Churches and COVID-19: Key Trends in Congregational Life Since the Pandemic

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting stay-at-home orders disrupted religious life across the United States, forcing congregations to rapidly adapt to unprecedented challenges. While existing research has explored the pandemic’s impact on individual religiosity, this article centers on how congregations were reshaped by the pandemic—sometimes temporarily, sometimes permanently. Drawing on nationally representative survey data from the Exploring the Pandemic Impact on Congregations project and the long-running Faith Communities Today initiative, this article analyzes trends in worship attendance, other forms of commitment to and engagement with congregations, congregational openness to change, and clergy well-being. The findings show that in-person worship attendance continues to decline, while online worship was adopted widely during the pandemic and remains common. Programming, volunteering, and financial giving have rebounded but still fall short of pre-pandemic levels or current needs. Many congregations embraced change early in the pandemic but have since reverted to old routines. Clergy are in relatively good health, yet growing numbers are reconsidering their futures in ministry. These shifts reveal the pandemic’s lasting impact on congregational life and raise critical questions for clergy, lay leaders, and researchers about institutional resilience, innovation, and leadership sustainability. The findings underscore the complex and evolving nature of post-pandemic ministry.

1. Introduction

In the spring of 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting stay-at-home orders profoundly impacted religious life in the United States. People faced instability, disrupted daily routines, and significant existential and moral questions. Similarly, churches, synagogues, mosques, temples, and other religious spaces encountered unprecedented challenges and obstacles they had never previously addressed. Five years after the emergency phase of the pandemic, this is an opportune time to examine how congregations navigated that precarious period and assess their current state as a result. While much attention has focused on individual-level religious change, this article centers on how congregations as institutions were reshaped—sometimes temporarily, sometimes permanently.

Several scholars have examined how the pandemic impacted religion in the United States. Most of this research, however, concentrates on its effects on religiosity at the individual level. Researchers have investigated whether religious beliefs, belonging, and behaviors have changed. Findings indicate that some ideological beliefs may have shifted during the pandemic, but on the whole, religious affiliation, and behaviors like reading scripture have remained relatively stable (Barna 2023a, 2023b, 2023c; Witt-Swanson et al. 2023). Additionally, Gallup Poll data point to a temporary rise in the perception of religion’s influence in U.S. society early in the pandemic, but this increase was short-lived (Jones 2021).

The biggest change in personal religiosity has been new patterns of worship service attendance. The disruption to daily and weekly rhythms caused by the pandemic was a catalyst for many people to change their habits. Early in the pandemic, there were fewer weekly attendees and a downward drift in the frequency of service attendance—especially among those who already attended infrequently (Barna 2023c; Witt-Swanson et al. 2023). In addition to changes in attendance frequency, the pandemic also prompted more fluidity in congregational affiliation. Six months into the pandemic, 18% of Americans reported attending a different congregation or none at all compared to before the pandemic, reflecting increased rates of both church switching and departures (Higgins and Djupe 2022). Recent data from the Pew Research Center indicate that, overall, the percentage of U.S. adults participating in worship services in 2024 is comparable to the percentage from 2020, despite the possibility of some fluctuations during that period (Tyson et al. 2025). While Pew reports similar levels at the two time points, the mode by which people participate in services has shifted (Tyson et al. 2025). Many people changed from going in person before the pandemic to watching online during the early stages of the pandemic, to finally going back in person once the serious risk of the pandemic subsided (Nortey and Rotolo 2023; Tyson et al. 2025). In general, most people were satisfied with their online worship experience and selected it because of convenience (Faverio et al. 2023).

Research has also investigated the effect of the pandemic on the strength of people’s faith. During the summer of 2020, nearly 30% of American adults reported that their faith became stronger as a result of the pandemic (Sahgal and Connaughton 2021). Even in 2024, a few more years removed from the emergency phase of the pandemic, 10% of American adults said that the pandemic had a major impact on their personal religious or spiritual life, and another 20% said that it had a minor impact (Tyson et al. 2025). The direction of that impact, however, varies in that almost equal percentages said that the impact of the pandemic was negative, positive, or neutral (Tyson et al. 2025).

Taken together, the research summarized above shows that the pandemic impacted personal religiosity as well as an individual’s decisions about how to engage in communal religious practices. However, it still remains unclear if these changes to religion at the personal level are permanent changes or if similar to other significant global events, such as the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the fluctuations in religiosity are only temporary (Newport 2020). Overall, however, it is clear that scholars are interested in the role of the pandemic on individual-level religiosity.

