Church abuse is the chief obstacle to Australians believing in Christianity, according to a national online survey of more than 1000 people conducted by a Christian media group.
The Australian Communities Report said more than three-quarters of respondents, 76%, said church abuse was a “massive” or “significant” negative influence on their attitudes towards Christianity and church.
It said the top 10 “belief blockers” for Christianity were church abuse, hypocrisy, “judging others”, religious wars, suffering, issues around money, that it was “outdated”, Hell and condemnation, homosexuality and exclusivity.
The report also found that doctrines and practices about homosexuality were a “block” to belief for 69% of respondents, while those on Hell and condemnation (66%), the role of women (60%), suffering (60%) and science and evolution (57%) were also prominent obstacles.
I love the “judging others” whenever one encounters it. It’s just so lacking in self-referentiality.
I always take polls like this with a pinch of salt. You have to understand that the pollsters did not present the interviewees with a blank sheet of paper. They gave them a list and said ‘Tick the box’ (or number in order of importance) each of these reasons which explains why you do not trust the Church.