If there’s a national trend of dwindling church pews, someone forgot to send Wrangell churches the memo.

Notre Dame sociologist Christian Smith’s new book, “Why Religion Went Obsolete,” landed earlier this summer and set off a wave of headlines about shrinking congregations across the U.S. In this island town, though, pastors say the story looks different.

“There have been a lot of reports about people leaving the church,” Harbor Light Pastor Kem Haggard said. “But I think those numbers aren’t being read correctly.”

Haggard, who also leads the Wrangell Ministerial Association, said he hasn’t seen hand-wringing among local clergy. If anything, he sees solid footing.

“I think it’s possible the information being pulled from census data is focused on how people answer the question by saying they have no religious affiliation,” he said. “But that question is more nuanced than a simple yes or no answer. I know a lot of people who attend church that would answer the same way, but that’s because they don’t claim membership with one denomination or another.”

Netti Covalt, volunteer lay pastor the past 20 years at First Presbyterian Church, agrees.

“My church is an aging congregation and we’re diminishing because we don’t have any youth,” she said. “I’m 65 years old and I’m the youngest one at the church. But, at one time, our church had the youth and was very active in local ministries and outreach. It was just our time then. I look at what is happening with Harbor Light and it’s obvious to me that there isn’t a shrinking number of churchgoers here.”

Haggard said Harbor Light’s in-person attendance keeps ticking up — and it’s not alone.

“We talked about this at the last ministerial alliance meeting, and Island of Faith Lutheran Church with Pastor Sue Bahleda is seeing an increase in numbers,” Haggard said.

“The Salvation Army church is also seeing a steady increase. St. Philip’s Episcopal and St. Rose Catholic churches have both reported that they’re maintaining the same numbers. So, I don’t think shrinking congregation sizes are really a concern here.”

Wrangell has about a dozen different congregations spanning traditional Christian faiths and non-Christian beliefs.

Also, not all worshipers are in the room on Sunday.

“Ever since the pandemic, attending church online has become more common for some people,” Haggard said.

“When we remember to look at our analytics for that, we see our attendance is even higher. And I know that’s the case for other churches who stream their services as well. If you think about it, it’s pretty simple: three out of five churches with the ministerial alliance are reporting improving numbers while the remaining two report steady numbers.”

Both Haggard and Covalt say the real shift is how people think about belonging.

“Back when we were kids, it was normal for someone to go to church, fill out a card and then be an actual member of that church or denomination,” Haggard said. “But the current generation just doesn’t do that. Many of them never have.”

The U.S. Religious Census, conducted since 1990 by the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies, reported in its 2020 count that almost 37% of people in Wrangell were “adherents” to a congregation, the highest percentage of any community in Southeast Alaska.

The national headlines are mixed. At the same time some national stories chart declines, others note a comeback.

USA Today published a feature in April claiming Generation Z is “returning to Christianity.”

“I think that when it comes to faith, people recognize the personal aspect of it,” Covalt said. “Nationwide, the Presbyterian denomination has been showing diminishing numbers; but the number of people worshipping at different churches is increasing. It’s not a simple matter of just putting labels on things. Faith is deeper than that.”