While individual religious beliefs and practices are important, so too are religious organizations. Congregations function as key social institutions whose organizational response to crisis shapes community resilience, moral discourse, and public service. Far less attention, by contrast, has been paid to how religious institutions were transformed by the pandemic. As this article will explain in more detail, the impact of COVID-19 extended beyond personal faith to include significant changes at the organizational level. Religious organizations, namely congregations, were not immune to the pandemic’s disruptions. The unprecedented restrictions on in-person gatherings presented a barrier to many congregations. As also experienced by workplaces, schools, and other gatherings, churches had to rapidly adapt their plans and implement changes to continue their ministries and meet online. This disruption to routine forced many congregations to reconsider long-standing practices and implement changes in ways they had not previously imagined.

What were the biggest changes in congregations because of the pandemic? Which shifts were temporary, and which may have set congregations on new paths? This article will answer these questions by analyzing trends across the whole U.S. congregational landscape. Drawing on quantitative data from nationally representative surveys, this article highlights broad patterns rather than isolated or anecdotal accounts. Specifically, this analysis examines national trends in worship attendance, other forms of engagement within a congregation, the openness of a congregation to change, and how clergy leaders have weathered the impacts. This article will outline the major changes and discuss the implications of these transitions.

2. Research Methodology

To examine how the pandemic impacted congregations nationally, this paper draws on several surveys from the Exploring the Pandemic Impact on Congregations research project as well as pre-existing research on congregations from the ongoing Faith Communities Today research initiative.

The primary data source for this analysis was research from the Exploring the Pandemic Impact on Congregations (EPIC) project, a five-year, mixed-method study funded by the Lilly Endowment. Launched in 2021, the EPIC project aims to track the U.S. congregational landscape and document the ripple effects of the pandemic as they continue to play out in subsequent years. A central component of the EPIC project is cross-sectional, national surveys of congregations completed by one key informant per congregation (typically the clergy leader) collected across the pandemic and post-pandemic periods. Specifically, data were collected at the following time points: summer 2021 (n = 2071), fall 2021 (n = 820), spring 2022 (n = 615), spring 2023 (n = 5211), and fall 2023 (n = 1858). In addition to the key informant surveys, the EPIC project also collected responses from church attendees in fall 2024 (n = 24,165). These attendee-level data add a valuable, alternate perspective on the dynamics unfolding in congregational life, complementing the insights offered by clergy. Data from all these national EPIC surveys serve as the focal data for the analysis in this paper.

The EPIC project builds on the long-standing survey efforts of the Faith Communities Today (FACT) research initiative. FACT is a collaborative effort among a diverse range of Christian denominations and other religious groups that has involved conducting national surveys of congregations across traditions since 2000. These data spanning more than two decades offer historical context for understanding post-pandemic trends seen in the EPIC project. For this paper, the FACT dataset of greatest relevance was from early 2020 (most responses collected pre-pandemic; n = 15,277).

Both the EPIC and FACT surveys include information from congregations about worship attendance, participant demographics, clergy characteristics, finances, programming, technology use, and spiritual vitality, among other topics. Using quantitative analysis of descriptive statistics and cross-tabulations conducted in SPSS, this analysis concentrated on the measures where pandemic-related shifts have been most apparent: worship service attendance, other forms of commitment to a congregation, congregational willingness to change, and clergy well-being.

3. Results

3.1. Patterns in Worship Service Attendance

The most immediate and visible impact of the pandemic on congregations was disruptions to worship service attendance. At the onset of the pandemic, nearly all (80%) congregations suspended in-person gatherings. Those that remained open were primarily concentrated within Catholic and Orthodox traditions. Among the congregations that did pause in-person services, most did not return to their previous rhythms or a newly established routine for a median of approximately 4 to 12 months depending on religious tradition.

As shown in

Table 1. Median in-person worship attendance over time.

