The quality of preaching, a sense of feeling welcomed by leaders and the style of services are what American adults look for most when seeking a new place of worship, according to a new survey.
The Pew Research Center study found that 83 per cent of US adults said the quality of sermons played an important role in their choice of a place of worship, 79 per cent said feeling welcomed by leaders was very important and 74 per cent said the style of services was very important. Other factors include location (named as very important by 70 per cent), the provision of education for children (56 per cent), having friends or family in the congregation (48 per cent), the availability of volunteering opportunities (42 per cent), and “other factors” (29 per cent).
About half of those surveyed said they had looked for a new congregation at some point in their lives and, when it came to making the decision about where to worship, 85 per cent of those looking to do so attended services at the congregation being considered while 69 per cent talked to congregation members, 68 per cent talked to family and friends and 55 per cent talked to clergy. Only 37 per cent said they looked for information online.
The major reason people said they moved congregations was due to a change of location – 34 per cent – while 11 per cent said it was because they married or divorced and a similar percentage said it was because they disagreed with clergy.
The study – the fourth in a series looking at Americans’ relationship with religion – drew on the findings of a national telephone survey of more than 35,000 adults and questions asked in a follow-up survey.
