» 7 startling facts on the US church

David Olson has been keeping track of 200,000 US churches. This is what he has discovered:

1. Less than 20% of Americans regularly attend church — half of what the pollsters report.
2. American church attendance is steadily declining.
3. Only one state (Hawaii) is growth in church attendance outpacing population growth.
4. Mid-sized churches are shrinking; the smallest and largest churches are growing.
5. Established churches—40 to 190 years old—are, on average, declining.
6. The increase in churches is only 1/4 of what’s needed to keep up with population growth.
7. In 2050, the percentage of the US population attending church will be almost half of what it was in 1990.

You can read a more detailed report of his findings at the missionalchurch blog. Or read the book.

“The American Church in Crisis: Groundbreaking Research Based on a National Database of over 200,000 Churches” (David T. Olson)