Across U.S., houses of worship struggle
to rebuild attendance
Associated Press,
by
David Crary
Original Article
Posted By: Ribicon,
12/19/2021 11:28:17 PM
When Westminster United Methodist Church in Houston resumed in-person services late last year, after a seven-month halt due to COVID-19, there were Sundays when only three worshippers showed up, according to the pastor, Meredith Mills. Since then, attendance has inched back up, but it’s still only about half the pre-pandemic turnout of 160 or 170, Mills estimates.(Snip)Among mainline Protestants, just 1% said in a May 2020 poll that they were attending in-person services at least once a week. In the new poll, 14% say they’re doing so now, compared to 16% who say they did in 2019.
Reply 1 - Posted by:
LadyHen 12/19/2021 11:47:34 PM (No. 1012620)
Maybe they shouldn't have told us NOT to go to Church and restricted the sacraments of the Lord God. Sorry FB and Zoom just didn't do it for us while we dealt with Covid. (And my family did.)
7 people like this.
Reply 2 - Posted by:
sanspeur 12/19/2021 11:59:49 PM (No. 1012628)
lemme see, mammon ain’t got a parish
4 people like this.
Reply 3 - Posted by:
HisHandmaiden 12/20/2021 12:31:30 AM (No. 1012656)
AP needs to do a little more research…
Bible churches trust Jesus Christ, His Word and our local Elders as to when to stay open.
Praise Him!
As we celebrate His birth,
Christmas love to a hurting world…
Matthew 1-2
8 people like this.
Reply 4 - Posted by:
Maggie2u 12/20/2021 12:39:57 AM (No. 1012661)
See article just above this one and maybe somebody can figure it out.
9 people like this.
Reply 5 - Posted by:
Lawsy0 12/20/2021 12:48:43 AM (No. 1012667)
That may be true for fill-the-pew at any cost churches. Or, some churches may be getting down to their ''fighting weight'' for the final battle. The woke churches will be completely filled the day after the episunagoge.
11 people like this.
Reply 6 - Posted by:
Northcross 12/20/2021 12:56:39 AM (No. 1012673)
Westminster UMC in Houston cannot possibly be a Christian Church since it has a woman pastor in direct violation of God's Word.
11 people like this.
Reply 7 - Posted by:
stablemoney 12/20/2021 12:59:03 AM (No. 1012675)
It is hard to be enthusiastic when the people are afraid you are going to give them covid, they disapprove of you in general, and many of them are Democrats.
9 people like this.
Reply 8 - Posted by:
ussjimmycarter 12/20/2021 1:12:10 AM (No. 1012681)
Was very disappointed with our new church! Never went! Looking for a new conservative MO Synod church sans “Contemporary Worship” with Hillsong Hymns! Yuk !
9 people like this.
Reply 9 - Posted by:
Rather Read 12/20/2021 1:34:25 AM (No. 1012682)
Attendance at Mass where I go is back to where it used to be. My parish priest isn't very woke. We have a lot of hispanics in our congregation and he never uses the term Latinx which they all hate.
7 people like this.
Reply 10 - Posted by:
Timber Queen 12/20/2021 2:43:38 AM (No. 1012691)
In Mendocino County they have never lifted the mask mandate for church services, although other counties did. I could go into a store, a theater or a casino without a mask, but I couldn't go to church. Now everything is a mask again. I cannot wear a mask for more than five or ten minutes due to a medical condition. We haven't attended Mass in person since the original "two-weeks to flatten the curve"; except for three times that TK gave into my whining, but the consequences were disastrous. We participate at Mass via YT from our Cathedral in Santa Rosa that has superb liturgy and often our bishop celebrates. I have found Spiritual Communion to be surprisingly intense, not at all the "consolation prize" for those unable to receive I once thought. I've often experienced the gift of tears at reception of the Eucharist, but now it is weekly event with varying degrees of intensity. However, I do long to be present for the Holy Sacrifice and dream of the day.
I hear attendance at our parish is about 3/4's of BC (Before Covid). Most of those missing are our elderly (not from death!). Ladies Guild started meeting back in July and we had our annual Christmas party in the hall. We even had a fundraiser raffle for a big Thanksgiving Basket. So our parish life is beginning again. Our pastor resumed Eucharistic Adoration last spring. I can go maskless because we average about six for Holy Hour. We all have our favorite spots for private prayer throughout the church and are well spaced. The others all wear their masks. My hour in front of Jesus are the most precious 60 minutes in my week. On Saturday the God-Man will be born to shepherd helpless humanity. Merry Christmas!
9 people like this.
Reply 11 - Posted by:
Strike3 12/20/2021 2:53:30 AM (No. 1012694)
Then there is the Catholic Church which began to commit suicide long before COVID through controversial support of illegal immigrants and installation of a communist Pope who played fast and loose with long-established tradition. You don't expect that your donations to the poor are going to the poor of other countries.
