What if church wasn’t just good for your soul, but also your health? New data shows the surprising ways deep church involvement brings peace, strength, and real hope.



A new study finds that church isn’t just good for the soul -- it’s beneficial for the body and the mind, too. The State of the Bible research released this week by the American Bible Society found that Americans who are heavily involved in their local church experience less stress, anxiety, and loneliness and higher levels of hope than those who are minimally involved or who rarely attend.

The researchers acknowledged that the findings may seem counterintuitive -- after all, a busier life might suggest more stress -- but said the data is clear.

“If you are involved enough at church to direct the children’s Christmas program, you might argue that church engagement leads to more stress and anxiety. Yet our survey finds that, in general, high Church Engagement is associated with lower stress and anxiety, as well as less loneliness and greater hope,” a report on the research said.

The study grouped Americans into “high,” “medium,” and “low” church engagement levels, with the highly engaged outperforming the others across the board. The differences are “substantial,” the report said, with stress levels for the “high” church engagement group dropping by about 40 percent, loneliness decreasing by 20 percent, and hope scores rising nearly 20 percent.

The State of the Bible report defined church engagement as the “level of an individual’s involvement in the life, mission, and community of a local church.” It includes “learning and growing in one’s faith, meaningful relationships with people in the church, and active use of one’s gifts in the work of the church.”

Tragically, though, many self-identified Christians are not engaged in their church -- and about half are not attending at all, according to the data.

The State of the Bible report found that 64 percent of Americans self-identify as Christian, yet only 55 percent of that group say they’ve attended church within the past six months. The fact that 45 percent of self-identified Christians never attend church points to a troubling disconnect, said John Farquhar Plake, chief innovation officer at the American Bible Society and editor-in-chief of the State of the Bible series.

“People’s lives improve when they engage with their church -- not just attending, but using their gifts, developing relationships, and taking advantage of opportunities to grow spiritually,” Plake said. “... For years now, we’ve seen these same effects with Scripture engagement, but the church provides a living environment where these factors can play out. The pairing of church and the Bible is a powerful force.”

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