Over the years we've conducted a great number of studies on religion and values, including of course, the reasons that people give for attending - or not attending - church, which reminds me of a story:

This is about a mother and her son who were at the breakfast table, and they were arguing about whether or not the son should go to church. The son said, "Well, I can think of two good reasons why I shouldn't go to church: First of all, the people at church don't like me very much, and secondly, I don't like them very much."

Whereupon the mother said, "Well, I can think of two good reasons why you should go: First of all, you're 45 years old, and secondly, they pay you to be the pastor of the church!"

On a more somber note, as we observe society today there is ample reason to be gloomy. Douglas Lawson writes this about present-day America in his book Give to Live:

"All is not well in Camelot. Millions of Americans are profoundly unhappy with their lives. Many are isolated, unconnected, adrift, lost. Family ties are tenuous. Divorce, disease and debt race like plagues through city and suburbs. Tension, aggression and the scramble to survive take a terrible toll. Marital and family problems, health problems, work problems, failures, financial setbacks, loneliness and despair seem to form an endless river threatening to submerge us. Hostility, crime and alienation seem to outpace progress."

Certain basic and underlying trends give us real cause for concern, including the following:

We appear to live in an addicted society - addicted not only to chemicals, but to possessions, to success, to wealth and to an easy and self-indulgent lifestyle. In a sense, every human being is addicted in some way.

Six out of every ten new marriages will end in divorce. Divorce is an oddly neglected topic in a nation that has the worst record of broken marriages in the entire world. Divorce is a "root problem" in our country and is the cause of any number of other social ills.

We are physically detached from each other. We continue to move our places of residence frequently. One survey revealed that seven in ten do not know their neighbors. A wall exists between the privileged and underprivileged in our society, a wall built of ignorance, indifference, and perhaps to some extent, fear. And it is probably a safe assumption that we shall not really make any headway in overcoming certain social ills until we begin to break down this wall with direct, person to person kinds of relationships.

Loneliness is widespread. In fact, we are among the loneliest people in the entire world, we discovered in a Gallup International Study. As many as one-third of Americans admit to frequent periods of loneliness (by which we mean the absence of deep and meaningful relationships). Loneliness can have dire consequences, and we discovered in a recent survey that loneliness is the key factor in the high suicide rate among elderly people.

Privatism and rampant individualism contribute in a major way to a go-it-alone philosophy in religious matters, and other areas of life.

A depressing picture, yet there is, I believe, some profoundly good news, and I want to report to you now on a trend that may be contributing to a transformation of America. You will not read about this trend in our daily newspapers or on television, yet it is a powerful undercurrent in our society that, I believe, gives us cause for encouragement about the future!

This trend could be described as a sociological and spiritual phenomenon: Americans on a massive scale are rediscovering each other, and coming together regularly in small nourishing support groups, many with a spiritual dimension.

Our research reveals the great potential of such groups for both inner personal and social renewal. Large majorities of participants say that as a result of participation in small groups they are more open and honest with themselves, and better able to forgive others -- certainly a vital need in our society in which retribution too often seems to be the operative word.

When functioning at a deep spiritual level, small groups can be the vehicle for changing church life from the merely functional to the transformational. They can help meet two of the great desires of the American heart, particularly at this point in history: The desire to find deeper meaning in our world, where there is much darkness, and the desire to build deeper, more trusting relationships with other people in our impersonal and fragmented society.

The growth of these groups, involving close to half of the populace, and the intense searching for meaning in life, suggest that a widespread healing process may be underway in our society! We would appear to be a nation "in recovery," to use a term familiar to participants in 12-step groups. We have nearly "hit bottom," reaching the end of our emotional resources. And, as happens when an individual cries out for help, society looks for support in two directions - from closer, deeper, interpersonal relationships and to a "higher power," which for most Americans refers to a personal, approachable God who answers prayers.

These two great desires of the populace -- for deep meaningful community, and for a sense of God's plan for one's life -- represent an extraordinary opportunity for churches and other faith communities. If these desires are met, the vitality of our churches could well be the surprise of the next century!

Permit me to end on a personal note. What is the answer to society's basic needs? How are people's needs to be met? As a Christian I believe they are met in the Living Presence of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. I also firmly believe that as Christians we must honor people of different faiths - that if we do not do so, our theology turns to ashes.

Indeed, we discover in surveys that persons with the deepest faith in our society model this tolerance. Contrary to popular notion, the deeper one goes into one's personal faith, the more open or tolerant they become, rather than the less! These everyday Saints, about whom Tim Jones and I wrote in our book, The Saints Among Us, exhibit a joy about life and they are more giving and forgiving.

I believe that living as a Christian answers the perennial questions: "Why am I here?" and "What is the purpose of my life?" And I believe that it is important for one to try to come to a decision about Jesus Christ. Many people, it would appear, not so much disbelieve as sidestep the issue. A conscious decision is important, yet as we all know, Christianity is very much a growth experience. There is a sign over a monastery in Europe with these words: "Let us again today begin to be a Christian." Daily we must struggle, daily acknowledge our sins, repent and accept God's forgiveness through Jesus Christ.

