A recent study, part of Exploring the Pandemic Impact on Congregations (EPIC), reaffirmed the emotional benefits of regular religious worship.

Who knew?

Everyone who makes worship a regular part of their lives!

See You Sunday?

The study, entitled “See You Sunday?,” was recently published in the Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion.  (An overview of the study can be found here.)

The study tracked responses from nearly 3,000 participants via twice-daily cellphone surveys. Broadly speaking, those who regularly attend a particular worship service reported an increase in positive emotions and a decrease in negative emotions. The study states, “We observed that positive and negative emotions tend to be optimized…when the respondent had attended church during the past weekend and had a routine of regularly attending religious services.”

A few particular observations are worth noting. First, the reference to a “particular worship service” emphasizes that the benefits are largely connected to familiarity with both the church’s worship practices and fellow worshipers. “Those best able to access the well-being effects of worship are the ones who already find the event familiar.”

Worship Service Can Enhance Positive Feelings

Second, “regular” worship, according to this study, involves attending at least once each month. Such “regular” attendance increases connections with fellow worshipers, supplying both encouragement and fellowship. While some people are more drawn to worshiping in groups, these benefits do not seem to be limited to those people. “Positive feelings, it turns out, can be enhanced by the worship experience, though not equally for every type of worshiper.”

Third, despite these benefits, worship attendance has been declining for the past two decades or more. Faith Communities Today (FACT) research indicates that median worship attendance has dropped from 137 in 2000 to 60 in the spring of 2023. While COVID-19 likely impacted attendance, much of the decline preceded the pandemic. The median attendance figure had already declined to 65 by Spring 2020 when the pandemic was just beginning. It dropped to 45 in 2021, before “recovering” to 60 in 2023. While the pandemic is a convenient target for blame, regular worship attendance was clearly falling before COVID-19.

This study reinforces what research has shown for years – that religious worship and faith are beneficial. In November 2020, the Stanford Report published an article stating, “Religious faith can lead to positive mental benefits.” The previous year, the Pew Research Center released an article that began, “People who are active in religious congregations tend to be happier and more civically engaged than either religiously unaffiliated adults or inactive members of religious groups.” The website humanjourney.org.uk reported on the Health Benefits of Christian Faith stating: “Evidence from over 1,200 studies and 400 reviews has shown an association between faith and several positive health benefits, including protection from illness, coping with illness, and faster recovery from it. Of the studies reviewed in the definitive analysis, 81 percent showed benefit and only 4 percent harm.”

Increased Online Presence

So what should churches do to counteract this trend? Many churches have increased their online presence as a supplement to in-person worship. However, there’s a fine line to be walked: online worship could become a substitute for in-person worship, rather than a supplement. Churches should emphasize the benefits of in-person worship, stressing that virtual worship is “better than nothing,” but not the same as “being there.” (Over-reliance on virtual worship can also negatively impact church finances; see Rising Incomes, Shrinking Power.)

Another important step is to encourage families to participate in worship with their children. Dr. Brace Victor Kent, lead author of the study, states: “One of the things that people overlook is really how formative these habits are for people when they are younger. There are probably a lot of parents of younger kids that are finding it easier to not participate [in worship]…But they underestimate the ramifications of not helping their kids form routines when they are at a younger age.”

How can churches encourage families in this direction? Kent suggests a number of ideas:

• Give people permission to not have to “perform” at church, allowing them to simply experience worship without expectations
• Brainstorm ways to make regular worship attendance more feasible
• Examine ways to simplify life, minimizing those things that drain people and maximizing things that strengthen them
• Discuss the value that religious institutions and worship services have, and how they enhance individual and family life and values

Dr. Kent further states, “For a society that’s pretty attuned to mental wellbeing and mental health, that [the findings of the study affirming the positive impact of regular worship] should be a significant story. We have to lean into Sabbath and rhythm as fundamental aspects of our created nature.”

Who knew? We did – if we read Scripture.

“Train up a child in the way he should go, even when he grows older he will not abandon it” (Proverbs 22:6).

“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8).

“Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people” (Acts 2:46-47a).

“Let’s consider how to encourage one another in love and good deeds, not abandoning our meeting together, as is the habit of some people, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near” (Hebrews 10:24-25).

Of course, the primary benefit of worship is spiritual strength and growth. We worship God because He is worthy of our praise. But it also shouldn’t surprise us that regular worship is good for us!