Social Characteristics of Evangelicals and Pentecostals

Claude Bovay, the author of the Swiss Census 2000 book entitled "Religionslandschaft in der Schweiz" (Religious Landscape in Switzerland), portrayed the social profile of "small Protestant churches".

Marriages, Divorces and "Living-in"
Forty-nine Percent of Evangelicals and Pentecostals residing in Switzerland who claim to be members of "small protestant churches" are married whereas "just" 1.7% live in with a partner of the opposite sex outside marriage. On the other hand, a striking 11.8% of members of the mainstream "Evangelisch-Reformierte Kirche" live in such a concubinage. 2 - 3% of affiliated members of small protestant churches are divorced. "Living in" and divorces are not encouraged in these churches which are - as far as I know - predominated by "born again Christians" of evangelical and pentecostal sorts. Couples who decide to be members of such churches usually share the conviction of faithfulness "till death them part" along with the church leaders, come what will. Although divorces do happen among their members, in most cases I know, it was the fact that one spouse could not relate to the deep christian conviction of the other that was stated as a main problem in marriage leading to divorce. Already divorced people find a deeper faith and new encouragment in many of these small churches.

Children
It is little surprising to me that the average evangelical or pentecostal woman has a constant 2 children (2.0 to be more accurate) throughout the four census results from 1970 up until 2000 (with meanwhile just 1.35 children per woman being born within the "Evangelisch-Reformierte Kirche"). About 63 - 66% of all Evangelicals and Pentecostals live as intact families in a household with children. This is the case for just 48.5% of the entire population of Switzerland.

Social and Professional Aspects
Members of such communities are more seldom jobless, as Bovay writes in his survey. He adds though that they tend to have a part-time job, especially women. A high portion of them (20%) have jobs in the area of health care or social welfare. About one third is into volunteer work whereas there are barely 13% found in the total population that claim to be volunteers of sorts more or less regularly.

May I add that Evangelicals and Pentecostals tend to be more healthy. But this is another story. On a personal note, I can only but testify that the more I trust in the living God who manifested himself in Jesus Christ, the more I experience my life being restored. This is by the way not primarily influenced by my religious affiliation.