By Kent E. Fillinger
Twenty-one years! That’s how long I’ve been tracking, analyzing, and reporting on the growth of our Restoration Movement churches for Christian Standard. The first “fast facts” appeared in a 2004 issue. Initially, only churches with an average worship attendance of over 1,000 were studied. In 2008, we included churches with an attendance of 500 or more and the following year we added churches with an attendance of over 250. Finally in 2017, the survey and report expanded to include churches of all sizes, which we continue today.
Since churches self-report based on goodwill and our shared church heritage, the number of churches involved has ebbed and flowed each year. This year, we saw a 17 percent decrease in the number of churches participating in our survey for a total of 261 churches.
This is a representative sample of our movement, and this report provides important historical data, current trends, and valuable insights. Hopefully, more churches of all sizes will participate next year so we can celebrate and recognize the work God is doing in and through our churches across the U.S. and Canada.
Quick Snapshot
The 261 churches surveyed welcomed an average of 305,563 people combined each weekend for worship in-person and online. In-person attendance accounted for an overall average of 76 percent of the total attendance with online comprising the remaining 24 percent. Megachurches had the smallest percentage of their total attendance in-person with 73 percent and very small churches had the largest percentage of in-person worshipers with 91 percent. Like 2023, just over three-fourths of the churches (77 percent) reported any online attendance numbers for last year.
The highest percentage of these churches or campuses (28 percent) were in a small town or rural community (less than 10,000 population). Almost another one-fourth (24 percent) were in a city of 10,000 to 49,999, or in an area where a city of that size served as a hub. The third most common place to find one of the surveyed church campuses was in an older suburb around a city with a population of over 50,000.
The oldest church in our survey this year was Countryside Church of Christ (Seaman, Ohio), which started in 1814. The newest church was Elevate Christian Church (Lexington, Kentucky) which launched in 2021. The average start date of the churches surveyed was 1940.
Growth Rates and Baptisms
The overall average growth rate was seven percent last year. Megachurches grew the fastest on average at 16 percent followed by large churches at 12 percent. The very small churches declined just barely (-0.02 percent).
Overall, 71 percent of the churches surveyed grew last year leaving 29 percent that declined in total attendance. Ninety-four percent of the megachurches reported growth last year. Emerging megachurches followed closely with 89 percent growing. By comparison, only 39 percent of the very small churches grew.
The overall percentage of churches that grew last year exceeded the historical average, but my theory is that since COVID-19, churches that are struggling or declining in attendance are generally less willing to complete the survey. Therefore, this artificially inflates the percentage of growing churches in our survey.
The 261 churches in our survey baptized a total of 25,170 people. Almost three-fourths of the baptisms (74 percent) occurred at one of the 33 megachurches surveyed. Megachurches had the best baptism ratio (number of baptisms per 100 people in attendance) with 8.6 last year. The overall average baptism ratio in 2024 was 6.4, which was down slightly from 6.5 in 2023.
The Aftermath of COVID-19
A February 2025 Pew Research Center report titled, 5 Years Later: America Looks Back at the Impact of COVID-19, shared some interesting insights into the impact on religion and spiritual life that are worth noting as we track annual trends in our movement.
After multiple surveys from 2020 to October 2024, they revealed that just 10 percent of U.S. adults report that the COVID-19 pandemic had a lot of impact on their religious or spiritual lives, while 20 percent say the pandemic had a little impact. Seven out of 10 Americans (69 percent) say the pandemic had no impact at all on their religious or spiritual lives. Almost two-thirds of White Evangelicals (64 percent) said the COVID-19 pandemic had no impact at all on their religious or spiritual lives.
During the pandemic, I read many predictions from church experts and prognosticators that church life and practice would forever be altered by COVID-19. The Pew Research Center study noted that most U.S. adults say their religious participation habits have not changed. Eight out of 10 say either that they attend services in person about as often as they did before the pandemic (31 percent) or that they did not attend before the pandemic and still don’t (48 percent).
Eight out of 10 say either that they watch services virtually about as often as they did before the pandemic (18 percent) or that they didn’t watch services before the pandemic and still don’t (62 percent).
The Pew Research Center study found that there may be a small net decrease in in-person attendance: 13 percent of Americans say they attend in person less often than they did before the pandemic, while just seven percent say they now attend more often. But that difference is almost exactly offset by an increase in virtual participation: 13 percent of Americans say they watch services online more often than they did before the pandemic, while six percent say they now watch less often.
So, after much handwringing and concern in the spring of 2020, it’s encouraging to note that these survey findings paint a picture of remarkable stability in U.S. religious life during a time of widespread upheaval in how churches operated for that short season.
Our Aging Workforce
According to current estimates, around 10,000 Baby Boomers will turn 80 each day starting in 2025. By 2030, all baby Boomers will be age 65 and older. Our former and current presidents of the U.S. rank as the two oldest in the history of the country and both finished or will finish their terms in their early 80s.
Only two of 261 lead ministers from this year’s survey were over the age of 80. In five years, 27 percent of the ministers surveyed will be over the age of 65. And 10 years from now, 44 percent of these current lead ministers (112 men) will be between the ages of 65 to 90 plus. Now, if all these men follow the lead of our highest elected official, many of them might still be leading churches a decade from now. But my guess is most of them will retire before 2035 and will need a successor to fill those pulpits.
The overall average age of the lead ministers surveyed this year edged up slightly from 52.6 in 2023 to 52.9 last year. The oldest was 85 and the youngest was only 27. The average lead minister has been serving at his current church since 2012. The large church ministers surveyed have been in their position the longest on average and the very small church ministers had the shortest tenure.
0 Comments