At a Glance
- There are stark differences between what pastors and the communities around them think a church should focus on. Pastors lean more towards spirituality and discipleship—84 percent say “tell others about Jesus”—while U.S. adults lean more towards practical, hands-on help—48 percent say “offer counseling and care.”
- Pastors’ sense of their church’s effectiveness when it comes to outreach has dipped significantly since 2015. In 2015, 13 percent said their church was very effective at reaching out to unchurched people—a number that dropped to 1 percent in 2023.
- When it comes to credibility, pastors believe their congregation trusts them less now than in years past. Since 2020, the percent of pastors who say their congregants consider them to be a very trustworthy source of wisdom has decreased from 67 percent to 56 percent.
- Church leaders tell Barna they favor having a deep, authentic impact rather than achieving a wide reach and renown. Just 8 percent of pastors say attendance and size are a good metric for measuring the success of a church. The remainder (92%) consider depth of engagement and commitment when determining their church’s impact.
9. The Pastor’s Priorities: What Communities Expect vs. What Churches Provide
While churches have long been considered important community spaces, expectations for the social and cultural responsibilities of houses of worship continue to evolve. In addition to spiritual guidance and fellowship, people also sometimes look to churches for material aid, crisis management, civic instruction, relationship counseling and political guidance. Whether or not a church should be in the business of filling all these roles is a very open question. But there is no doubt that many people expect the Church to be present in these ways (and plenty more).