5 people like this.
Reply 12 - Posted by:
Trigger2 12/20/2021 3:43:41 AM (No. 1012711)
Churches did it to themselves - pedophilia, stealing church money, CRT, going against bible teachings, etc.
4 people like this.
Reply 13 - Posted by:
jsulman 12/20/2021 4:01:15 AM (No. 1012724)
No our church. We closed for a few weeks in the beginning but after our elders saw through the fear mongering we opened. Mask were always voluntary and we have grown by 30 percent. People wanted the Word, worship and fellowship that their churches would not provide. Some of stories we are hearing from people joining are heart breaking. One church actually segregated the congregation based on vaccination status. if you were not vaccinated you sat in a separate room with a TV.
6 people like this.
Reply 14 - Posted by:
ARKfamily 12/20/2021 6:29:22 AM (No. 1012791)
Healthy churches won't have a problem regaining attendance. Our church made their services available on-line and the majority of time they have been able to live stream also. God won't abandon us and will give us the resources necessary.
"God doesn't give us what we can handle, He helps us handle what we are given."
3 people like this.
Reply 15 - Posted by:
ARKfamily 12/20/2021 6:30:16 AM (No. 1012792)
By the way, I don't know the author of my last statement. . .
1 person likes this.
Reply 16 - Posted by:
Highlander 12/20/2021 7:12:17 AM (No. 1012833)
I quit going when all that wham-banging electric guitar and drums crap got started. If I wanted to hear heavy metal music, I would have gone to a stadium, not church. Plus the new hymns were just shallow and trite.
4 people like this.
Reply 17 - Posted by:
Toby Ten Bears 12/20/2021 7:17:13 AM (No. 1012839)
Some of it is because the mask came off what some of these Churches are... Evil in Christian clothing.
2 people like this.
Reply 18 - Posted by:
Jesuslover54 12/20/2021 7:39:39 AM (No. 1012870)
Many of these treasonous pastors are lucky they have a forgiving flock.
1 person likes this.
Reply 19 - Posted by:
anniebc 12/20/2021 7:42:56 AM (No. 1012875)
Yeah sure, blame it on covid. People watching "church" online probably saw the foolishness that they didn't see in real time when they were attending. I'd never knowingly set foot in a church with a woman pastor. There's no such thing.
3 people like this.
Reply 20 - Posted by:
WinterParker 12/20/2021 8:11:23 AM (No. 1012907)
"Fear not". Not.
2 people like this.
Reply 21 - Posted by:
petrichor 12/20/2021 8:49:30 AM (No. 1012966)
Any church that cancelled services showed a lack of faith.
3 people like this.
Reply 22 - Posted by:
MickTurn 12/20/2021 8:54:57 AM (No. 1012984)
Start actually preaching and respecting GOD, Jesus and the entire Bible, or go Woke, Broke and go to Hades!
2 people like this.
Reply 23 - Posted by:
dovestar 12/20/2021 9:05:14 AM (No. 1013002)
Meanwhile at the Traditional Latin Mass parish, it's standing room only. We've grown tremendously as many discovered us live streamed and unafraid. Deo gratias!
4 people like this.
Reply 24 - Posted by:
msjena 12/20/2021 9:09:30 AM (No. 1013009)
The woke churches are getting what they deserve. Their congregants have turned to St. Fauci. The church I attend is nearly back to normal attendance on Sundays.
2 people like this.
Reply 25 - Posted by:
JHHolliday 12/20/2021 9:42:43 AM (No. 1013044)
Like other posters said, my southern conservative Methodist Church is back to normal. Our Sunday school class Christmas party was last week...30 people and no masks. The woke churches are the ones in trouble and have been for several decades. Religious people don’t go to church for ‘social justice’ reasons. They go to worship and save their souls.
3 people like this.
Reply 26 - Posted by:
TXknitter 12/20/2021 11:42:35 AM (No. 1013216)
The churches I know who are filled up, growing and doing well financially are those whose pastors refused to do a low bow to local authority’s attempts to stop church during covid. They found ways around the tyranny and boldly kept preaching the Gospel, praying for the sick and ministering to the needs of people. They continue now to address the political tyranny of our present government, expose the stench of cowardly Republicans who remain silent in the face of evil and teach the flock to fight the spiritual battle being waged against America.
5 people like this.
Reply 27 - Posted by:
doctorfixit 12/20/2021 1:19:36 PM (No. 1013351)
I won't set foot in a woke house unless for example a recent funeral for a close friend out of respect for his family but suffering through the lecture on Climate Fraud of all things just confirmed my undying contempt for organized religion.
1 person likes this.
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It couldn't possibly have to do with devout Christians rejecting the distorted messages given by the Marxists who've infiltrated the churches in order to destroy them.