Christian growth continues through a lifetime. One never "arrives". That is what makes the Christian life so exciting. God's plan for our lives is continually revealed -- revealed to us as we seek to grow in obedience to him.

I have personally found that I can try to grow best in the faith, life and mission of Jesus Christ through small groups called "Covenant Groups", in which we share stories of how God is working in our lives, reflect on Bible passages, and how these apply to our daily lives, and join together in deep prayer. It has been well said that, "Faith grows best in the presence of faith."

I would like to conclude my remarks today with a prayer:

Heavenly Father, we thank You, and we praise You for the wonderful ways you are entering and changing the lives of people from all walks of life. Through small groups and other ways, through people coming together on a deep level, sharing their stories of how you work in their lives. We thank you for those who are now no longer lonely - for those who have found new meaning in life, whose lives have been transformed through your grace. We thank You and praise You that lives -- all across the nation -- are being healed and restored. In the name of your Son, Jesus Christ, Amen.

Floyd Brown: You know, your name, Gallup, is probably one of the most widely-known in all of America, and perhaps all over the world. I think ever since I can recall I've seen the Gallup Polls somewhere and I would certainly value any information you brought forth, because it seems that it has research. You made a statement there that I want you to expand on. I think you said that in the next century they will be most surprised by the vitality of the church. Many people would perhaps disagree with you a little bit. Would you tell us about that vitality. Is it growing today, or is it diminishing?

George Gallup: I think many, many people would disagree with that statement, but I think the potential is fantastic because people are searching for deeper meaning, and they're searching for meaningful relationships with each other, and these go together. I think that we see these needs coming together in small groups.

The way to reach the American people is through the churches. In fact, in a given week, vastly more people are in church than are watching sporting events, for example.

Brown:  Where do the polls show me, then? I don't see that much out there. All I see in the press is the crowds they have at the ball games, the racetracks and what-have-you here, but the vitality of the church is not being expressed today.

Gallup: You're right, there's a long way to go and I think the real challenge to churches is to raise the level of Biblical knowledge, at least from a traditionalist or orthodox point of view. Because the stark fact is that most Americans don't know what they believe or why. Most Christians, for example, would be hard pressed to defend their faith. So the churches have an incredible job of religious education ahead.

That's one of the huge challenges, and the other -- and it's quite related -- is to remind people that there's more to religion than just the fruits of religion, just the comfort of religion. We're called on in sacrificial ways to reach out to the hurting people in our population. But that part of it is missed sometimes and what we have too often is sort of a free-floating spirituality which can go in any direction.

Typically people will build those things into their own faith that they construct themselves, that make them feel good, but don't challenge them. So it really ends up by serving no one and that's the threat to traditional churches, if you will.

Brown: You know, that brings another question to mind when you talk about the word "challenge". I like what you say about that. Christianity, I think, has reached its greatest heights -- church and the activities they have done -- when they have been challenged as a body. When the freedoms are taken away, when the opportunities are taken away. Or is it not being challenged enough today?

Gallup: I think it's beginning to change, because we are being challenged by our affluence and complacency, actually, in certain segments of society, so it's another kind of -- well, addiction is another word that we could use.

Addicted to riches, the fancy lifestyle etc., etc., though many people don't share that of course, but those are chains in a way, too. And I think people are realizing that, just as with a chemical addiction, you need to be broken before you can be restored. And I think churches need to emphasize the fact that churches are not, as somebody said, hotels for the saved, but hospitals for sinners. The people in the pews should realize that they share everything with the people outside the church in terms of desperate needs, and that churches should be places where stories can be told about what God is doing in people's lives and where lives can be changed.

Brown: You know, that's an excellent point. Right here in the Chicago area we have a church with 12-15,000 people a week coming through there, and it just continues to grow and grow because it has the vitality, but it has a little bit of a different approach to its services. They are more relevant; they seem to satisfy the needs or the challenges of the persons who are coming there. And maybe, if they raised their comfort level, somehow, of letting them in. But here they are going to 12-15,000 and many of the churches that have been around for a great deal of time have been dwindling. The congregations are moving.

What do you find that needs to be done? Is there any survey that says what is happening over here to make this guy more successful and you're not doing it? Is there something that we could help those people with?

Gallup:  Well I think you'll find at the very, very big churches that they have a lot of small groups, covenant groups and other sorts of things. Because the big church environment is too impersonal. So you'll find that what keeps those big churches going is a lot of cell groups, where people come together and pray and study the Bible and share their lives.

Brown: So the churches could do more of that. I want you to tell me about your cell group. You told us earlier about how you meet each week. What do you do at these meetings?

Gallup: Well I'm very, very excited about it. It's been the most important thing in my faith journey and my wife's faith journey. Basically we come together to share our lives and we come together to reflect upon the Bible, what it means to us in our daily lives. It's not really a head trip, it's a heart trip. And also these groups empower us for service to others. So it's really a transformational process. It's not a discussion group; it's an enriching group.

Brown: And your talk has been enriching, and your visit. Thank you so much for joining us on 30 Good Minutes.