Covid: Curse or Cure for The Church of England?

Reimagining faith in a post covid world

In the emergence of New data from The Church of England figures suggest that covid 19 has had a long-lasting impact on attendance in the church.

The data shows a worrying story, one that suggest that church attendance levels are struggling to recover to pre covid numbers.

‘Adult weekly attendance and year on year change’ Information sourced from Home | The Church of England

As seen In the figure above, The Church of England witnessed a significant spike in 2021 with attendance levels rising to above 800,000, the highest the church had seen to date yet.

However, whilst this spike is initially encouraging it was followed by a fast decline scaling at around 500,000 a year later in 2022.

Since then, The church of England has been witnessing a steady decline that appears to continue to challenge the Church and dwindle its numbers.

The question that remains is why has the church struggled so much to recover post covid and could this be a call for change?

In an attempt to answer these lingering questions, I reached out to St Luke’s Church in Maidstone and spoke to Emily Gadd, the church administrator and member of their young adults’ group.

Emily’s story is courageous and stands as a testimony on the many ways Covid 19 was a blessing In disguise for The church and those involved in it.

Emily came to St Luke’s through crisis, explaining that it’s hard to recognise herself before she met Jesus. She struggled with anxiety and explained that “during Covid my anxiety was overwhelming- I felt out of control and desperate for something steady.”

For Emily, The church of England community became a place where she could actually breathe again, feel supported, and encouraged to pursue her dreams whilst given the necessary space and time to grow.

To begin the interview, I felt it was important to understand how Covid has affected the church, and in what ways it had to change to accommodate this.

We began with discussing her thoughts behind the reasons for this decline and Emily believes that for many it is simply that they haven’t returned to the same routines they had before covid. For some, it is as simple as they became use to the idea of staying at home and struggled to navigate a post pandemic world.

Whilst for others, it allowed people to have the time to re-evaluate their faith and realise that “the habit of attending church wasn’t as deeply rooted as they assumed, and once that pattern broke, it was hard to rebuild.”

However, she also highlighted that she’d seen Covid do the opposite for individuals; “some people came back with a deeper hunger and seriousness about faith because covid shook them and made them realise how fragile life can be.”

Interestingly, Emily spoke about how this realisation had largely occurred in young adults. Particularly with those “wanting community but sometimes struggling to find the confidence or rhythm to step back into church again.”

In sharing her own experience with navigating Covid and the post pandemic world that followed, Emily admitted that the online worship, sermons and quiet prayer became a lifeline for her and acknowledged that her experience wasn’t polished but rather “desperate and honest”.

In navigating this anxiety, Emily noted that the church was formative in helping her learn how to live her life again. Through joining small groups, serving and eventually working for the church it allowed her to step back into communal life despite what still felt an uncertain path ahead.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing, and like the majority of people post covid Emily recognises that there are things the church could have done differently. “I think the church did its best it could under the impossible circumstances, but clearer communication about support systems would have helped, especially for people struggling with mental health. A lot of young adults felt isolated but didn’t know who to reach out to.”

Additionally, “we could have found more creative ways to keep relational connections strong — not just livestreams, but small pastoral check-ins, youth or young adult meetups online, or even simple phone calls.”

Emily concluded that whilst “the church shone in many ways, the loneliness people felt shows that community needs to be more intentional, not just assumed.”

When asked about why covid has hit the church so significantly she feels it is because the churches’ identity is its foundation, “Community, communion, worship, prayer — they all feel different when separated by screens. Suddenly, everything that felt familiar vanished.”

But more than that, “covid exposed the emotional and spiritual fragility many people were carrying quietly.” Acknowledging that “for some, church had been a habit more than a relationship. For others, it was the one place they felt safe and losing that space left a huge hole.”

Encouragingly, Emily and St Luke’s Church are choosing to see covid as an opportunity to grow, with Emily describing it as; “A spiritual shockwave that revealed what was strong, and also what needed rebuilding.”

Towards the end of the interview, we directed the conversation to the outcomes of covid and the lessons it has taught the church.

It seems that covid taught vital lessons to the church with one being that “connection isn’t limited to buildings or Sunday services.” And instead pushed them “to be creative, flexible, and more aware of mental health. It reminded us that people need genuine relationships and pastoral care, not just programs.”

On a personal level Emily highlighted that one of the biggest positives for her post covid “is that the church now takes accessibility and inclusivity more seriously.” Through Online options, hybrid small groups, and varied ways of engaging the church has been able to help people who might never have stepped through the doors before.

To conclude the interview, we discussed how covid acted as an opening for new voices to arise in the church; “young adults, people like me who found faith during the chaos to step into leadership and even feel called to ministry. That, to me, is one of the most hopeful outcomes of all.”

On reflection, I think Covid 19 was a necessary call for the church to re-evaluate its sense of community and creatively shape itself as an accessible platform where all voices are encouraged to excel.

Whilst I appreciate the data shows a decline in church attendance I hope that by reading this article more people, particularly young adults are inspired by Emily’s story and become more open minded to the church and the wonderful community it can bring.

I think that by sharing stories like Emily’s, more people can experience the post covid church that I have and that in doing so appreciate their honesty, reflection and their willingness to adapt in order to successfully navigate a landscape were institutions are no longer the forefront.

I am hopeful that in time, The church of England’s attendance will rise again, and as Emily suggests, it will be a place stronger than before and remain with hope at its centre for all who choose to accept it.

My personal highlight of the interview and a big takeaway, I wished to end on is a message Emily shared, and that is “God can take even the most anxious uncertain moments of your life and turn them into calling”.