I was raised in the church. Like many of you I have fond and early memories of things like Sunday school, church Christmas productions, and youth groups. This was largely my framework for living in community. Yet as the years pass and I've gotten older, I have seen hurt that at times outweighs those fond memories. I can count on one hand the number of my friends from those early memories who still believe the church is a valid and vital part of their faith.
Data has been pouring out that suggests that people my age between (20-35) have little interest in church. It's not that they have lost interest in faith or Jesus. It's more that they have been hurt by the way the church has treated them, or friends of theirs. That everyone isn't equal in a place that truly should be the ground zero of equality. Or more simply, and perhaps the greatest thing to pay attention to... they just aren't interested.
I'm a part of a church plant (a startup church) right now that's struggling, and I think one of the for this is the model of church in which we have placed ourselves. This model functions like a twist on your standard evangelical church and as it turns out, it's not what my neighbors need.
Is the Church Still a Relevant Place?
For the better part of American evangelical history, the church was a center point in the neighborhood. It was a social event, a spiritual space and it was indeed good news to that community. It offered a space that was useful to that people group in that time period. It was also the only place you could go to hear a sermon. For one hour a week you were able to enter in and learn something new.
Now we have podcasts, Twitter, Facebook and the entire world at our fingertips. At any moment I can hop on my phone and hear some of the world's greatest communicators speak on Jesus. So our actual needs have shifted when it comes to church. It cannot thrive in the same capacity, and rather than rearrange chairs on the Titanic, it's time to hit the lifeboats and literally build a new ship. Maybe it's time to start looking at a different approach. One that doesn't follow the rules of the recent past, but goes much further into the past to find truth. Where a community centered on Jesus can extend its help and actually be good news to those in the neighborhood.
What I'm saying is nothing new. However, I'm experiencing firsthand that for church to become a compelling part of peoples faith in the next 20 years, it's going to have to posture itself in a humbling way.
Community is Key
Living in community is essential to helping the larger community around us.
I believe in a community where we don't just preach about the wonderful things that Jesus did but where we truly put those things into action. Do we actually do what He modeled? What does it look like in our context to heal the sick? To teach? To serve the least of these?
Maybe it looks like using the church's resources for medical needs in the neighborhood as well as overseas. Volunteering our time at blood blanks, homeless shelters, medical clinics, HIV walks, after-school programs, childcare and the like. It might look like putting on festivals, or organizing spaces for people to grow and hang out with each other. Doing these things together would show that we aren't just a tired building, but that the church is a real community that cares for the types of things our God cares for. I would love it if the church was the first place our neighborhoods and cities thought of when thinking of volunteering and serving.
What I'm suggesting is less about sitting in a room with likeminded individuals and more like getting out into the world and having no agenda except to be "salt and light." Not to increase our presence in the eyes of our neighbors or to add to our numbers. The church doesn't need to be known by trying to "convert" people with clever language that have no interest in what we believe. Conversion in this day and age is likely a slow burn. We will begin to change people's minds about Christians when what we do on a regular basis actually looks like Jesus.
Jesus talked a lot about the kingdom. A kingdom in which the weak were actually the strong ones, and those who were oppressed were the ones who were counted blessed. This is a kingdom of inside-out, backwards-thinking grace and we all get to live within this kingdom because like Jesus said so many times, this kingdom is at hand. He talked about himself too, but a quick read of any gospel will show that he sure liked to speak of this kingdom more. Thats exciting, because it shows that he really cared for us. He was showing us a way to live where our potential for a meaningful life could be realized. He cared so much for the here and now that he stepped into our story to be a part of it. That looks like a God who acts, and listens to the world he loves.
What I'm hoping to convey is that the church doesn't seem to be a relevant option for young people who value issues like social justice, equality, climate change, peace, and spiritual enlightenment. Even though the church offers this in abundance, that's not the version of the story they grew up hearing, and that's not what's on the news. Our church gatherings need to reflect what our people care about, and even more they should be the first place to jump into action.
At the very center of our gatherings should be the eucharist (communion). Jesus was brilliant to put this as the focal point of our times together. He said, "Do this in remembrance of me..." When we take part in the eucharist we are to remember what Jesus did for us, how he died on the cross and rose again. This should also cause us to remember the way he lived, the people he healed, and the parables he told. This is where we get to pause, reflect on God, and continue forward remembering that Jesus was one who loved to help, heal and love. We don't go to the table alone, we do this in community that we might be reminded of our place in his kingdom together. It's a holy call to action.
That's what I'm longing for. I'm longing for that table.
A church gathering doesn't have to resemble a rock concert for 20 minutes and then a TED talk for 30 (even though it can!). Maybe it should have space for more interaction and conversation with each other. Perhaps it should involve getting some dirt under our fingernails and sharing in the pain of those who suffer the most. Church has the potential to be a selfless, tiring, but rewarding experience. Best of all, if it's done right it's something that we get to share in together.
I'm not trying to offer all the solutions, I'm just trying to listen and wrestle with church. Unfortunately, the "tried and true" templates for churches are sadly not serving the future generation and those who have never encountered Jesus before. The current models are remnants of a bygone era, and in that context they truly for the needs of the community around them. As time presses on however, the outsider looking in might see a church that looks less like the kingdom and more like a Jesus-centered country club. How are we being the church to those who enter our community? It's time for something different, and I know there are those who are doing that work in incredible ways. I'm excited to see where God takes the church. In that context, I'm even more thrilled to see how he uses us in the process.