How Many Americans Actually Go to Church During Christmas?
At Christmastime, churches plan for larger crowds—but those preparations might not pan out this year, at least for some congregations across the country.
A just-released survey from Lifeway Research found just under half of Americans (47%) say they typically attend church services during the Christmas season, with 48% saying they don’t, and 5% saying they are unsure of their holiday plans.
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“The very name ‘Christmas’ originates in the church’s celebration of Jesus Christ’s birth,” explained Lifeway Research Executive Director Scott McConnell. “In the mid-14th century, the words ‘Christ’s Mass’ were first merged as a single term for this celebration.”
He went on to state that, while 90% of Americans do something to celebrate Christmas, fewer than half usually attend church at Christmastime today.
Like with many things, the U.S. is sharply divided on holiday church attendance.
Protestants (57%), Catholics (56%) and those from other religions (53%) are much more likely than the religiously unaffiliated (21%) to report usually attending a church service. The last group—those who hold to no religious conviction whatsoever—are most likely to say “no” (71%) to attending a church service during Christmastime.
Christians who already attend church services occasionally are, unsurprisingly, more likely to show up for services around this time of year. Believers who attend roughly once a week (76%) and those who attend once or twice a month (69%) are more inclined than those who rarely or never attend church services (52%) to come during Christmastime.
To read the full story, visit our content partners at Faithwire.
Reprinted with permission from faithwire.com. Copyright © 2024 The Christian Broadcasting Network Inc. All rights reserved.
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