Year	Number of People
2000	137
2005	129
2010	105
2015	80
Spring 2020	65
Summer 2021	45
Winter 2021	45
Spring 2022	50
Spring 2023	60
Fall 2023	55

, the median in-person worship attendance was approximately 65 people prior to the pandemic and then fell to 45 in 2021. While some recovery was evident by spring 2023 (median 60 attendees), in-person attendance still remained below pre-pandemic levels. However, the decline between 2020 and 2023 aligned with a longer-term trend. The FACT data from 2000 to 2020 document a steady decline in worship attendance from 137 people to 65, a drop of over 50%. This pre-existing downward trend likely reflects the influence of other broader societal forces contributing to disengagement from congregational life, including institutional abuse and financial scandals, the growing entanglement of religion and politics, and the rise of Christian nationalism (Smith 2025). Together, these data suggest that rather than creating a new trend, the pandemic temporarily accelerated the decline. The broader trajectory remains one of gradual decline in in-person attendance over the past two decades.

In contrast, the pandemic’s most transformative shift was congregations’ rapid and widespread adoption of online worship. Prior to the pandemic, only 45% of congregations reported livestreaming their services, and only about half of those did so consistently. By 2021, that figure surged to 86%, and although it decreased slightly to 75% in 2023, it appears to have stabilized as congregations settle into a new normal. Most congregations offering online services did so in a hybrid fashion, combining in-person and virtual attendees. Only a small minority (2%) of congregations worshipped exclusively online in 2023. Notably, Catholic and Orthodox congregations were less likely to offer online worship, likely due to theological views regarding the sacrament of communion.

Remarkably, online worship seems to be a permanent change for those who adopted it. Among the congregations offering online worship in 2023, 80% anticipated continuing to do so in 2028. Additionally, many leaders considered the pivot to online worship to be their congregation’s most successful adaptation in response to the pandemic.

Although the number of congregations offering online worship is relatively straightforward to document, accurately measuring attendance at these online services remains challenging. Currently, there is no standardized method for measuring online participants. Some congregations count each view or connected device, others apply a multiplier to account for group viewing, and many do not monitor their online attendance at all. In fact, only about 48% of congregations made any effort to track their online worship attendance. Among the congregations that did report these figures, the median number of online participants was about 25 people. While this figure may partially offset the losses seen in in-person attendance, these online participants tend to be less engaged in the broader life of the congregation and are less likely to contribute financially.

Attendee-level data add further nuance. Only about 7% of attendees routinely participated in online worship, and another 19% mixed their attendance between online and in-person. The primary motivation for attending online was convenience, followed by health-related concerns, avoiding exposure to COVID-19 or the flu, and work schedule conflicts. Nearly half (46%) of the online participants worshiped alone, while just over half did so with at least one other person. Despite physical separation, nearly all online worshippers reported high levels of satisfaction with their experience, and most actively participated in elements of the service, including praying, singing, and reading along.

In summary, while in-person attendance declined from 2020 to 2023, this reflects a long-standing trend rather than a pandemic-specific disruption. The significant attendance loss from the early pandemic period has mostly been recovered—at least back to the level of decline traced from the previous two decades. This indicates that the sharp drop observed early in the pandemic was not a permanent change. The most significant and enduring change brought about by the pandemic is the widespread and sustained integration of online worship. A significant share of congregations quickly pivoted to offering online services, many continue these options in some capacity today, and a majority consider this to be a permanent feature of their ministry. Although only a small percentage of participants used this format for worship, those who did reported meaningful engagement and satisfaction with it.

3.2. Trends in Other Markers of Commitment

Worship service attendance is not the only important component of congregational life. Other forms of participation are equally vital for community building and organizational stability. This section examines three metrics of engagement or commitment: non-worship programming, volunteering, and financial giving.

One surprising finding in the EPIC data is a decline in congregations offering non-worship programming compared to pre-pandemic levels. Many congregations offered fewer programs, such as religious education, fellowship events, or community service, in 2023 than they did in 2020. This decline is somewhat unexpected, especially in light of the social movements that co-occurred with the pandemic and an increased desire for connection with others following the isolation of the lockdown period. The reduction in programs may reflect the lingering effects of pandemic-era limitations, but it could also indicate that congregations are reassessing their capacity and priorities at this critical juncture.

A similar dip is evident in volunteer engagement. Volunteering time is essential in congregations, where staff members alone cannot meet all the programmatic needs and service initiatives of the congregation. Before the pandemic, about 45% of congregation participants regularly volunteered in the congregation. That figure dropped to just 15% during the height of the pandemic. Unlike programming, however, there has been a partial rebound in volunteering. By 2023, the percentage of the congregation regularly volunteering rose to around 35%. While this is an encouraging sign, since 15% would be unsustainable long term, it still falls short of pre-pandemic levels. Further, clergy leaders continue to report difficulty in recruiting volunteers as some people are unable to contribute as much as they once were, and others risk burnout as a small group shoulders a majority of the responsibilities. Attendee-level data echo this, with 24% of church attendees saying they have increased their volunteering in recent years, but only 28% reported volunteering often. This suggests that even where willingness has grown, consistent engagement remains limited.

