fills a void in the sociological study of congregations by providing data that can be used to draw a nationally aggregate picture of congregations. Thanks to innovations in sampling techniques, the 1998 NCS data was the first nationally representative sample of American congregations. Subsequent NCS waves were conducted in 2006-07, 2012, and 2018-19. The 2006-07 NCS sample includes a subset of cases that were also interviewed in 1998. The 2012 NCS includes an oversample of Hispanic congregations. The 2018-19 NCS includes a subset of congregations that also were interviewed in 2012.