The Impact of the Pandemic on American Orthodox Christian Parishes

DOI

10.17605/OSF.IO/KDMHS

Citation

Krindatch, A. (2022, October 31). The Impact of the Pandemic on American Orthodox Christian Parishes.

Summary

The study 'The 'New Traditional' in a Most Traditional Church: How the Pandemic Has Reshaped American Orthodox Christian Churches' examines both the overall impact of the pandemic and its possible long-term consequences for American Orthodox Christian congregations. The report also discusses 'mysteriously' strong growth in vitality that some congregations (12 percent of all American Orthodox parishes) experienced despite and even because of the pandemic. This study was made possible thanks to a generous grant provided by the Louisville Institute.

Data were gathered January 24 - February 10, 2022 through the national online survey of American Orthodox Christian parish clergy. The following major subjects were addressed in the study and discussed in the report:

• The positives and negatives of switching to an 'online mode' for church services, religious education and other ministries
• Changes in membership, worship attendance, and involvement in religious education. The reasons for growth in some congregations against the backdrop of a general decline
• Church closures and mortality rates among members
• Internal conflicts within parishes and their disagreements with ruling bishops because of pandemic-related decisions
• Changes in congregational vitality. Distinctive features of the 12% of congregations manifesting strong growth in vitality throughout the pandemic
• Greatest achievements of the congregations during the pandemic and their major fears for the future

Several open-ended questions allowed to examine in-depth the unique stories and situations of individual congregations. Discussion of these open-ended questions is included in the report.

Data File

Cases: 370
Variables: 100
Weight Variable: None

Given relatively small number of respondents and the fact that the sample represented accurately the geography of American Orthodox Christian congregations, no weight variables were used.

Data Collection

January 24 - February 10, 2022

Original Survey (Instrument)

The Impact of the Pandemic on American Orthodox Parishes

Collection Procedures

Invitations to participate in the study and links to online questionnaire were sent to all American Orthodox Christian parish clergy. Out of 1,600 invited clergy, 380 responded.

Principal Investigators

Alexei Krindatch

Related Publications

The full study report ('The 'New Traditional' in a Most Traditional Church: How the Pandemic Has Reshaped American Orthodox Christian Churches') and executive summary are provided. These materials are also available online for download here.