It may come as a surprise to some, but church attendance among professional Christian women has shrunk. America’s religious landscape has undergone a massive shift in demographics. And the winds of change have transformed what was once a white Protestant nation into a cross-cultural and multi-ethnic society. Unfortunately, many churches are struggling to balance shifting cultural values with a 2,000-year-old tradition.

• A 2015 study of church attendance found the 45% of adults are seldom or never present at church — up from 30% in the early 1990s.

Even today, congregations continue to dwindle at an alarming rate as more people switch to different religions or leave the Church altogether.

• 28% of Americans leave the faith that they were born into in favor of either another religion or no religion at all.

Traditional methods of ministry may not be enough to address present-day issues and allow membership to grow. Caught in the middle of this upheaval are professional Christian women, many of whom feel the Church can do more to engage, communicate, and meet their needs.

Contemporary Professional Christian Women

Churches have an interest in engaging, keeping, and peaching to working women.

• Women make up 47% of the workforce
• 80% of the time, women make the decision on whether a family attends church

Only a decade ago, 60% of men never attended church, while women hovered around 40%. Over the past ten years, however, unchurched males dropped to 54% but the figure jumped to 46% for women. Why is church attendance among professional Christian women plummeting?

• 60% of women feel none or very little emotional support from their church
• 27% of professional Christian women have unplugged from church

The Church often labels workplace issues as men’s issues. And the spiritual guidance given to professional Christian women focuses exclusively on traditional home skills. However, working women face an array of unique challenges outside of the home and church. While balancing family, faith, and a career, many professional Christian women are operating multi-million-dollar firms, litigating legal cases, or navigating through the corporate world. To increase church attendance within this group, Churches need to create a spiritual message that includes professional women in the pews.