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WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Americans' membership in houses of worship continued to decline last year, dropping below 50% for the first time in Gallup's eight-decade trend. In 2020, 47% of Americans said they belonged to a church, synagogue or mosque, down from 50% in 2018 and 70% in 1999.
Line graph. U.S. church membership was 73% in 1937 when Gallup first measured it. It stayed near 70% through 2000 before beginning to decline, to 61% in 2010 and 47% in 2020.
U.S. church membership was 73% when Gallup first measured it in 1937 and remained near 70% for the next six decades, before beginning a steady decline around the turn of the 21st century.
As many Americans celebrate Easter and Passover this week, Gallup updates a 2019 analysis that examined the decline in church membership over the past 20 years.
Gallup asks Americans a battery of questions on their religious attitudes and practices twice each year. The following analysis of declines in church membership…
In an interview with Vatican News, Adjunct Professor Susan Pascoe at the Australian Catholic University, the second Inclusive Governance in a Synodal Church Symposium and looks ahead to its fruits for the future.
By Deborah Castellano Lubov
"There are various modes in which lay people, along with their sisters and brothers in consecrated and ordained life, can contribute to decision-making and decision-taking in the life of the Church, whilst acknowledging that in any Diocese, the Bishop is the decision-maker, and all of these entities operate in communion with the Bishop."
Professor Susan Pascoe, adjunct professor at Australian Catholic University (ACU), made this observation in an interview with Vatican News.
Professor Pascoe organized the Inclusive Governance in a Synodal Church Symposium, which concluded today at ACU’s Rome Campus. The event marked a milestone in a pioneering international research project on lay governance in the Catholic Church. The project is moving toward a wider consortium and, in its first year, explored the emergence and operation of lay-led canonical structures, specifically Ministerial Public Juridic Persons (PJPs), as expressions of synodal governance.
The 2026 symposium was opened by Cardinal Mario Grech, Secretary General of the General Secretariat of the Synod.
In his keynote address…
Much misunderstanding about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints revolves around its doctrine. The news media is increasingly asking what distinguishes the Church from other faiths, and reporters like to contrast one set of beliefs with another.
The Church welcomes inquisitiveness, but the challenge of understanding Latter-day Saint doctrine is not merely a matter of accessing the abundant information available. Rather, it is a matter of how this information is approached and examined.
The doctrinal tenets of any religion are best understood within a broad context, and thoughtful analysis is required to understand them. News reporters pressed by daily deadlines often find that problematic. Therefore, as the Church continues to grow throughout the world and receive increasing media attention, a few simple principles that facilitate a better understanding may be helpful: