NEW HAVEN, Conn. (WTNH) — Faith is on the rise across Connecticut, but what is the driving force that’s sparking this spiritual movement? News 8’s Mackenzie Maynard spoke with religious leaders across the state about where people are finding their hope today.
“Everywhere you look, people are saying there has to be more,” Justin Kendrick, the lead pastor at Vox Church said. “There has to be more. Our vision at Vox is always to see New England changed from the least-churched region to the most spiritually vibrant place on earth. There’s a hunger that we didn’t initiate that really was from God, and we’ve seen that now for 14 years.”
“I grew up in church. I’ve gone to a few different churches in my life,” Madison Butts said. “I had experience with a church that kind of like led me to not trust church.”
For so many, that may be a shared story: hurt and disappointment closing the door on faith, but now people are coming back.
Fourteen years ago, Kendrick took a chance on a hope and a calling, holding their first church sermon on Easter Sunday of 2011 at Toad’s Place in New Haven.
“Toad’s Place reminds me of why we started all this,” Kendrick said. “It’s just people looking for faith, looking for something bigger than themselves.
Since then, the church has grown into 13 locations.
“As far south as Norwalk, as far north as Worcester, and thousands of people gather every Sunday,” Kendrick said. “We have 24 different church services on a Sunday morning.”
That growth continues.
“Our hope is to start three next year, four after that, and then god willing, seven after that,” he said. “We also go where the need is great. Where we see things like failing schools or struggling communities, we try to get into those locations.
So what is driving this wave of spirituality across the state?
“I think the American dream has shown itself to be not enough,” Kendrick said. “People have the family, they get the job, they buy the house, they drive the car, and they go, ‘Is this it?’ Then there are so many of us scraping, trying, and hunting for those things. We don’t get them, but even when we get the taste, it’s not enough.”
It’s a trend seen across denominations —from Christian congregations to Catholic parishes —pews are also filling up.
“They’re coming back to something that feels like home, something sacred,” Archbishop Christopher Coyne said.
He said attendance in Connecticut is up 6% since 2021, with nearly 10,000 families joining the Catholic Church, thanks in part to their new approach.
“They’re moving out of digital isolation and a lack of friendships, a lack of community and coming to church, and they’re finding it,” Coyne said. “We just don’t open our doors and expect people to come in; we’re making efforts to go out and encounter people.
Fr church leaders, there is a blatant pressure to rebuild trust with church members.
“I don’t deny the things that happened in the past,” Coyne said. “I don’t deny the criminality that occurred, especially between priests and children.”
Matching their action with scripture as they restore and rebuild what many feel was broken.
“We’re trying to live authentic Catholic Christian lives in a way to draw people back, Coyne said. “There’s no hiding who I am or behind anything besides that welcome. You’re my brother, my sister, my family.”
Kendrick said the vision is not to expand their church.
“The vision to see New England change to see hearts and lives changed,” he said. “So we do that, yes, by planting churches, but we also do that by serving churches, by coming alongside other churches and partnering, sharing best practices, supporting, and encouraging.
For those like Butts, finding their way and continuing their walk in faith.
“It changed my perspective on genuine Christian community,” she said. “If you’ve been hurt by the church, give it another chance and open yourself up to something that could potentially be one of the most beautiful things in your life.”
About Vox Church
Vox Church wants to see New England transformed from the least-churched region in the U.S. to the most spiritually vibrant place on earth. At Vox Church, three core behavioral values shape the way we make decisions and practice our faith. These values inform and direct our church. We practice them when it's popular and when it's out of fashion. We filter everything through these core values. They continue to serve through their multi-location campuses.
