With Hollywood increasingly churning out Christian films, new research indicates the majority of churchgoers are watching these movies. And, most notably, the plurality of these believers find faith-based entertainment helpful in spreading the Gospel.
According to Lifeway Research, 68% of Protestant churchgoers have watched a Christian film in the past year. While this is notable, the vast majority — 81% — also believe these movies are “effective evangelism tools.” The denominational breakdown for agreement with the statement “Christian movies are effective evangelism tools” offered further insight, with 84% of nondenominational and Baptist adherents agreeing. Plus, 75% of Lutherans, and 68% of Presbyterian/Reformed individuals said the same.
People with evangelical beliefs (90%) were far more likely than those without such beliefs (71%) to agree faith-based films are viable evangelistic tools.
So, how often are these films used for evangelistic purposes? Lifeway Research found 12% of churchgoers have invited a non-Christian to watch a faith-based film with them over the past year.
But the most surprising metric is that younger Christians aged 18-34 are the most likely (26%), as are 35-49 year-olds (21%), to have offered such an invitation. For comparison, just 8% of individuals aged 50-64 did the same. The results show there’s a thirst for faith-based messaging in entertainment. “It can be easy for Christian resource providers to design resources they hope are helpful, but Christian movies are something churchgoers want to see,” Scott McConnell, executive director of Lifeway Research, said in a statement announcing the results.
“They don’t assume every Christian movie is a fit for non-Christians they know, but they agree films can be an effective way to share the Gospel.” One final note: while 68% said they watched a Christian movie over the previous year, just 48% said the same of a secular movie. Researchers cautioned there were potentially some respondents who weren’t clear on the meaning of “secular” or who saw the term as pointing to movies with anti-Christian themes.
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