TRENDS TO WATCH FOR

Many seminary graduates (and their congregations) complain that their education didn’t prepare them for the world in which they are trying to “do church”.  To an extent, that’s true. A large part of the problem is that the culture is shifting so rapidly that, by the time someone’s ready to teach about it, another shift has occurred. Another factor is that, especially in mainline denominational traditions, there is such a wide mix of congregations and cultures where graduates might serve. So, a responsible denominationally-related college can’t just ignore a whole class of faith communities just because they aren’t “cutting edge” – however that is manifested this month! Another major concern is that “being relevant” is not necessarily a Christian value and can lead us into all sorts of practices which promise results but may measure according to criteria that could/should make us uncomfortable. We live in a culture that loves to count things. We all know that what is counted is what becomes important. It’s worth pausing to reflect whether or not the things we count are truly what should occupy us. They may be, but Christ’s invitation is sufficiently counter-cultural that we want to ask the question rather than assuming the answer.

All that being true, the faithful church leader also wants to be aware of the cultural shifts that are impacting the community around the church. To change John’s emphasis, we may not be of the world, but we are certainly in it! If anything, the pace of change is accelerating, not slowing. The question is, can we see it and prepare for it? I guess that’s two questions.  Here are some things that might be impacting your congregation. But the overall message is that we need to keep trying new things recognizing that some of them will not meet our hopes.  Some might call that “failure,” but I prefer the vision that says we can’t know until we try.

I believe that the local church is crucial to the mission of God in this world. That’s why it’s so important that it be as vital and vibrant as possible. However, that no longer translates into “bums in pews” and “dollars in the plate.” The long-honoured model of getting people to come into a church building (the “attractional model”) has to give way to the “missional model” of aiming to get the church into places where people already are. Think of how rarely in our society we are confronted with the requirement that we be in a particular place on one day at one time to access something. That’s not to say that gathering as a community of faith is suddenly irrelevant. But rather than being the summit of our efforts it needs to be the foundation. So, if being part of your community of faith means a building, a location, a set time, I urge you to think about that.

We need to continue to work at a digital presence.  That may mean live-streaming which is surprisingly affordable. It may mean recording services and having them available for download. It certainly means that your web-presence needs to be current, up-to-date and changing.  We know that, for an increasing number of people, a website is their first point of contact. If you’re still showing the times for Easter weekend in November, there’s a problem! Similarly, with Facebook.  Then, you might wrestle with the question of how to engage the people you never meet.

“Pop-up” is a new thing in retail: pop-up stores or restaurants and so on. What would a pop-up church look like in your context? Could you take a worship experience someplace outside your building? I think the trend to take church groups outside the church – theology on tap, or coffee and conversation or other types of gatherings which make an effort to include newcomers – are great.  In a related vein, do you provide anything to your community for which people do not need or are not expected to pay? I know how important fund-raising is to the local congregation. But if every time someone steps inside your door they know they’ll have to reach for their wallet or purse that changes the relationship.

Do you ever get people together simply for the joy of being together? Seriously – do you always need to have a task or reason? It is remarkably difficult to build community when most of what I see of you is the back of your head! It is often observed that we are, concurrently, increasingly digitally linked and personally isolated. There is an epidemic of loneliness in our society that the church is perfectly positioned to address. God is both transcendent and immanent. Christ needs to be encountered in the flesh of the neighbour.