According to a report, women are leaving churches in droves after previously being the dominant group in churches.

“Women are less likely to get involved in churches where we are not supposed to speak our minds and act smart,” said Mojica Rodríguez, a pastor’s daughter who was a regular churchgoer herself, according to AOL.com.

Rodriguez, 39, has a master’s degree in theology. The Nashville-based author eventually left the church because of its views on women.

“We are like the mules of the church – that’s how it feels,” she continued.

CHRISTIAN GROUPS SEE NEED FOR NEW APPROACH TO THE HISTORICAL DECLINE IN CHURCH ATTENDANCE IN AMERICA

Several studies in the AOL.com article point to a decline in church attendance and a turning away from religion.

The church’s views on women are far more concerning to Generation Z than previous generations because religious institutions cling to the belief that women cannot hold leadership roles in the church, the Survey Center on American Life reported.

According to AOL.com, “Some, as in the case of Mojica Rodríguez, resent gender hierarchy, women’s inability to hold positions of power, or expectations of chastity for girls. Others, they say, struggle with their church’s stance on reproductive and/or LGBTQ rights.”

According to a report, women are leaving the church in droves after once being the dominant group in the church. (iStock)

The American Enterprise Institute reported in April that among young adults leaving their religion, women outnumber men across four generations. Specifically, among Gen Z women, 54% of Gen Z adults leaving their religion were women, compared to 46% of men.

The number of Americans who identify as Christian has declined significantly over the past 30 years, data shows. According to the Pew Research Center, 63% of Americans identified themselves as Christian in 2020, a decline from the 90% of Americans who identified as Christian since the 1990s.

A message spray-painted on the wall of St. Louise Catholic Church in Bellevue, Washington, in June read: “Religion of hate.” (FOX13 Seattle)

In addition, a Gallup poll released this year found that only “three in 10” U.S. adults attend church once or almost once a week. This represents a significant decline from 20 years ago, when 42% of U.S. adults attended church regularly.

This decline has doubled in the last decade. The proportion of regular churchgoers, which was around 38 percent between 2011 and 2013, has now fallen to 30 percent.

Pastors fight against rapidly increasing burnout due to politics and pandemic: “It puts a strain on the soul”

Gallup found This decline is not only observed among Christian denominations, but across virtually all faiths in the United States.

If women leave the church, it could have serious consequences for the church, as they are the largest demographic in the pews, noted former evangelist Sheila Wray Gregoire, adding that women tend to volunteer and involve their families in the church.

Gregoire told AOL.com that the church cannot survive without women. She has studied Christian marriage in the United States and Canada for 17 years and went on to explain that women “are the ones responsible for getting the kids out of bed and into church.”

Altar area of ​​a small church with pews and pulpit (iStock)

“Women do most of the work that keeps the church running,” Gregoire said.

“They are the ones who run Sunday school, make sure potlucks happen, or support people when they are sick or have a baby. The church will not survive without women.”

Daniel A. Cox, director of the Survey Center on American Life, cited “cultural dissonance” among young women as a reason for leaving the church.

“There is a cultural dissonance in that young women are told they can do anything and then are told that while they can do anything in general, there are restrictions in our places of worship,” Cox said.

“This is another challenge these places are facing,” he added.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Researchers attribute women’s church exits to them prioritizing their career goals and postponing marriage and parenthood, AOL.com reported.

“Why would you want to be in a place where your voice doesn’t count?” Gregoire said.

She continued, “It’s hard when you grow up with a deep, personal faith and then the church you belong to treats you as less than. It’s like the rug is being pulled out from under you.”

Fox News’ Gabriel Hays contributed to this report.