Church attendance declines locally, nationally

Jul. 2—Whether people are too consumed with work, or family, or for myriad other reasons, church attendance is on a decline locally and nationally, and it leaves faith leaders wondering.

"It seems like people have work as a priority rather than their spiritual life," said Beatriz Colon by way of her daughter Daniela Galicia translating for her. Colon is the "first lady" or pastor's wife of her church Faith, Hope and Love in Jesus Christ in Le Sueur, Galicia said.

"There's nothing much we can do aside from pray and show how important it is to have a spiritual life and attend church," Colon said via Galicia. "That way, when difficult times come, they can be prepared that God loves them and is willing to help."

Roger Wolsey, pastor at Centenary United Methodist Church in Mankato, said he saw a big crowd at church last Sunday, but attributes that to people wanting to meet him, the new pastor. As for regular church attendance, it's down there too, Wolsey said.

"There is indeed a decrease in the average attendance in person on Sunday morning," he said, noting church records indicate that before the pandemic, his church saw an average of 150 attendees on Sundays. Now that number has fallen to 95.

Nationally, church attendance also has declined, with media reporting that attendance is down among Protestants from 44% to 40%, as well as among Catholics from 37% to 30% since 2020. The two are the largest faith groups in the United States.

This is nothing new, but does give one pause, said Sarah Ruble, Gustavus Adolphus College dean and professor of religion. She attributes the church attendance decline to a few factors, including that people overall are less civic minded than they have been in past generations. Participation downturns are seen everywhere from bowling leagues to Kiwanis groups, she said.

Also, our current societal culture is strongly individualistic, Ruble said, and people feel they can "make it" on their own without needing church as a go-to for support.

"Church attendance has been declining for a number of decades," she said. "It's been happening for a while. This is an area historians of religion have been talking about for a while. We're trying to sort through why this is happening. I think there's a number of reasons."

Americans still believe in God, and in prayer, but aren't convinced they need to do that in the company of other people. Further damaging churchgoers' allegiance has been the scandals within the religious community, Ruble said, which may have caused faithful followers to step back and question their devotion to a particular church or reputation-damaged church leader.

"There are some people who just don't trust organized religion," she said. "They might be religious, but they're not going to go to an institution to live that out."

What's more, people are waiting longer to get married and have kids, and there's a strong correlation between being married with kids and attending church, Ruble said.

Pastor Jay Dahlvang, of Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Mankato, said numbers at his church are down, too, and he thinks it's for a variety of reasons. People are busier, some work weekends, youth sports are a big drain on people's time and people travel a lot, he said.

"I do think the church needs to take a good, hard look and say, 'Why are we not meeting the needs of the community? What is it that they're looking for that they're not finding here?'"

However, it's not all sobering news, Dahlvang said, adding that those who remain in the church are more committed than ever to the ministry and mission. "We do have fewer people, but those who are here are deeply engaged in the life of the church."

That's where we can find hope, Dahlvang said. Big buildings with lots of programs and staff are probably in the past, and churches need to adapt and figure out ways to serve that resonate with today's religion-minded people. But there will "always be a church," he said.

"There will always be people who gather around the gospel of Jesus Christ," he said. "It will probably be smaller. This model we've known for many, many years is declining, and we're all waiting to see what's next and we're working in the community to find out what people need."

The Rev. Tim Reker, of St. Joseph the Worker in Mankato and Holy Family in Lake Crystal, said the steep decline seen in church attendance during COVID is starting to rebound.

Attendance at his Masses is now back to close to what it was pre-pandemic, he said.

The liturgy and mass remain relevant to people, and many who missed seeing their church family during COVID are back to church and just as engaged as ever before, he said.

"We are taking steps to invite people back and to encourage people to renew their understanding and commitment to worship and being a part of the body of Christ," Reker said.