Here’s one more good reason to bring your family to church with you.

Sociologists with the National Study of Youth and Religion (NSYR) have published a study which reveals that families in the United States with an involvement in a religious community are more likely to have significantly stronger family relationships than those families who are not active in a religious community.

This study determined that for early adolescents (aged 12 to 14), parental involvement in worship services even just once a week produced significant results which strengthened relationships with their parents. These findings were released in the report Family Religious Involvement and the Quality of Family Relationships for Early Adolescents. According to the report, these youth are more likely to:

• look toward their mothers as positive role models
• have fathers whom they aspire to be like and of whom they think highly
• have parents who are aware of who their friends are
• enjoy spending time with their parents
• eat dinner regularly with their family
• participate regularly in other family activities
• not run away from home

Overall, the findings of this report clearly state that early adolescents living in religiously involved families enjoy stronger, more positive relationships with their parents than early adolescents whose families are not involved religiously. Religiously active families are also more likely to create environments where their youth feel supported and teenagers are more likely to seek help from a parent if some assistance is needed.

So, if you’re looking to strengthen your relationship with your kids, bring them to church. It might make a bigger difference than you could ever know.