregation. In the next article, we'll present additional information about the similarities and differences among these groups.
If you're interested in a 4-page summary, Send a $3 check (payable to, and in care of) Research Services, PC(USA) at the 100 Witherspoon address in Louisville, request the Racial-Ethnic Presbyterian Summary.
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