Is it the worship? Politics? Programs? That's what we tend to blame. But new data from Pew and PRRI - covering 80,000+ respondents - points to a very different primary reason people leave. Today, we'll unpack what the data actually says, why common assumptions fall short, and what churches can do in response.

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Table of Contents:

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0:00 - Intro

3:39 - The #1 Reason People Leave - They Stopped Believing

10:05 - The Quiet Exit - Drift, Not Drama

16:07 - Childhood Experience Is the Strongest Predictor of Whether Someone Stays

29:50 - Scandals and Institutional Distrust

36:49 - Big Takeaways

IMPORTANT LINKS

- The Gen Z Church Communication Playbook: https://youtu.be/zQnhOKlV91Q

- People Complained Our Church Was Too Loud. So We Did This: https://youtu.be/4ij1tR-EMHE

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ALL CITATIONS

PEW RESEARCH CENTER

- "Why Do Some Americans Leave Their Religion While Others Stay?" (December 2025, n=8,937 ATP + n=36,908 RLS) — PRIMARY https://pewrsr.ch/3NATWA3

- "Religion Holds Steady in America" (December 2025) — PRIMARY https://pewrsr.ch/4bLrZ1y

- "Decline of Christianity in the U.S. Has Slowed, May Have Leveled Off" — Religious Landscape Study (February 2025, n=36,908) — PRIMARY https://pewrsr.ch/4bZp7Nm

PRRI (Public Religion Research Institute)

- "Religious Change in America" (March 2024, n=40,000+ via American Values Atlas) — PRIMARY https://bit.ly/4s6Y2xM

- "Exodus: Why Americans Are Leaving Religion—and Why They're Unlikely to Come Back" (2016 baseline data) — PRIMARY https://bit.ly/3PGWdu1

- "Religion and Congregations in a Time of Social and Political Upheaval" / Health of Congregations survey (2024) — PRIMARY https://bit.ly/4tjNAUC

- "Unveiling the Exodus: Americans' Reasons for Leaving Religious Traditions" (2024) — PRIMARY https://bit.ly/3PRRy8z

SURVEY CENTER ON AMERICAN LIFE / AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE

- "Young Women Are Leaving Church in Unprecedented Numbers" (2024) — PRIMARY https://bit.ly/4chJXZK

- Note: This is an AEI project, not PRRI — frequently conflated in church media.

PRRI CENSUS OF AMERICAN RELIGION (2024)

- Substack analysis by Melissa Deckman (PRRI CEO) — SECONDARY analysis of primary PRRI data https://bit.ly

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