{"id":32498,"date":"2022-09-10T16:11:53","date_gmt":"2022-09-10T21:11:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/what-are-the-most-churched-and-unchurched-cities-in-america\/"},"modified":"2022-09-10T16:11:53","modified_gmt":"2022-09-10T21:11:53","slug":"what-are-the-most-churched-and-unchurched-cities-in-america","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/what-are-the-most-churched-and-unchurched-cities-in-america\/","title":{"rendered":"What Are the Most Churched (and Unchurched) Cities in America?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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By Aaron Earls<\/em><\/p>\n

The most Bible-minded city in America also happens to be the city that shows up most to church.<\/p>\n

According to Barna Research, Chattanooga, Tennessee, has the highest percentage of its population who are very active in church. Almost 6 in 10 residents (59 percent) are regular churchgoers.<\/p>\n

For six of the last seven years, the American Bible Society has named Chattanooga the nation\u2019s most Bible-minded city. This year, it was the only American city where at least half the population was classified as Bible-minded.<\/p>\n

Overall, almost 4 in 10 Americans (38 percent) are active churchgoers who have attended a service in the past seven days. Another 19 percent attend less frequently.<\/p>\n

A slight plurality (43 percent) are considered unchurched: They haven\u2019t attended a church service in the past six months, except for a special event such as a wedding or funeral.<\/p>\n

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Part of the unchurched are classified by Barna as dechurched. These make up 34 percent of the American population.<\/p>\n

Like the rest of the unchurched, they haven\u2019t attended a church service in the past six months, but previously they were at least minimally active in a local congregation.<\/p>\n

Here are the 10 most churched cities, mostly in the South and Midwest, with the percentage of residents who are active churchgoers in parentheses.<\/p>\n

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  1. Chattanooga, Tennessee (59 percent)<\/li>\n
  2. Salt Lake City, Utah (59 percent)<\/li>\n
  3. Augusta, Georgia \/ Aiken, South Carolina (57 percent)<\/li>\n
  4. Baton Rouge, Louisiana (57 percent)<\/li>\n
  5. Birmingham \/ Anniston \/ Tuscaloosa, Alabama (56 percent)<\/li>\n
  6. Jackson, Mississippi (55 percent)<\/li>\n
  7. Paducah, Kentucky \/ Cape Girardeau, Missouri \/ Harrisburg \/ Mt. Vernon, Illinois (54 percent)<\/li>\n
  8. Montgomery \/ Selma, Alabama (53 percent)<\/li>\n
  9. Greenville \/ New Bern \/ Washington, North Carolina (52 percent)<\/li>\n
  10. South Bend \/ Elkhart, Indiana (52 percent)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
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    The research also detailed the most unchurched and dechurched cities, most of which are in the West and Northeast.<\/p>\n

    The most unchurched city is the San Francisco metro area. It was also one of the least Bible-minded cities, ranking 94 out of 100.<\/p>\n

    Here are the 10 most unchurched cities, with the percentage of unchurched residents in parentheses.<\/p>\n

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    1. San Francisco \/ Oakland \/ San Jose, California (60 percent)<\/li>\n
    2. Reno, Nevada (59 percent)<\/li>\n
    3. Springfield \/ Holyoke, Massachusetts (57 percent)<\/li>\n
    4. Boston \/ Manchester, Massachusetts (56 percent)<\/li>\n
    5. Las Vegas, Nevada (55 percent)<\/li>\n
    6. Portland \/ Auburn, Maine (54 percent)<\/li>\n
    7. Chico \/ Redding, California (54 percent)<\/li>\n
    8. Seattle \/ Tacoma, Washington (52 percent)<\/li>\n
    9. Orlando \/ Daytona Beach \/ Melbourne, Florida (51 percent)<\/li>\n
    10. Albany \/ Schenectady \/ Troy, New York (51 percent)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      San Francisco also tops the list of the most dechurched American cities. Here\u2019s that top 10, with the percentage of residents who are dechurched in parentheses.<\/p>\n

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      1. San Francisco \/ Oakland \/ San Jose, California (47 percent)<\/li>\n
      2. Boston \/ Manchester, Massachusetts (46 percent)<\/li>\n
      3. Seattle \/ Tacoma, Washington (45 percent)<\/li>\n
      4. Portland \/ Auburn, Maine (45 percent)<\/li>\n
      5. Springfield \/ Holyoke, Massachusetts (43 percent)<\/li>\n
      6. Orlando \/ Daytona Beach \/ Melbourne, Florida (43 percent)<\/li>\n
      7. Albany \/ Schenectady \/ Troy, New York (43 percent)<\/li>\n
      8. Reno, Nevada (43 percent)<\/li>\n
      9. Las Vegas, Nevada (42 percent)<\/li>\n
      10. Medford \/ Klamath Falls, Oregon (42 percent)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
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        Aaron Earls<\/h2>\n

        @Wardrobedoor <\/p>\n

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        Aaron is the senior writer\/editor at LifewayResearch.com.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n