Episcopal Church Foundation Vestry Papers - for leading congregations

I am currently at a meeting of the House of Deputies State of the Church Committee in Atlanta where we are preparing the 67th report of this committee. Since 1808, every three years our report has been submitted to the General Convention of the church. That’s right – 1808. This committee is the longest-standing interim body of our church and its charge is to report statistics on the make-up of membership in the Episcopal Church and to identify trends as they develop.

Here are a few facts for you:

Over half of Episcopal congregations (52.4%) are small,family-sized congregations where average worship attendance is 70 persons or less (2009 Parochial Report data). Pastoral-sized congregations make up the next largest proportion of parishes and missions (28.6%). Corporate-sized congregations with 351 or more in worship represent only 3.3% of Episcopal congregations.

The median Episcopal parish had 66 persons at Sunday worship in 2009 according to the annual Parochial Report—down from 72 in 2006 and 77 in 2003.

The typical (median) worship space seats 170 persons. Only 15% of Episcopal congregations have a worship space that seats more than 300 people. One in five seats 100 or fewer.

Majorities of congregations report that worship often or always includes:

•  Eucharist (99%)
•  Organ music (91%)
•  Kneeling by the congregation (80%)
•  Choir (72%)

. . . but only small minorities report that worship always or often includes:

•  Electric guitars (9%)
•  Drums or other percussion equipment (7%)
•  Incense (5%)
•  Visual projection equipment (4%)

Episcopalians tend to be older than the general population. The large majority (69%) of our congregations report that more than half of their members are age 50+. Overall, 30% of Episcopal members are age 65+, as compared to only 13% of the U.S. population.
The Episcopal Church has proportionately fewer children, youth and young adults.

The use of social media has exploded in recent years and 41% of Episcopal congregations indicated that they used Facebook or other social media in 2010.

“Wants to grow” is the number one characteristic that can be used to describe Episcopal congregations, from among eleven possibilities offered in a recent
poll.

This is just a handful of the facts that our committee is crunching as we begin to write our report to present to next year’s General Convention. In Thursday’s blog I‘ll share the outline of that report highlighting the major topics we feel will help describe the “State of the Church.