“Bedside Baptist Church” members, a term coined to name people who virtually watch church in their bedrooms, became a thing during the pandemic. Still, many are choosing to not attend in-person services, according to Black Enterprise.

“While 13% of Protestants who belong to historically Black churches say they attend church in person and don’t regularly watch services virtually, most say they join services both in person and virtually (37%) or only watch remotely on screens (20%),” research from a Pew Research Center’s June 2023 report reported.

In response, religious leaders nationwide are trying to find ways to adapt.

“Pastoring the virtual church creates an accountability and connection challenge. It’s not dissimilar from the traditional congregation challenges,” Rev. Jamal Brown, a pastor at Philadelphia’s Family Restoration Worship Center, told Amsterdam News.

Despite online offerings, churches are struggling financially because virtual church attendees have “an opportunity to hide from the responsibility of giving time, talent, and tenth,” Brown said.

Black Enterprise reports that in-person worship among adults has decreased by 12 percent.

If more people stop going to Black churchhouses, preachers are unsure how they will be able to continue their programming.

“The future does not look good for organized religion in Black America, especially the historic traditions,” Jason E. Shelton, a sociologist and professor and director of the Center for African American Studies at the University of Texas at Arlington, said. “The Baptists are still the largest, but they’re losing people. The Methodists are really down small. The Pentecostals are losing, but they’re not losing nearly as many, since they’ve always been small.”

He continued, “The church has always been the vessel that we as Black people have used to have community and solidarity. It’s the church that connects [Black society], so as the nones fall away from that, what does that mean for the community? What does that mean for Black music? What does that mean for Black politics? And what does that mean for the long-standing legacy of racial discrimination in this country?”