On Jan. 19, 2020, a 35-year-old Washington man who had returned home after a family visit to Wuhan, China, reported to an emergency room with a persistent cough and fever. The next day, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed the man had the first known case of coronavirus disease in the United States.

No one fully appreciated the potential ramifications for organized religion at the time, but within two months, the spread of COVID-19 had upended worship practices across the United States. Led by autonomous elderships or by collective membership decisions, churches of Christ adapted to the realities of a 21st-century pandemic.

Eighteen months into the pandemic, Bible Study Page conducted an informal survey to gauge how much impact COVID has had within non-institutional churches of Christ and for how long. The survey explored the traditional practices of individual congregations, how these groups changed their practices in response to the pandemic, how they used audio/video technology, and how many of their members contracted and/or died of COVID. Elders, deacons, evangelists, Bible class teachers and members of churches shared insights about the experiences and challenges within their own congregations.

To learn about the findings of the survey, download our new report, “Pandemic Distress: Churches of Christ in the Age of COVID.” The report is free, but donations to support the work of Bible Study Page are both welcome and appreciated. If you have trouble downloading the report, contact Danny Glover to request a copy via email.