So here's a meaningful update. I killed off all the posts that essentially said things like "Meeting cancelled because of snow." I think we should keep this public (not hidden behind a password) because part of the point of all this is to make the church and our thinking more available. And there will be more authors in the future.
The back story
We have a thing called the "Mission Area Council" (MAC) which meets once every two months for dinner and updates. It's two representatives (one clergy and one lay) from each of several local churches (Mansfield, Ashland, Wooster, Gambier, Mt. Vernon, Shelby, and Marion). I've been on this committee for about a year now, and apparently our main function is to financially support worthy stuff in the parishes. For example, it's MAC scholarship money that sent our teenagers to the last couple of youth events. I don't know that the money is limitless, but it's a grant from the Diocese, and if we don't use it up by the end of the calendar year, we have to give it back.
Anyhow, as the meeting ended, we were all lamenting that our numbers are down and our congregations are getting older. I put the question to the group: what can we do to reach out and actually reverse that trend? I got sort of a blank set of stares from that one.
More back story
Maybe TOTE was originally supposed to be about "edgy theology" in the sense of exploring such topics as gay rights or something, but the Episcopal Church is already comfortable with some very edgy theology, so we have had trouble figuring out what to do. We've actually become a very tiny group that's a Mansfield/Ashland thing, so I put the MAC question last night. We've got resources (money from the Diocese and a couple of people who are about to be elected to the Ashland Vestry). We've got a really good product (The Episcopal Church). What can we do get the word out to folks who are looking for us?
Why did you come here?
If we're looking for ways to get the message out to newcomers, the first question is what attracts people. There already are enough churches in town with a "praise band" (three guitars, a drum set, and a vocalist with a tambourine) and the chance to jump around in the aisles. We don't need to try for that demographic. Here's what we got so far:
- Statistically, 70% of the Episcopal church is "transplants"—folks who were not born into the church. That was certainly us last night. And as I look to the last half dozen or so new members at St. Matthew's I can only think of one who transferred from another church.
- The depth and history of our worship are very attractive. We don't need to apologize for it at all, though it seems to me that an orientation class for newcomers might help. Several people in the past have been thankful for our main website's "help for the newcomers" approach.
- Food and friendliness are an incredibly big deal too.
- Statistically, people don't walk into a new church without being invited, but several of our most recent members actually came under their own steam, often as a result of the website.
- I think each church needs to have an identity beyond "just doing church." There's plenty of generic church-ness around. What have we got to sell that is unique in the market? How can we get the word out.
Next step
- We'll get together again in two weeks (January 24 at 6:30 pm at Relax). I certainly have no objection to growing the group. The topic is "How do we begin this church growth process" and I think it's got to do with figuring out our identity. (Or identities, because we've got people from two churches here.)
- This blog will get a couple of new authors, and I'm going to open it up to outside comments from anyone (though they will be moderated to keep the advertisements out).
- I mentioned a couple of books I've read recently, so I'm going to dig them out and at least get a bibliography up.
1 comment:
Curt, you are asking the question many churches in my denomination have tried to answer for a few years now in their 'Church Vitality' initiative. We initiated several strategies centered around the unique gifts our church had to offer...some of them were pretty effective. In addition, I spent several years recently 'coaching' churches about to die in the Eastern Ohio Association of the UCC. Although our history is obviously different, many of the strategies learned, leading churches through a visioning process, I believe are portable and relevant to St. Matthews and your sister churches. I offer all of that not to suggest I'm the 'answer man', just to offer any experience I have to your efforts. If you desire, David and I will pop in. Thanks for sharing. The journey is a challenging one, to be sure, but worth the effort. We find St. Matthews to be a very welcoming congregation, and an interesting mix of God's children...so would others, we believe.
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