Another critical marker of commitment is financial giving. Despite the challenges of the pandemic, congregational income has increased overall. In 2023, the median annual income of congregations was approximately USD 165,000, up from USD 120,000 in 2020. In general, about 80% of a congregation’s income comes from participant contributions. The per capita income (total income divided by total attendance) also rose, reaching roughly USD 2222 per person in 2023 compared to USD 2000 in 2020. This indicates that many people increased how much they contributed to their congregation. Attendee-level data reinforce this increase. Notably, 37% of churchgoers reported increasing the percentage of income they gave to their congregation over the past five years. This uptick in giving may reflect increased generosity, heightened awareness of community needs, or even a sense of urgency to sustain a shrinking congregation. Unfortunately, this financial growth has not kept pace with inflation. Even as the total income and per capita giving have increased, so too have the operational costs of running the congregations. Many congregations remain financially strained and uncertain about their long-term sustainability.

Taken together, these trends reveal that while some aspects of congregational commitment have begun to recover, none have returned to pre-pandemic strength and may be struggling to meet the demands of this new period. Congregational programming has declined; volunteering engagement remains below pre-pandemic levels; and although financial giving has increased, it has not kept pace with inflation or rising operational costs. These pressures suggest that many congregations are stretched thin, operating with fewer resources even as expectations and needs remain constant or continue to grow.

3.3. Temporary Openness to Change

Another significant trend observed during the pandemic was a shift in congregations’ willingness to embrace change. Historically, most congregations have shown resistance to change, often adhering to long-standing traditions and practices. However, the pandemic presented a crisis that compelled many to adapt in order to survive.

Interestingly, many congregations were willing to change early in the pandemic but have since recalcified into their old patterns. This trend is evident when tracking the percentage of leaders who strongly agree that their congregation is willing to change. The “strongly agree” category is the focus here because it correlates with other key indicators of congregational vitality and strength that are not consistently present among congregations whose leaders only “agree”. As shown in

Table 2. Percent of key informants strongly agreeing with “Our congregation is willing to change to meet new challenges”.

Year	Percent Strongly Agree
Spring 2020	23%
Summer 2021	39%
Winter 2021	37%
Spring 2022	31%
Spring 2023	21%
Fall 2023	20%

, 23% of key informants strongly agreed in spring 2020—just before the pandemic fully disrupted congregational life—that their congregation was willing to change to meet new challenges. This percentage increased to 39% by summer 2021—the highest level ever recorded in any FACT or EPIC survey. However, this trend did not hold. By fall 2023, that figure declined to 20%, the lowest ever reported in any FACT or EPIC survey. This drop suggests that much of the willingness to change was temporary and situational.

This pattern implies that while many congregations demonstrated a remarkable capacity to adapt in the face of crisis, they have since reverted to more familiar patterns. The initial flexibility observed during the pandemic may have reflected a willingness to make one-time emergency adjustments, rather than an ongoing openness to innovation. As the sense of urgency faded, so too did the momentum for change.

This reversion presents a particular challenge for clergy leaders who may see continuous adaptation as necessary for long-term sustainability. For some, the pandemic proved that their congregation could change. But sustaining that change, particularly in the absence of a crisis, may feel uncomfortable or overwhelming to members. Change fatigue may also play a role, as congregations grapple with the ongoing demands of reevaluating programs, policies, and operational norms.

Complementing these findings, attendee-level data show that a notable share of congregants have joined their congregations relatively recently and may bring a fresh perspective on change. In fact, 38% of attendees started attending their congregation in the past five years, which would be during or since the pandemic. Among these new attendees, about 9% were new converts with no prior congregational connection, 23% were re-churched after a gap in participation, and the remaining nearly 70% were switchers from other congregations. Additionally, 63% of all new attendees said that the congregation’s alignment with their personal beliefs, values, and preferences was a very important reason for joining, indicating a sorting effect in which participants selected their congregation based on shared values rather than traditional factors like location or pre-existing social ties. It is likely that some of these new attendees were drawn by pandemic-era responses that made the congregation appealing to them. Because these individuals lack firsthand experience of their congregation’s pre-pandemic traditions, their presence may lower resistance to change and create strategic opportunities for leaders to reimagine congregational life with fresh expectations and support. Notably, newer attendees are more likely to strongly agree that their congregation is willing to change compared to longer attendees, suggesting that openness to change may be reinforced or even expected by those who joined in the wake of the pandemic.

