Getting the Information You Need
"George Gallup, Jr."
If a pastor wants to nudge people toward changes in their opinions, I suggest the bottom-up theory. There's tremendous power to sustain the church if you start with a good nucleus and move out through groups.
—George Gallup, Jr. I majored in religion at Princeton University and intended to go into the Episcopal clergy. Toward that end I worked one summer in a church in Galveston, Texas. It was a black church with a white rector for the first time in nearly one hundred years. My job was to help him run the summer Bible school, the baseball team, and similar activities. It was a great experience. Indeed if I were yet to go into the ministry—and I sometimes still long for it—I would want to serve in such a setting. The rector I worked with was instrumental in breaking down racial barriers in the church. While weighing the choice of ministry or survey research (my father's field), I realized that research gave me much of what I was looking for in ministry: a way to help people. It could give voice to the voiceless and help churches of all denominations reach people better. Some people say religion is a private, internal matter that can't or shouldn't be scrutinized by research. I disagree, and I conduct research into religion for three reasons. One is sociological: The spiritual or religious element in American life is a key determinant in our behavior—in some respects more so than education, political affiliation, or age. If you want to understand society, you need to understand the religious dynamic. Second is a practical reason: If ministers want to minister to people, they need to know what the challenges are, what they have to do. Surveys can help them focus their efforts. Third is the religious reason. If there is a God looking ...
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