GROVE CITY — Although many Americans find serenity in attending churches, some experts, including Martin Luther King Jr., have considered the church to be one of the most segregated institutions in the country.

At a discussion held Thursday at Grove City College, Steven Jones, a sociology professor at the college, said overcoming this could be difficult.

“I think the challenges here are much bigger than we sometimes assume,” Jones said.

Jones said the standard definition for church diversity is when no one group of a congregation makes up 80 percent of the membership.

“By that standard, the story is actually pretty bleak,” Jones said, saying that only 8 percent of U.S. congregations could be considered diverse.

He said that mainline Protestant churches, on average, are made up of 2 percent to 3 percent minority members. Evangelical churches are 8 percent to 9 percent minorities. Catholic churches are 20 percent minorities, but Jones said minority members are concentrated in certain areas.

Jones said that 50 percent of congregations in the U.S. are made up of one racial group.

Jones also said of all settings in which people of one race talk with someone of another race, the church congregation is the least likely to produce an interaction.

Neighborhoods factor into the equation as well. Jones said that most people will attend church close to their home, due to the “freeway effect,” which states that most people will not cross a major highway to attend church.

Jones said African Americans, Hispanic Americans and Asian Americans are the most likely to live in racially uniform neighborhoods. Additionally, three quarters of whites live in neighborhoods that are more than 75 percent white.

And, because most people attend churches in their own neighborhoods, Jones said congregations may need to look beyond where they are located for diversity.

“I think that factors into the story here,” Jones said. “The neighborhood thing can be surpassed.”

There can be cultural differences, too, such as language issues and differences in music and worship style.

Minority members also are more likely to stop attending when a difficult congregational issue arises.

He said that, in addition to race and ethnicity, there are other, less noted types of diversity. This includes diversity of age and finances.

“I think this notion of diversity is a little subjective,” Jones said. “Diversity can mean a lot of different things.”

Jones said there are a few ways to look into solving the issue, besides looking beyond the neighborhoods churches are in.

“Some denominations are going to have an easier time than others,” Jones said, noting that 63 percent of blacks self-identify as Baptist, while only 27 percent of whites do.

He cited a study by sociologists Christian Smith and Michael Emerson, who interviewed evangelical congregations about race.

Smith and Emerson noted that white Evangelicals did not think there was a problem with diversity in their congregation if they were not personally racist.

“I think humility is going to be critical here,” Jones said.

Jones said he would like to see churches hold open forums discussing race. Additionally, Jones said he would like to see congregational partnerships between churches that go beyond just sharing money.

“Is it hopeless? Well, I hope not. But I think it will take some soul searching,” Jones said.

Another important thing, Jones said, is for the congregation to go beyond not actively discriminating against minorities to actively welcoming them.

“I think that’s a profound challenge,” Jones said.