Church Attendance Is Up. Here’s Why That Matters.

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Research continues to show church attendance in America is growing.

A recent report from the Hartford Institute for Religion Research found that median in-person worship attendance rose from 65 in 2020 to 70 in 2025. That may sound modest, but researchers called it significant.

The data suggests more congregations are stabilizing or growing rather than shrinking. Volunteers are showing up, and ministers are feeling more optimistic.

This is part of a broader trend we have been watching for a while now.

We have written before about the “quiet revival” taking place among young adults in America and abroad.

Bible sales have soared, young men and women are driving a resurgence in church attendance, and CBS News has reported on the large number of adults — particularly Gen Z — who have been baptized into the Christian faith in recent years.

A recent Gallup poll shows young men are now more likely than young women to say religion is “very important” in their lives.

It’s good to see more Americans returning to church and engaging with scripture.

Of course, as we have said many times, it isn’t enough simply to show up at church or own a Bible, but all of this is very encouraging.

Church congregations help believers live out their faith in daily life. Being part of a local community of believers is an essential part of discipleship.

Hopefully this “quiet revival” is one that will continue to spread.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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Mid Vermont Christian School Back in Court

Religious Freedom,
Mid Vermont Christian School basketball players outside of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit in New York City on April 9, 2025.

Attorneys representing a Christian school in Vermont were back in court on Friday after state officials refused to include the school in state programs.

The Mid Vermont Christian School (MVCS) believes that human beings are created either male or female. In 2023, the MVCS girls’ basketball team decided to forfeit a game rather than violate its religious convictions by forcing its girls to play against a team with a male player.

But the Vermont Principals Association decided to punish the school for forfeiting the game by kicking it out of the sports league. That led to a major court battle — and a $566,000 settlement for damages and attorneys’ fees to Mid Vermont Christian School.

While the principals association has settled the suit, our friends at Alliance Defending Freedom say state officials have continued to exclude all religious schools — including MVCS — and their students from participating in the state’s tuition program and other public benefit programs.

On Friday, the U.S. District Court for the District of Vermont heard the case.

In a statement, Alliance Defending Freedom Legal Counsel Jake Reed said,

“Religious schools and the families they serve aren’t second-class citizens. Yet Vermont continues to treat them as such by excluding them from a public benefit available to other secular schools. All parents should be able to send their kids to schools that are the best fit for them, and the First Amendment protects parents’ right to choose religious schools.”

We appreciate our friends at Alliance Defending Freedom standing for religious liberty in court.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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Basketball Team’s Full Court Press for Religious Liberty Pays Off

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Above: Mid Vermont Christian School basketball players outside of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit in New York City on April 9, 2025 (Photo Credit: Alliance Defending Freedom).

A Christian school in Vermont recently won a major legal victory — and the price tag for violating its constitutional rights was steep.

The Mid Vermont Christian School (MVCS) believes that human beings are created either male or female. In 2023, the MVCS girls’ basketball team decided to forfeit a game rather than violate its religious convictions by forcing its girls to play against a team with a male player. But the Vermont Principals Association decided to punish the school for forfeiting the game by kicking it out of the sports league. That led to a major court battle — and a victory for MVCS.

Now the Vermont Principals Association has agreed to pay a $566,000 settlement for damages and attorneys’ fees to Mid Vermont Christian School.

Our friends at Alliance Defending Freedom represented the school in court. ADF Senior Counsel David Cortman put it plainly: “The government cannot punish religious schools — and the families they serve — by permanently kicking them out of state-sponsored sports simply because the state disagrees with their religious beliefs.”

Stories like this one are part of the reason Arkansas passed Act 461 by Sen. Missy Irvin (R — Mountain View) and Rep. Sonia Barker (R — Smackover) in 2021 to protects fairness in women’s sports in Arkansas.

Letting men compete in women’s sports is unfair and reverses 50 years of advancements for women. Female cyclists, swimmers, powerlifters, sprinters, volleyball players, and others have seen their sports radically changed by men who claim to be women. In some cases it can even be dangerous.

Right now the U.S. Supreme Court is considering a federal case that could affect state laws like Arkansas’ Act 461. Family Council joined dozens of state policy organizations and more than 200 state legislators in a legal brief in that case last September.

Most Americans agree that athletes should compete according to their biological sex — not their gender identity. This settlement between Mid Vermont Christian School and the Vermont Principals Association is a victory for religious freedom, fairness in girls’ sports, and common sense.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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