Ultimately, the pandemic served as both a catalyst for transformation and a reminder of how difficult lasting change can be. While the window of openness appears to have narrowed, the experience showed that even congregations rooted in long-standing traditions are capable of adaptation under the right conditions.

3.4. A Rise in Clergy Discontentment

Finally, a discussion of important changes in congregational life would be incomplete without acknowledging the toll the pandemic has taken on those leading congregations. Navigating prolonged uncertainty, adapting to new modes of ministry, and supporting congregants through crisis placed enormous burdens on the clergy. The fourth and final significant trend emerging from the EPIC data is high levels of loneliness and a rise in job dissatisfaction among clergy leaders.

Overall, clergy leaders are relatively healthy. They scored higher than the general public on the health and wellness measures developed by the Human Flourishing Program (VanderWeele 2017; Cowden et al. 2023). Not only did clergy leaders score higher on a composite wellness index, but they also outperformed the general public on nearly all of the individual indicators. However, the EPIC data reveal that clergy health and wellness are heavily shaped by the context in which they serve. Congregational factors such as conflict, reticence to change, and weak spiritual vitality negatively affect clergy well-being.

Despite strong aggregate wellness scores, including high levels of relational health specifically, a staggering 67% of clergy reported feeling sometimes or always lonely in the fall of 2023. This finding is striking, especially given clergy leaders’ relational roles, and it mirrors the broader “loneliness epidemic” unfolding across the U.S. (Office of the Surgeon General 2023).

Loneliness is not the only sign of growing strain. Along the same lines, more clergy leaders in recent years have reported giving serious thought to wanting to leave their current congregation or the ministry profession altogether. In 2023, about 44% of clergy said they had thought about wanting to move to a new congregation, while 53% had thought about wanting to leave the profession entirely. These figures indicate a sharp increase from 2021, when 21% had thought about wanting to change congregations, and 37% had considered wanting to leave the ministry. While a pre-pandemic baseline is not available, these increases are substantial and signal growing frustration and fatigue among clergy leaders.

Importantly, it is not always the same clergy leaders having both types of departure thoughts. Some clergy leaders expressed having thoughts about wanting to leave their current congregation but remained committed to the ministry vocation, while others thought about wanting to exit the profession. EPIC findings show that thoughts of wanting to leave a particular congregation are primarily driven by congregational factors—such as ongoing conflict or emotional distance from the congregants. In contrast, thoughts of wanting to leave the profession are more complex and shaped by a broader mix of personal and contextual factors, including congregational resistance to needed change.

In summary, although clergy leaders exhibit high overall wellness, more leaders than ever are reconsidering their vocational decisions. The stress of leading through the pandemic, combined with persistent congregational challenges, appears to have taken a significant toll on some clergy leaders. These trends raise serious questions about long-term sustainability and support for those at the heart of congregational leadership.

4. Discussion

Taken together, the trends discussed here paint a multifaceted portrait of U.S. congregations today and how the pandemic reshaped religious organizations, not just personal religiosity. Many congregations entered the pandemic already facing significant challenges, including shifting societal norms such as declining interest among younger generations and aging participant bases. The global disruption exacerbated these vulnerabilities, affecting many congregations already in fragile states. In its aftermath, many congregations have faced both the intensification of pre-existing challenges and the emergence of new ones.

The results from national survey data show a continuation of the long-standing trend of declining worship service attendance. While attendance levels largely recovered from the immediate shock of the pandemic, they have resumed the broader, long-term pattern of decline seen before 2020. This indicates that the sharp drop in in-person service attendance due to the pandemic was not a permanent shift. Meanwhile, many congregations adopted online worship options during the pandemic, adaptations that most have chosen to sustain. However, the majority of congregations still prefer in-person attendance and have not fully invested in online worship to reach high-quality standards, viewing it more as a survival strategy than a long-term priority. Conversely, programming beyond worship has receded, at least for now. This may signal a weakening congregational vitality, as sustaining a robust presence becomes more difficult. Other markers of commitment to a congregation, such as volunteering and financial giving, have increased in recent years but remain below pre-pandemic levels or are insufficient to meet current demands. These increases may reflect efforts driven by desperation to preserve congregations rather than sustainable long-term engagement. Early in the pandemic, many congregations were quite willing to change, but that adaptability has since diminished. This could potentially create challenges for clergy leaders, especially when newer members expect continued change. Finally, while clergy leaders are overall fairly healthy, more than ever are reconsidering their vocational paths. This could signal future leadership challenges for congregations as they move into the future.

