ENGAGEMENT

One of the inescapable truths facing the church at this moment is that day of “build it and they will come” is long past. In the 1950s through the mid-1960s, neighborhoods would be built with churches scattered among the houses with the assumption that part of suburban life was church membership. That began to erode with the major cultural shifts of the 1960s wherein institutions of all types came into question and people drifted into other forms of community or forsook community membership altogether. A telling Peanuts comic strip from 1964 has Charlie Brown talking to Patty. Charlie Brown mentions his family attends church, but Patty responds, “My parents used to belong to a church, now they belong to a coffee house.” Note—this was 1964! 

Many, many factors compiled to lead to the steady decline of mainline Protestantism through the remainder of the 20th Century, now joined by every other branch of American Christianity, but the stark milestone is that the Baby Boomers were the last generation to follow their parents into the church. We see that now as the corps of volunteers is aging, worn out, and can find no younger replacements for their work. They are quickly becoming “The Dones”—the mainstays of the church who are now done with church, exhausted, tired, and weary. 

The further cultural consequence of this trend is that religious affiliation is purely optional. People who join a faith community do so purely voluntarily, not simply following family practice or community obligation or networking. Because of this stance, folks will join a church they find relevant, meaningful, and fulfilling. What folks under 40 are saying is that what is relevant, meaningful, and fulfilling is an organization that practices what it preaches. They will not come to hear a sermon then return to life for a week, and then repeat the process. In fact, the “sermon” they are most likely to listen to is one without words, but deeds. 

For example, the PC(USA) has taken many official stances on social issues and justice directives. Millennials will not trust those institutional stances until they see Presbyterians actively engaged in the actual work of making them so—e.g., the Presbyterian involvement in the Native American Keystone Pipeline protest attracted the attention of young adults because they saw Presbyterians standing with the Native Americans on site. We see that locally, as well, as congregations move into neighborhoods or cities actively working among the homeless, marching with those seeking justice, creating community foodbanks, or attending public meetings to work for transformation of communities. Young adults will walk with church folk because they see actions backing up words. 

However, that does not necessarily equate with them actually becoming members of a church. They are notoriously “un-joiners,” if you will. They do not follow their grandparents or parents into joining old organizations like civic groups (e.g., Rotary Club), or volunteer boards like arts councils, or even bowling leagues. The huge challenge this throws at local churches is how to instill the notion that participation equals responsibility for the host organization—i.e., you gotta pay to play. What this challenge requires is the ability to communicate that stewardship is not yet another cynical ploy at fundraising, but rather taking responsibility for the upkeep, maintenance, and continuation of the faith community so it can continue to be in the streets working for “Least of These.” This challenge is especially onerous for smaller congregations already strapped. They cannot live without members and guests contributing both personally and financially, yet as soon as they ask, newcomers tune them out or leave. 

Now—I am going to broach something that may immediately sound like a recant of all just written—the church needs to let go of its fixation on young adults, both as members and as magic wand preachers who will in and of themselves (and their young families) save the church. 

If you read closely what I wrote just a paragraph or two ago, you will find the actual focal point—be what you are; do what you say.

Rather than fixing all of our energy and our resources on a single generation, marketing a generation already over-marketed (remember, they have been sold stuff since they were in the cradle); instead, create the community that is consistent in word and action—that will be attractive in and of itself.

One of the consequences for the loss of joining existing institutions is a loss of community. Ironically, we are the most connected generation of human beings in history, literally able to reach and touch someone 5000 miles away with couple of clicks on a smartphone. But we are the most disconnected in that we may have 500 Facebook friendships without one of them being an actual intimate relationship based on sharing, compassion, and engagement. Relationships are becoming a mile wide and an inch deep. 

What a community of Jesus has to offer is that engagement and connection. Christianity is a relational faith practice—any faith grounded in love can be nothing else—it takes two to complete love, and the more the merrier. So, in order to minister to this age of disconnect and discontent (more than readily visible in our current political arena), the church needs to reconnect to its ultimate core—we are the people of self-emptying, other-centered love—the embodied compassion of Jesus. Be that, live that, and get out into the world as that community, and people will be fed, called, and drawn into fellowship. 

Smaller churches can do this well. It allows them to let go of resource sapping programs still built on the model of “build it and they will come”—i.e., inwardly aimed ministries—and turn their attention outward, taking their love, community, and welcome into a world hungry for it. They can pick one or two initiatives and go all in. For example, one of our Sacramento churches is literally across the street from a middle school. They looked at themselves and realized they had an overabundance of retired educators, recognizing an obvious bridge to the community. They approached the school about establishing an after school tutoring program and were warmly welcomed. Soon, many students were walking across the street three afternoons a week for further enrichment. Their parents were amazed at the willingness of the church to become so directly involved with strangers’ children in such a positive way. They began to ask how they could help promote and continue the program. Now, it is true that the congregation has not swelled with a hundred new families, but there is deep connection between the church and families they would otherwise never have known, and those families now consider the church a vital part of their lives. That opens the door for a deeper and broader relationship to come. 

Presbyteries need to review, reconsider, and redistribute the collective resources they hold to nurture and nourish such engaged ministries. They need to challenge member congregations to get into the neighborhood, get to know folks, and figure out what needs they can meet. They need to lead in the redefinition of what church membership means. They need to deeply explore the whole idea of discipleship biblically and theologically, for what our scriptures teach us is that Jesus never much invited people to come and sit in his presence to hear him preach, but rather gathered people only to almost immediately issue the directive, “Go!” The disciples became apostles—the students became the called into service and action.