ORLANDO, Fla. — A recent study released by the Survey Center on American life shows nearly one out of three Americans say they have stopped attending religious services since the COVID-19 pandemic began.
What You Need To Know
- One in three say they stopped attending services since the COVID-19 pandemic began
- Before the pandemic the number was one in four
- Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, religious identities in Americans remain practically the same
The Survey Center of American Life is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that dedicates itself to understanding the way cultural, political and technological changes are now shaping the lives of Americans.
Some local pastors in Central Florida say they are seeing the same dip at their churches.
“It’s heart wrenching, because I take seriously the word that tells us to forsake for not assembling of ourselves together,” Pastor Leonard Wilson from the St. Matthews Missionary Baptist church in Sanford says. “I’m presently now struggling, with getting my people back to bible study in person.”
Stay at home mom Jennifer Friedline has had the same Sunday morning plans all her life.
“Growing up my family went to church every Sunday,” Longwood resident Jennifer Friedline begins to explain. “It’s a pattern my husband and I have had since childhood, we chose to continue forward with it for our family.”
In a way, you can say going to church is her happy place.
“We don’t see church just as something we do on Sundays,” Friedline says pointing at a calendar filled with her church’s events. “We see church as a community that we are a part of.”
The family calendar includes not just after school activities, but all the events and prayer groups at the Lifepoint Christian Church in Longwood.
The only thing that ever prevented them from attending any of their church's events in person, was the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It was disappointing to not be able to meet in person,” Friedline admits. “But our church has an amazing online presence.”
As her church shifted its approach, so did the Friedlines. Dressing in Sunday’s best shifted to Sunday comfy’s on their couch with the remote watching services on YouTube. The family would watch their Sunday service eating breakfast while still in their pajamas.
Before the pandemic began, roughly one in four Americans reported they did not attend church.
Dr. Charles Parrish is the lead pastor at First Baptist Sweetwater in Longwood. He has worked in different churches over parts of four decades. At his church he says nine out of ten have come back, and that seems to be the cap. He does say new membership however is on the rise.
“The people who were Sunday only kind of people not a lot of real commitment, they are the ones who at this church or any other church didn’t come back after covid,” Pastor Parrish states.
And on the flip side, those that were heavily involved have come back, and continue too. The Friedline’s were some of the first to return at Lifepoint.
“My husband and I talked about whether we were ready to go back right away when the church opened back up,” Friedline recalls. “We may have lagged a week or two, but we were ready.”
Parrish as well as Lifepoint and other churches in the area admit that despite the dip in church attendance, donations are up. A big reason for that is the simplified process for donating, either by setting up direct payments, or by using a credit card as oppose to needing cash for in person donations.
The doors to churches are now open, the question remains if everyone will come back, or smaller in person attendance on Sunday’s, is the new normal?
Aside from attendance being down due to COVID-19, the study from the Survey Center on American Life did show that despite the Covid pandemic, religious identities in Americans remained practically the same across the board.