These findings present challenges for clergy and lay leaders of congregations today. They must navigate evolving expectations for how worship is provided while addressing changing participant demographics. Leaders must also assess what programming is sustainable amid limited financial and volunteer resources. They are tasked with leading congregations that have proven they can change, yet now often resist doing so. Clergy leaders are managing all of this while many of their peers—and in some cases, they themselves—are questioning their future in ministry. Compounding these pressures, the ongoing trend of declining attendance may make it difficult to sustain full-time clergy positions, necessitate repurposing buildings, or prompt difficult conversations about merging or closing. Losing a full-time clergy position or other reductions in clergy support bring new complexities, such as negotiating hours and task prioritization. Sharing or renting facilities introduces challenges around financial agreements and facility management. Conversations around merging or closing often involve deep emotions and grief processes. Each of these challenges carries its own complexities, but collectively, they underscore the difficult realities congregations face in ministry among these profound changes.

The documented shifts in congregational dynamics post-pandemic raise important questions for clergy leaders, religious communities, and researchers to consider. For instance, many returning congregants are re-engaging with an organization that is not the same as it was pre-pandemic. What has changed and are these differences for the better? For newer congregants, there may be no preconceived notions of how the congregation was prior to 2020, prompting questions about how different expectations shape their experience. Additionally, the pandemic also revealed that, under pressure, many congregations could adapt in substantial ways—from launching online worship to experimenting with new ministry models. What would it take to foster that same openness to change without the catalyst of a global crisis? How might congregations cultivate a sustained culture of innovation rather than treating change as temporary or purely reactive to external forces? Finally, the well-being of clergy leaders remains a central concern. What kinds of support—spiritual, emotional, financial, institutional—are needed from congregations, denominational bodies, and wider networks to help clergy flourish? How can clergy combat isolation and vocational dissatisfaction in a rapidly evolving ministry landscape? And what skills, support, or training should be emphasized for both those preparing for ministry and those well into their careers?

Several important implications emerge from these findings. Churches and other religious congregations have historically served as a vital part of the social safety net in many communities. They did so by providing food, shelter, emotional support, and connection for numerous people. However, as congregations shrink in size, scale back programs, and struggle to adapt to a rapidly changing landscape, their capacity to continue fulfilling this role may be diminished. This is particularly concerning in a political environment where public social services are increasingly under threat. Congregations may not be able to absorb the fallout from reduced government support as they once did.

Additionally, the findings point to a widening gap between congregations and increased inequalities among them. New people are the future of organizational religion. In today’s reality, these newcomers are more likely to be drawn to larger, better-resourced, and more adaptive congregations, while smaller congregations may continue to lose members and struggle to survive. This trend could deepen inequalities across the religious landscape.

Also, clergy and lay leaders are likely to face ongoing pressure as the scope of their responsibilities expands. Many are expected to juggle new technological demands, maintain aging facilities, manage shrinking volunteer pools, and respond to increasingly complex pastoral needs, all with fewer resources. Without adequate support, this reality may exacerbate clergy burnout and impact long-term congregational sustainability.

The analysis presented in this article draws on the most recent EPIC data, the latest of which were collected in spring 2023. The next national EPIC survey, scheduled for the fall of 2025, will offer a valuable opportunity to examine how these dynamics continue to evolve with more temporal distance from the height of the pandemic. Future research will be able to assess whether congregations return to pre-pandemic baselines; persist along altered paths; or enter new, unforeseen patterns of change.

In conclusion, this article shows that the pandemic’s impact on U.S. congregations is ongoing and multifaceted. Every aspect of congregational life—from patterns in worship attendance and participation to organizational adaptability and leadership well-being—has been shaped in some way by this global disruption, and the ripple effects are still felt in congregations years later. These trends carry real implications for congregational leaders who must continue to navigate a post-pandemic religious landscape that looks different from the one they led just a few years ago.