“Sometimes it seems that our many words are more an expression of our doubt than our faith. It is as if we are not sure that God’s Spirit can touch the hearts of people: we have to help Him out and, with many words, convince others of His power. But it is precisely this wordy unbelief which quenches the fire.” – Henri Nouwen

As many of you know, I’m a proud introvert, and I truly enjoy the time I spend in my head. I’m also a strong believer in the Manifesto for Introverts included in the awesome book by Susan Cain, Quiet. I’m not afraid to cross the street to avoid making small talk.

I’m also a Christian who used to be a Southern Baptist until they went a little off track with their involvement in U.S. politics and their refusal to address sexual abuse in the church. “Deeds, not words” was what I expected from them, and they didn’t deliver, so I moved on.

When I saw the title of the book I’m about to discuss, I told myself, “I have to read it.” Introverts in the Church by Adam S. McHugh is a breath of fresh air and a great addition to the discussion about introverts and our place in this world. The book is a little over 200 pages and was first published in 2009, before Susan Cain’s book. Of course, her book had a broader impact because of its wider focus. My copy is the second edition, published in 2017.

The book does an excellent job addressing the tendency within the church to lean toward the extroverted side, often alienating introverts. These tendencies are most evident in some Protestant denominations, such as Baptists and Pentecostals, where loud services and high-energy interactions are the norm.

I know I struggled with this for years. After faking extroversion during the week in my military career, I found myself needing to save some of that same energy for Sundays. Exhausting, if you ask me. I’m not sure why we feel the need to attend what resembles a rock concert every Sunday, but that seems to be what’s “in” in some Christian circles. I don’t see that in the New Testament, but that’s a conversation for another day.

The book has nine chapters: The Extroverted Church, The Introverted Difference, Finding Healing, Introverted Spirituality, Introverted Community and Relationships, Can Introverts Lead?, Leading as Ourselves, Introverted Evangelism, and Introverts in the Church.

The first two chapters were the most helpful; the rest of the book seemed more directed toward church leadership and people who want to be deeply involved in the church as an organization—at least, that was my impression.

I think the author is spot on when he says, “In most evangelical circles, three theological anchors—an intimate relationship with God through Jesus, the centrality of the written Word of God, and active personal evangelism—are often expressed in strikingly extroverted ways” (p. 22).

I have to agree. Some people are just too loud about those three anchors. Some extroverted Christians are loud in their writing and unbelievably loud in how they speak. Even when what they are saying is incorrect, they seem to believe that volume equals truth.

If you add the idea that, in order to be godly, you must be highly sociable, it becomes clear why so many introverts struggle to fit into church life. Psychology professor Richard Beck notes that some churches equate spirituality with sociability (p. 23).

I also liked what the author says about church services in some denominations:

“Whereas in some church traditions you enter a sanctuary in a spirit of quiet reverence, in evangelical churches you walk into what feels like a nonalcoholic cocktail party” (p. 24).

I would have said “an alcoholic cocktail party,” because that’s what it sometimes feels like—but I suppose the author is trying to keep it clean.

Here’s what he writes about the historical roots of this shift in the United States:

“The First Great Awakening (1730–1755) led to the founding of several elite colleges, such as Princeton and Dartmouth. The Second Great Awakening (1790–1840) introduced an anti-intellectual bent to evangelical Christianity… emphasized that conversion must be an experience in order to be authentic… A wedge was driven between the emotions and the intellect, a divide that would endure for generations of evangelicals” (p. 27).

I added the time frames for clarification. Dr. Mark Noll explores this topic in detail in his excellent book, The Scandal of the Evangelical Mind. McHugh includes the following quote from Noll regarding evangelical culture:

“To put it most simply, the evangelical ethos is activistic, populist, pragmatic, and utilitarian. It allows little space for broader or deeper intellectual effort because it is dominated by the urgencies of the moment” (p. 29).

Here’s how Eugene Peterson, an American Presbyterian minister, scholar, and theologian, put it:

“American religion is conspicuous for its messianically pretentious energy, its embarrassingly banal prose, and its impatiently hustling ambition” (p. 30).

So remember this part of the review when you hear government officials talk about Christianity in the way they do—the consequence of that anti-intellectual shift that began in the late 1700s.

Chapter two begins with descriptions of introversion from Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung.

Freud described introversion as “an unhealthy self-preoccupation…a pathological step toward narcissism” (p. 36). Ouch—that hurt.

Here’s how Jung described it as “an introspective orientation, wherein a person finds primary energy within the self. Extroversion, on the other hand, is an outward orientation, where an individual finds primary energy outside of the self in the surrounding world” (p. 37). Ah—much better.

You can probably guess which one I prefer.

Then I read this passage, and my heart jumped with joy:

“One of the big mistakes extroverts make is to assume that if someone is not engaged with another person, that individual is simple not busy. So, it’s okay to interrupt someone sitting and reading because that person is probably reading only because there’s no one else with whom she can talk. You can only imagine what an extrovert thinks of someone who is sitting there not even reading but merely reflecting. Clearly that person needs to be put to some more useful task—such as listening to the extrovert’s thoughts of the moment.” (p. 43)

In page 46, the author summarizes introvert attributes: we relax alone, need rest after social activities, often listen more than we speak but can talk at length about meaningful topics, tend to think before acting, have strong powers of concentration, dislike small talk, and often prefer written communication, among other traits.

On pages 49–50, he highlights something fascinating about the brain. According to some studies, there are three significant physiological differences between introverts and extroverts:

First, introverts have naturally busier, more active brains.

Second, blood flows differently—introverts’ brains are more active in areas related to internal processing (memory, problem-solving, planning), while extroverts’ brains are more active in areas tied to external sensory experiences.

Third, there are chemical differences—extroverts rely more on dopamine, which supports quick thinking and high stimulation, while introverts rely more on acetylcholine, which promotes reflection and energy conservation.

In the remaining chapters, the author highlights areas that can help introverts grow in their Christian life, such as contemplative spirituality and embracing natural rhythms—identifying when we feel most energized and which habits support that. He also discusses rest cycles, study, reflective reading, journaling, and writing.

He then goes into detail about how introverts can be productive members of the Christian community, including evangelism, and what church leaders can do to ensure introverts are included in leadership, programs, group studies, and services.

Overall, this is an excellent book for introverts who are Christians. It’s also a valuable resource for extroverts in our churches so they can better understand us—and especially for church leaders. They need to be more in tune with the needs of introverts, who I would argue make up at least half of most congregations. There are many Christians quietly faking their energy levels every Sunday, and church leaders should recognize that—and do something about it.

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About the author:¹

Adam McHugh is the author of several books including Blood from a Stone and Introverts in the Church. He has worked as a hospice chaplain and as a sommelier. He is probably the only writer to have been published in both Psychology Today and Wine Enthusiast. He lives in the Santa Ynez Valley on the California central coast.

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1. https://www.google.com/books/edition/Introverts_in_the_Church/2PItDwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0 ↩︎

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