Hybrid is Worth the Hype
No, we’re not discussing hybrid vehicles, although they are a very intriguing technology! In the church leadership community, hybrid worship services denote offering both in-person and virtual worship experiences for participants. Before the COVID shutdown in 2020, the vast majority of church attendance happened exclusively in-person. Interestingly, only 20% of churches offered online streaming worship services prior to that. Fast-forward to the present and now 73% of churches have permanently adopted the hybrid worship experience model. My, how times have changed in such a short time span!
Has your hand ever been forced to adapt at the cost of fading into irrelevance? Pastoral leadership in early 2020 was forced to re-strategize and do it quickly. Because no one could [legally] attend worship services in-person, they needed to change methods quickly without sacrificing the mission. In the spiritual development arena, it was mainly done in church seats, in homes, next to and in front of someone else. And so, pastors wisely forged a new and unfamiliar path, using technology to help disciple their people.
For many church leaders, it was a steep learning curve – an innovative one, one could say. This model of offering worship services both in-person and virtually across at least one online platform is here to stay in most churches, and people are drawn to this option. In fact, among churched U.S. adults, 20% still primarily attend online, while 26% are mixing online and in-person worship. Interestingly, Millennial churched adults are the group most likely to have embraced this hybrid option, with one in three attending both online and in person.
On top of Millennials becoming more active in “attending” church services virtually on a more regular basis, there are other benefits. A hybrid congregation with both in-person and virtual worship has a higher average attendance, as well as a higher per capita giving amount. When comparing the change in attendance to pre-shutdown worship figures, these congregations have more than doubled in size (107% increase), thanks in large part to virtual participation. In-person attendees, however, give more than their virtual counterparts. This finding, along with the varying levels of volunteering and regular participation, indicates that virtual attendees are more spectators than active and engaged participants in the church’s life.
What can be concluded? A greater emphasis on in-person worship leads to higher giving rates, volunteerism, attendance, and church participation. Strong emphasis on just virtual attendance, however, leads to increased overall attendance but with decreased giving and participation. Church leadership strategy should offer both, as each type of worship experience serves a purpose for the in-person and virtual groups. There is no getting around the intrinsic benefits of being in-person with other people of faith, which create accountability, relationship-building, and positive influence to actively practice spiritual disciplines. While virtual services hold a very important role in reaching the masses around the world, it is truly a steppingstone to in-person experiences.
As the Apostle Paul wrote, “I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some” (1 Corinthians 9:22 NIV). If he and the other apostles possessed the advanced communication delivery systems we have today, albeit in varying levels of quality, I wholly believe that they would use them to the fullest extent. The methods may change with time, but the mission remains the same.
Hybrid church services are the present and the future. While pastoral leadership was basically forced to implement this technology in 2020, it was an undercover blessing. Now the Good News can reach countless individuals who may not step foot in a local church. And that is a step in the right direction.