Online worship is transforming ministry

Each year, Synod Council invites me to make a presentation on trends in giving and attendance in the diocese. (Synod Council is the representative body of clergy and lay people responsible for attending to the temporal needs of the diocese between regular sessions of Synod). My presentation has aptly been titled “Charting Decline in the Diocese of Toronto,” as most of the data is an update that confirms continued waning in Sunday attendance, numbers of identifiable givers, total giving, baptisms, confirmations and overall parish health. Ever since I can remember, the trend has been in one direction. Until now.

Statistics from the latest churchwarden and incumbent returns indicate a sharp increase in Sunday attendance and the number of givers to the Church in the Diocese of Toronto. This is a remarkable result, owed in large part to our response to the pandemic. From its onset, parishes across the diocese made the quick decision to pivot to Zoom, Facebook or YouTube services when corporate gatherings became impossible. In fact, we accomplished in a fortnight what might not have happened in a decade under normal conditions. With support from the Congregational Development department and grants to enable the purchase of equipment, and with an enthusiasm to connect with housebound Anglicans, the Church embarked on a new chapter in its worship ministry.

Our 2023 statistical returns confirm what was set in motion in 2020: going online allowed worshippers to connect with their church communities and participate in the ritual of Sunday services. In its early days, online worship also spawned the proliferation of online bible studies, book clubs, morning prayer and vespers, and coffee hours. Some have continued to this day, effectively embracing a “fresh expression” of Church that is altogether virtual and apart from an in-person experience of worship and community-building.

The narrative of decline in the Church is nothing new. Data from nearly every church and secular source, be it General Synod, Statistics Canada, the Church of England Office of Statistics and The Episcopal Church indicate that membership, worship attendance and giving have been trending downward for decades. Our own records indicate that the trend began in 1966. That is why this year’s data is so interesting.

Last year, Synod Council commissioned the Virtual Counting Working Group, led by the Rev. Lucia Lloyd of St. John, Bowmanville and Laurie Robertson from St. John the Evangelist, Port Hope, to articulate a clear metric that could be used by every church to accurately identify the size of their online worship community. Essentially, when using Zoom it amounted to heads on the screen, and when using YouTube (the predominant medium) it is the equivalent of one hour of watch time as determined by using its analytic tool.

Even though response to the questionnaire was optional, 62 per cent of parishes (121 of 195) indicated some form of virtual Sunday program, amounting to nearly 4,600 participants. Although data was collected for the first time only in 2023, it is reasonable to assume that this figure may have been higher in 2020 when in-person worship was not permitted. This statistic is nothing short of remarkable, especially as it is corroborated by an increase in the number of regular identifiable givers. The online worship community represents about 25 per cent of all those gathered on a given Sunday. The number of givers has increased by nearly 10 per cent. Electronic giving (which includes pre-authorized giving and electronic funds transfer) now represents 40 per cent of all gifts made – an all-time high.

There is a myriad of other statistics that give us cause to be hopeful, including the fact that 11 churches have online communities larger than in-person ones, or that parishes are now investing in upgrading their online worship technology and a few have hired digital pastors.

I have begun to share our learnings with other professionals knowledgeable of church growth and statistics, and our experience is unique in terms of resourcing and promotion. Most areas within the Anglican family have seen sharp declines in online activities and have reverted to the practice of in-person gatherings as the preferred method of Sunday worship. Our data and experience suggest that abandoning online worship is imprudent and risks closing us off to the potential of exposing newcomers to Anglican church life and engaging existing members with an opportunity to participate when in-person worship is not possible.

We have stumbled upon something new, exciting and positive. When so much news about church membership is about decline, closure and indifference, it feels so good to demonstrate through tangible evidence that growth is possible! Good things are happening in the Diocese of Toronto. Thanks be to God.