I was talking with a friend today about church. He said what I hear so many people say . . . that he wasn’t sure about the future of the institutional church. Will it survive in the expression it has come to take in society of late? That is, as the consumer-driven machine through which we scramble and struggle to give people what they want: need a program for your teenager? Done. Childcare? Sure. Coffee shop? Counseling center? Bookstore? No problem.
And not to say any of these are bad, but where’s the church in all of this? And by church I mean the little rag-tag group of dreamers hanging on tight to each other while risking whatever it takes to live the Gospel?
I’m not saying that being the church in an authentic way is impossible while sipping a latte, but the question is worth thinking about. Because . . . if the church is the same as every other institution in our lives, is it really worth getting up early on Sundays to come to worship? It might very well be that there’s a nice community center somewhere closer to home that wouldn’t demand nearly as much commitment, you know what I mean?
I understand my friend’s concern about the future of the church, but hearing him wonder whether it will live on makes me quake inside. I’ve seen the nasty underside of the church for sure, but something about the dream of Gospel community keeps me coming back . . . see, I want so much to be part of something different. I want to belong to a group of people who gather to welcome the work of God’s Spirit, who understand God as a liberating, ever-creating presence, moving us-even when we’re intent on standing still-toward a future that is increasingly hope-filled.
It’s this and, honestly, the fact that I see and hear God most clearly in the faces and voices of people in my own little rag-tag group trying desperately to live authentic faith in a truly inauthentic world. I freely confess: maybe it’s not even these lofty ideals at all . . . maybe it’s just my need to see God that keeps me hoping for the future of the church.
So I hope all the folks I meet who have just about given up on the church might keep hoping just a little while longer . . . because I think my friend is right: the future of the institutional church as a consumer-driven clubhouse is probably questionable. But as long as someone is telling the Gospel story I have to believe there will be people who gather together to sing and pray and hope that the Gospel transformation Jesus taught us about will take root in our lives and, maybe even in our world.
Yes, I’m still hoping for Gospel transformation, or, at the very least, a place where desperate, dim-eyed dreamers like me will be able to glance across a room to meet the eyes of somebody else who believes . . . and catch even a fleeting glimpse of the God who has been mostly obscured by what we’ve called the church up until now.
This is the church I’m not ready to give up on yet.
(I’ve been thinking about this for awhile. My two other posts on the subject are here and here.)
Hey- I give up on it regularly and then it smacks me in the face with hope. I have given up on the idea of the “consumer” church, though, and I hope that it does die. If it keeps morphing into a shopping mall (a la the megachurch model) or the “bigger is better” model of success, then I say good riddance. I think we are headed to an age where the consumer church might not survive. I think that might not be a bad thing.
I guess one of the pleasant side effects of being a part of a covenental, liturgical denomination is that our prescribed manner of praying is pretty much in tension with the “consumer” church, though. It’s a little harder to work a praise band into an Episcopal service (though it is done in many quarters). One thing I take comfort in is that Church is NOT like the rest of the world or my life. (It’s kind of ironic, though, that I left the Baptist church- a congregational denomination with much institutional freedom for an Episcopal body run by Dudes and Women in Purple Shirts… go figure).
So, I’m with your friend. I think there is a lot of stuff about the church that we SHOULD give up on. Namely, the idea that God’s church should be measured by worldly means for success. Success is really defined one lost sheep at a time- one lost penny at a time- one saved life at a time- not by numbers of bodies in pews or dollars in the plate. Those standards the world will always acknowledge, but last time I checked, Jesus never filled out a Parish report or counted the people in worship services.
And you know, Amy, this is the church, what you do here on this blog. People come together to think and share what Jesus has done for them– this is the Risen Christ in action. So for every corner of cynicism brought about by institutions I can show you places like this where Jesus is alive and well.
Tim
Today I checked my stats on my blog (something I rarely do) and found a hit from your refreshing and “right-on” post. I don’t know how the hit came my way since there is no link on your post, but I consider the event a God-thing since it is always encouraging to see seated pastors speaking the truth about the God business and the effects in our lives.
Spot on, Amy! But where do you find a church that’s both authentic and aggressively evangelistic? Churches that emphasize outreach are often consumer driven and liturgically impoverished. Ones that strive for authenticity tend to be lax at evangelism. Where do you go to church if you’re seeking both genuineness and passion for lost souls? If you’re both theologically conservative and broad minded? If you’re both pro-life and pro-poor? If you value high moral standards and compassion for those who don’t? I’m not giving up on the church, but I have yet to find a congregation where I can fully embrace both the theology and ethos.