- cross-posted to:
- usnews
- atheism@kbin.social
- cross-posted to:
- usnews
- atheism@kbin.social
Three in 10 U.S. adults attend religious services regularly, led by Mormons at 67%
As Americans observe Ramadan and prepare to celebrate Easter and Passover, the percentage of adults who report regularly attending religious services remains low. Three in 10 Americans say they attend religious services every week (21%) or almost every week (9%), while 11% report attending about once a month and 56% seldom (25%) or never (31%) attend.
Among major U.S. religious groups, members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, also widely known as the Mormon Church, are the most observant, with two-thirds attending church weekly or nearly weekly. Protestants (including nondenominational Christians) rank second, with 44% attending services regularly, followed by Muslims (38%) and Catholics (33%).
Majorities of Jewish, Orthodox, Buddhist and Hindu Americans say they seldom or never attend religious services.
While I’m not a church person at all, I’ve definitely heard from progressive church goers (even non-religious ones that like the social aspects) that there’s certainly options and denominations available that aren’t that.
If it’s something you actually miss or feel like would make your life more full, it might be worth church shopping for places that have a different attitude or approach from the churches that turned you off.
I think there’s even non-denominational offerings mirroring the social setup but with no religious beliefs incorporated.
Episcopal churches are generally inclusive, while going hard on tradition/ritual. If you like classical music and structure, that’s a good place to start. If you live near a university, you’re likely to see some students and faculty there.
United Methodist churches can be very welcoming and inclusive in the US, but there’s a schism going on over LGBT marriage/ordination, so it can vary by area/congregation. You’ll know pretty quickly what kind of place it is. In a few years, the “Global Methodist Church” will be conservative, and United Methodists should be reliably inclusive. You may even see gay and trans pastors at some UMCs.
Anything with Baptist in the name is most likely going to be terrible. There are some rare exceptions though. If they’re politically conservative, you’ll hear about it 5 minutes into the sermon. If you like “contemporary” Christian music then they’re more likely to do that better than others.
Since COVID, you can church shop online lol. Don’t need to wake up early or go travel. You can see the sermon and music any time from home. If a church hasn’t invested in streaming their services at this point, they probably skipped COVID guidelines and killed a bunch of their people, so it’s a decent filter.