9 in 10 churchgoers eager to gather again

A LifeWay Research study of 1,000 U.S. Protestant churchgoers found 91% said they plan to return to in-person worship when it is safe to do so.

The study conducted in February suggests churchgoers are eager to return to pre-pandemic worship practices.

In January, 51% of churchgoers said they didn’t attend any in-person services, and 83% said they watched a livestream of a church service instead. With vaccines now becoming more readily available, attendance is likely to pick up soon, the study suggested.

A total of 8% of churchgoers said they have been diagnosed with COVID-19; 42% said someone in their church has been diagnosed with the disease, and 18% said a fellow church member died from it.