Survey: Economy continues to impact churches

Pastors say the economy continues to have a negative impact on their churches despite stabilized giving, according to a survey by LifeWay Research.

The survey of 1,000 Protestant pastors asked respondents, "How is the economy impacting your church?" Nearly two-thirds (64 percent) responded negatively, with 56 percent indicating somewhat negatively and 8 percent very negatively. One-fourth of the pastors surveyed chose, "The economy has had no impact on my church," while 9 percent indicated a positive impact on their churches.

"Pastor views on the economy are similar to many economic outlook surveys," said Scott McConnell, director of LifeWay Research. "We weren't surprised the current perspective of economic impact on churches is predominantly negative."

However, there is some good news. LifeWay Research found that while the sluggish economic recovery has translated into flat or reduced giving for many churches, the trend continues of fewer churches reporting declines in giving.... Read more