Over the last several decades, thousands of studies published in peer-reviewed journals document that the practice of attending church is associated with making people happier, healthier, better spouses, more generous, more ethical, more tolerant, and more civically engaged and responsible citizens. Thus, even non-religious people who do not attend church are passive recipients of the benefit of those who do regularly attend. And yet there is even more good news. Active church goers are more likely to experience better physical and mental health. Other studies have examined how religious participation is linked to educational achievement, character development, longevity, coping, and stress reduction. Still other research demonstrates how church attendance can help decrease crime and delinquency, and how religious practices help increase sobriety among addicts in treatment. Scholars have also assessed the conditions under which religious involvement in congregations enhances social capital and networks of social support that aid human flourishing. In sum, there is a significant body of empirical evidence in the form of thousands of published studies that demonstrate the ways in which church attendance is linked to a host of protective factors as well as prosocial outcomes. — The Myth of the Dying Church: How Christianity Is Actually Thriving in America and the World / Glenn T. Stanton

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