The Financial Impacts of COVID-19 on United Methodist Churches in North Carolina: a Qualitative Study of Pastors' Perspectives and Strategies.

ABSTRACT:

Background

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, churches in the United States were forced to stop meeting in person and move to remote forms of worship and congregational life. This shift likely impacted congregational finances, which are primarily driven by individual donations. Initial research has suggested that there is a great deal of heterogeneity in the financial impact on congregations, but there has been scant research examining how pastors and congregations are managing finances during this period.

Purpose

This research examines the impact of COVID-19 and its associated restrictions on congregational finances and the strategies pastors used to adapt their church's finances to the health restrictions.

Methods

We conducted in-depth, qualitative interviews wit

SUBMITTER: Eagle DE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8505220 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature