The church is in decline. Sure, I guess. But, what do you mean by that? Membership is down in many congregations. Average weekly attendance is down, too. They are down as compared to 1965. They are down as compared to 1985. They are down, in many places, as compared even to 2005. There has beenContinue reading “Decline of What?”
Tag Archives: congregations
Exploring a Post-Establishment Church
One thing I’ve noticed about new churches and new mission starts in my denomination (the ELCA) is that they often seem to try to do the same thing in a new way. Many of them, anyway. By “same thing,” I mean that these new mission starts seek to establish (or renew) a congregation with aContinue reading “Exploring a Post-Establishment Church”
Our Church’s Life, Death, and Resurrection
I think that as people of faith who also love our church, our challenge is to believe the Easter message that out of death comes life, and that everything – even the church we love – dies and rises to new life with Christ.