Protestant pastors are seeing a new form of idolatry taking hold of their congregations.
The churchgoers idolize comfort, security, money or the approval of others, according to a survey of Protestant church pastors.
More than half of pastors surveyed cited each of those as potential idols, with comfort topping the list at 67%.
At the other end of the spectrum, only two in five pastors said politics was an “idol” for their congregants, a number that rises to 55% when considering only responses from clergy aged 18 to 44. A total of 72% of that same younger cohort said “control or security” was a temptation for their church members.