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We are living in some interesting times which makes people ask what trends are you seeing? Will people come back to worship once this COVID pandemic has ended or at least better under control? To answer that question, I will share the latest research from Barna. But let me use this illustration to explain the mindset of the world post-trauma.

We Must Stand Together

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In his book, The Body Keeps the Score, renowned trauma expert, Bessel van der Kolk, offers a bold paradigm for dealing with trauma. Throughout his professional career, van der Kolk has worked closely treating soldiers suffering from PTSD, a consequence of seeing the unimaginable horrors of war. In his service, he saw a common pattern in his group sessions.

At the opening session for a group of former Marines, the first man to speak flatly declared, “I do not want to talk about the war.” I replied that the members could discuss anything they wanted. After half an hour of excruciating silence, one veteran finally started to talk about his helicopter crash. To my amazement the rest at once came to life, speaking with great intensity about their traumatic experiences. All of them returned the following week and the week after. . . In the group they found resonance and meaning in what had previously been only sensations of terror and emptiness. They felt a renewed sense of the comradeship that had been so vital to their war experience. They insisted that I had to be part of their newfound unit and gave me a Marine captain’s uniform for my birthday.
The author continues. . .

Later I led another group, this time for veterans of Patton’s army—men now well into their seventies, all old enough to be my father. We met on Monday mornings at eight o’clock. In Boston winter snowstorms occasionally paralyze the public transit system, but to my amazement all of them showed up even during blizzards, some of them trudging several miles through the snow to reach the VA Clinic. For Christmas they gave me a 1940s GI-issue wristwatch. As had been the case with my group of Marines, I could not be their doctor unless they made me one of them. Source Major Dalton

Because of COIVD we share a common trauma. One challenge the church will have to address is how do we process this trauma personally, then help our members also move beyond the affects themselves. As we learn to process the pain we will get to the point where our common experience will serve as a starting point for conversation and hopefully healing.

Let us dig into the research:

Post-COVID Church attendance

Barna Research discovered that:

    •  One in Five Churchgoers Has Never Attended Church Online During COVID. Barna has tracked a gradual movement away from regular church attendance over the years, particularly among the younger adult generations in the U.S. But during COVID-19, a more obvious and abrupt decline occurred—even among groups who are typically faithful.
    • As of September 2020, about one in five of those who would normally be defined as churchgoers (22% churched adults, 19% practicing Christians) say they have “never” attended a service during the pandemic, either in person or digitally. Though half of practicing Christians (51%) keep up with online or in-person church on a weekly basis (compared to 37% of churched adults), the reported pandemic attendance of this usually committed group otherwise resembles churched adults at large.

You may be asking what are the factors that have contributed to these disturbing numbers? Barna research points out that there are several factors leading to this high dropout rate. Two factors mentioned include health concerns or lack of access to technology. Keep this in mind, however.

“The fact that one-fifth of practicing Christians who were able and willing to participate in an online survey says they haven’t been present in either a sanctuary or an online service during a six-month period speaks to a large-scale interruption of religious routines.”

The Difference Between Attending & Viewing

It appears pastors were more optimistic about how successful online church attendance was during the pandemic. The research shows a much blurrier picture.

“This blurry picture of pandemic church attendance could be a byproduct of the fact that, for most churches, online services—and metrics for success, in turn—are a new frontier. Just over one-third of churched adults (36%) remembers their church offering digital services before COVID-19, while the majority (57%) says they were not available.

As of September 2020, three-quarters of churched U.S. adults (74%)—including 82 percent of practicing Christians—tell Barna they have watched a church service during this pandemic period.”

Conclusion

Then Jesus told them this parable: “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent. Luke 15:3-7

Conclusion what does all this mean for the church going forward? It may mean some of those people we lost may never return because the trauma is too deep.  The longer you are away from the body of Christ the harder it is to return and remember how much you are missing. The church will have to plan to go and connect again with those who are drifted and those who have strayed.

 

One thought on “How In-Person Worship Is Impacted by the Trauma of COVID?”
  1. pastorpete51 – My wife and I serve as members of a worship team at a multicultural church. Our members are from Brazil, Nepal and the U.S.. Because of the many languages and cultures in our local body we face unique challenges, such as how many songs will we do in English today? What new songs can we use in either language that are simple enough for the people to sing. The songs, the devotions and insights here are a small portion of some of the ways God is leading us as we push towards the goal. I pray that these will be both a blessing and an encouragement for those of you who may pass by Praise 2 Worship.
    pastorpete51 says:

    Yes it both interesting and disturbing seeing how this is playing out in our own local church. We were to some a megachurch in our community but as megachurches go we actually barely made it into that category. Attendance figures online mirrored the increase you cited but giving fell by half. We have been back to an in person service for 2 months and attendance runs at about half in the sanctuary with another small group continuing online. Giving is continuing the same. Open or closed hasn’t mattered. So what is next? We just keep serving Jesus and our community and be patient (Not my favorite thing). Thanks for your post I hope our experience here helps you as you keep looking at this subject in depth. Have a blessed week pastor.

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