The "ReligiousInsite Report 2021" offers a deep dive into the beliefs and attitudes of Mississippians, and the findings should push us to reflect on the current state of the church, particularly the Methodist Church. What stands out most is the disconnection between personal belief and active participation in the life of the church. While most people in our state express faith in God, including a strong belief in God’s love and personal relationship with Jesus, 74.4% of respondents are not involved in a religious congregation or community. This data should raise alarms for us. It points to a crisis—not just of attendance but of discipleship. The problem is not that people have ceased to believe; it's that they no longer see the church as central to living out that belief.
This is where we need to take a serious look at our Methodist roots. John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, emphasized that faith without works is dead and built a rigorous system around that belief. Wesley’s standards for attendance and involvement were not about legalism but about creating a framework for genuine discipleship. His classes and societies were designed to foster accountability, mutual support, and growth in personal holiness. Wesley’s method was simple but effective: to be a Methodist was not just to claim belief in Christ but to actively live that belief out through regular participation, discipline, and service to others. He understood that if we are to live as Christ’s disciples in the world, we first need to grow as Christ’s disciples in our personal lives and communities.
One of the central aspects of Wesley’s vision was regular attendance and participation. Wesley didn’t just call people to show up for worship on Sunday; he insisted on attending classes, societies, and small group meetings. He aimed to ensure that Methodists were constantly engaged in their faith and growing through fellowship, prayer, and study of the Scriptures. Wesley knew that if you weren’t being spiritually fed and held accountable regularly, you were far more likely to slip into a faith that was shallow and disconnected from daily life. He believed that without discipline, all his work would be lost. This is why Wesley took a firm stance on non-attendance. He once wrote to William Holmes that he should "exclude every person that will not promise to meet with his or her class." (Spare the Rod and Spoil the Church, n.d.)
For Wesley, the discipline of attending was non-negotiable because it was there that the real spiritual growth happened, where accountability was built, and where believers were nurtured in their faith. Wesley even went so far as to order one of his assistants to remove a leader who did not meet these standards, even if it meant losing 40 members. Wesley understood that allowing slackness in discipline would weaken the entire community. He also recognized that many people wouldn’t attend traditional church services, which is why he believed the church needed to go to the people, bringing them into the fold through small groups, personal interactions, and the intentional pursuit of spiritual growth.
This brings us back to the findings of the report. How can we be surprised that so many people in our community hold private beliefs but fail to be active participants in the life of the church? If we have moved away from the rigorous standards of our Methodist heritage, can we really expect people to understand the importance of deep, personal discipleship? Wesley’s method was designed to make faith a living, breathing reality in people’s daily lives, not just something they believe in on Sundays. The very word “Methodist” comes from Wesley’s insistence on a methodical, disciplined approach to faith. In moving away from that, we risk losing the heart of what makes our tradition unique and powerful.
In addition to attendance, Wesley placed significant emphasis on the vows taken at baptism, which mark the beginning of a Christian’s journey. Baptismal vows in Methodism aren’t just symbolic; they are a commitment to renounce sin, embrace the life of Christ, and live out the mission of the church. Wesley took these vows seriously because he understood that the promises made at baptism weren’t just about the individual—they were about how the church community holds each member accountable to live out those vows. If we, as a church, are not consistently reminding people of these vows, how can we expect them to live into their full meaning? When we let go of Wesley’s emphasis on the seriousness of baptismal vows, we reduce the transformative power of what it means to be a follower of Christ.
This decline in active involvement and discipleship directly impacts our ability to affect the greater world. The report highlights the moral values that people still hold dear, such as the belief that strong families are key to social stability and the importance of tolerance and justice. These values align with Christian teachings, but without a robust personal discipleship process, how can we expect people to live out these values in ways that truly reflect Christ’s love and justice? Wesley knew that before we can transform the world, we must first allow the Holy Spirit to transform us. Personal discipleship—growing in holiness, understanding the Scriptures, and being in accountable relationships with other Christians—is the foundation for any meaningful engagement with the broader world. How can we expect to form others if we are not spiritually formed?
Wesley’s commitment to personal holiness and social justice is the blueprint for bridging the gap between belief and action that this report reveals. But we cannot start with justice and mission in the world if we haven’t laid the foundation in our own spiritual lives. If we look at Wesley’s model, we see that revival always began with personal renewal—individuals recommitting to prayer, Bible study, and regular worship. Once that personal renewal took root, it naturally spilled over into society. Wesley and the early Methodists made a tremendous impact on issues like poverty, education, and healthcare because they were first rooted in a strong foundation of personal holiness. They didn’t just act out of good intentions; they acted out of a deep spiritual wellspring that was constantly being replenished through their disciplines of faith.
The key to rekindling that kind of vibrant discipleship lies in returning to the rigorous standards Wesley set. We must hold ourselves and each other accountable to regular worship attendance, participating in small groups for spiritual growth, and living out our baptismal vows in ways evident in our daily lives. If we do not take this seriously, we will continue to see the gap between belief and action widen, and the church’s voice in society will continue to diminish.
The "ReligiousInsite Report" challenges us to recognize the dissonance between personal faith and public discipleship. It reminds us that while people may still believe in God’s love, they are missing the structures and support systems that help them live out that belief in meaningful ways. This is where Methodism’s roots provide such a valuable framework. Wesley understood that spiritual growth doesn’t happen in isolation, nor does it happen without discipline. We must return to a methodical approach to our faith—one that emphasizes regular participation, accountability, and a deep commitment to the vows we have taken in baptism.
If we can reclaim these roots, we will be better equipped to engage the pressing social and moral issues of our time. Whether it’s addressing economic justice, racial reconciliation, or the breakdown of the family, we must first ensure that we are deeply rooted in the practices of our faith. Only then can we be the agents of change God has called us to be. Wesley’s vision for the church was one where personal holiness and social action were not separate but deeply intertwined. To live out that vision today, we must recommit to the practices of personal discipleship and community accountability that Wesley laid out so clearly.
The world is waiting for the church to be the church, but before we can answer that call, we must first do the hard work of deepening our faith and renewing our commitment to discipleship. The answer to the disconnection we see in the report is not more programs or events; it is a return to the basics of what it means to be a follower of Christ. Let us take up the mantle that Wesley left us, and let us do so with the same zeal for personal and social holiness that marked the early Methodists. If we do, we will not only see a revival within our own congregations but also a renewed impact on the world around us.