Churchgoers less likely to attend services as COVID-19 restrictions lifted, poll shows
As coronavirus restrictions are being lifted across the United States, a recent poll suggests churches may be more empty than they were before the pandemic began.
A survey done by the Associated Press and the NORC Center for Public Affairs Research shows 67% of their 1,056 respondents attended religious services at least once a month prior to COVID-19 restricting in-person attendance. But just 38% say they will attend services if they are allowed in the next few weeks in their area, according to the poll.
There is a 4.2% margin of error in the survey.
The findings in the survey present contrasting views when it comes to certain activities. There is only a 5% difference in people’s willingness to shop for non-essential items before and after restrictions are lifted and a 9% difference in going out to restaurants or bars, the poll shows.
Respondent’s likelihood to attend religious services has a similar margin as their willingness to attend sporting events. While 42% say they went to athletic events prior to the pandemic, just 19% will do so when they are allowed to once again, according to the poll.
A previous poll earlier this month by the AP showed just 9% of Americans felt in-person church services should be allowed without restrictions and 42% felt “they should be allowed with restrictions.”
“Either there’s a vaccine, or if we know that things have calmed down, I am not comfortable going back to the actual building,” Andre Harris, of Chicago, told the AP.
President Donald Trump said Friday churches will be “opening up very soon,” according to USA Today. Trump is pushing the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to issue guidance for the reopening of places of worship, ABC News reported.
“I just got off the phone with the CDC and talked about churches,” Trump said Thursday, according to ABC News. “I said I want the churches to open, the people want the churches to open, and I think you’ll have something come down very soon, from the CDC. We want to get our churches back.”
Trump previously said he would love churches to reopen by Easter, which was March 24. Churches in some states have begun to reopen in recent weeks as restrictions have loosened.
The reopening of churches is “important in terms of the psyche of our country,” Trump said Thursday. ABC News reported.
This story was originally published May 22, 2020 at 2:07 PM with the headline "Churchgoers less likely to attend services as COVID-19 restrictions lifted, poll shows."