Episcopal Church 2023 parochial report data shows recovery from pandemic attendance lows
The Rev. Molly James, interim executive officer of General Convention, presents parochial report data Nov. 8 to a meeting of Executive Council in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Photo: David Paulsen/Episcopal News Service
[Episcopal News Service – New Brunswick, New Jersey] The Episcopal Church on Nov. 8 released its latest summary and analysis of the data collected in the parochial reports that are submitted annually by more than 100 dioceses and more than 6,000 congregations, offering a snapshot of a post-pandemic church that has in some ways recovered, yet still is grappling with long-term denominational decline.
In addition to announcing the results in an Office of Public Affairs news release, churchwide leaders presented key findings during an in-person session of Executive Council, the church’s interim governing body, which is gathered here Nov. 7-9 for its first meeting of the triennium.
READ: Data overview | Fast Facts | Detailed analysis | News release
The results represent a one-year snapshot of the church in 2023. Its 6,754 congregation were down from 7,067 in 2010. Episcopal churches reported 1.5 million total members last year, down by about 500,000 members over the past decade.
This chart, from a slide presentation to Executive Council, shows the decade-long trend in annual Sunday attendance in Episcopal churches.
Worship numbers are much lower, with about 410,000 people attending Episcopal services on a typical Sunday in 2023. That figure was a significant rebound from pandemic lows to years earlier. In 2021, average Sunday attendance fell to 310,000 before rising to 370,000 in 2022. The latest increase, though still lower than pre-pandemic numbers, indicates attendance is back in line with the church’s longer-term trends.
“I think what we’re looking at now is a true post-pandemic church,” Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe said during the Executive Council session on parochial report data.
That conclusion was affirmed by an analysis of the data prepared by the Hartford Institute for Religion Research. “In fact, the 2023 total ASA is almost exactly where it would be expected to be if following the projected pattern from 2014-2019,” the analysis says. “While the pandemic created an unnatural dip, it did not radically alter the general pattern of ASA decline.”
Rowe also noted that new forms were authorized by Executive Council for dioceses and congregations to complete for 2024 and will begin incorporating a broader range of potential metrics for assessing church vitality – beyond the familiar longtime metrics of membership and Sunday attendance.
“We’ve got a lot of vibrant ministries [and] that isn’t being counted” in the previous reports, Rowe said.
The Rev. Molly James, interim executive officer of General Convention, offered additional details on the new parochial report forms in her presentation about the 2023 data. The 2024 forms will allow the church for the first time to measure participation in non-Sunday services and online worship. It will give a better tally of volunteer engagement. It also will estimate the number of people participating in congregations’ outreach ministries.
“We’re looking to calculate the total impact of a congregation that is much broader than the number of people in your pews on Sunday,” James said.
The church’s news release also notes some new data categories in the 2023 reports. Congregations now are logging the type of worship they offer, with 62% saying they use a hybrid model that allows people to worship in person or online. A third said they offered outdoor worship at least once during the year.
Also from the 2023 parochial report data, congregations’ plate and pledge income rose to $1.4 billion, continuing a positive trend that was one silver lining during the disruptions of the pandemic. Rowe and James, however, cautioned church leaders that the income trend should be put in the context of inflation. Despite the overall increases, income has not kept up with the increased expenses facing dioceses and congregations.
Other data highlighted by James and Rowe included the number of congregations with full-time clergy, down from 63% in 2010 to 44% in 2023. Also last year, 20% of congregations were served by priests who were retired or otherwise no longer active in the Church Pension Fund, up from 12% of congregations a year earlier.
And just under 1,000 parishes received diocesan support in 2023. The median amount was $15,000. The assessments that congregations contribute to diocesan budgets ranged from voluntary to 25%. Most rates were between 10% and 15%.
– David Paulsen is a senior reporter and editor for Episcopal News Service based in Wisconsin. He can be reached at dpaulsen@episcopalchurch.org.
