The Weekly is a highlight of the work the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission is doing to strengthen you and our churches for God’s glory.

Why Americans Go—or Don’t Go—to Religious Services

About a third of Americans (36 percent) say they attend religious services at least once a week, and nearly the same percentage (30 percent) say they seldom or never attend religious services. A recent survey by Pew Research asked the reasons why people choose to attend such events—and why they avoid them.

The survey asked U.S. adults who say they attend religious services at least once or twice per month about 10 possible reasons they may do so. The vast majority of regular attenders say becoming “closer to God” is a very important (81 percent) or somewhat important (13 percent) reason for attending services.

This Week at the ERLC

• One of our favorite parts of the year is welcoming a new class of interns for six weeks during the summer in Nashville and D.C. This year, we had individuals from Princeton, Union University, and Talbot, to name a few. Each of our interns provided valuable research, writing, and administrative skills to our team. If you or someone you know is interested in learning more about our internship program, visit our internship page. 

What You Need to Know

• Matthew Richardson, who interned for the ERLC’s Nashville office this summer, became a Christian while still battling drug addiction. His pastor, wisely and gently, counseled him in four important ways that have helped him walk in freedom and minister to others: a gospel hope, a gospel response, avoid triggers, and a gospel community. Read his article here

• Bradenton, Florida, is an area where the tragedy of opioid use and overdoses has hit hard. That’s why Sam Rainer wrote about how his church has been dubbed “the herion church” as they’ve intentionally ministered to their neighbors with the love and help of Christ:

“Churches are not islands in the community, set up to isolate believers from the ails of society. The walls of the church are not protective barriers to community problems. Quite the opposite—the church should be the vehicle by which people are sent into the hardest, darkest parts of the neighborhood.”

News From Capitol Hill

• Matt Hawkins and Travis Wussow visited the State Department this week to interview Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom, Sam Brownback, for an upcoming episode of the Capitol Conversations podcast. They discussed last week’s Ministerial and the case of Andrew Brunson, an American pastor jailed and now on house arrest in Turkey. Amb. Brownback on Pastor Brunson’s family:

“You get to witness in them the definition of amazing grace. His wife wants her husband to be free. She trusts God.”

• The ERLC continues to advocate for a technical fix for the church parking taxation issue in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The landmark legislation cut taxes and simplified the code for American families and businesses, but it also includes a provision that would entangle the IRS and nonprofits—including churches—for the first time in the nation’s history. Representative Mark Walker (R–N.C.) introduced H.R. 6460, the Lessening Impediments From Taxes (LIFT) for Charities Act in July to address this issue, and yesterday Senator James Lankford (R–Okla.) introduced a companion bill in the Senate.

Featured Podcasts

From the public square

US sanctions two top Turkish officials over pastor's detention, blowing open divisions between allies
Conor Finnegan, ABC News

The U.S. is sanctioning two senior Turkish officials over the ongoing detention of an American pastor, whose case has ripped open the deep divides in the two countries' alliance.

How technology could preserve abortion rights
Mohana Ravindranath and Renuka Rayasam, Politico 

Telemedicine prescriptions could undercut state abortion restrictions.

The State Department’s Ministerial on Religious Freedom: Reflections and the Path Ahead
Ian Speir, Providence​

Nothing like this Ministerial has ever been convened before and it represents a small but important shift in US foreign policy thinking. 

How more permissive attitudes to porn may impact marriage
Alysse ElHage, Mercatornet​

A recent Gallup poll finds a significant jump in acceptance.

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