…two hours of encouragement, worship, and fellowship, acknowledging the deep imperfections of our country but refusing to surrender to despair—and recognizing that churches, Episcopal and other, can be a bastion of privilege or a beacon of hope.
I’m convinced that the Christian faith is becoming more like Wikipedia and less like Encyclopedia Britannica. Instead of time-tested religious insights, people are accepting “what others are saying.”
Having put all of their eggs into the program-driven church basket you can understand Willow Creek’s shock when the research revealed that “Increasing levels of participation in these sets of activities does NOT predict whether someone’s becoming more of a disciple of Christ. It does NOT predict whether they love God more or they love people more.”
The Rev. Tom Ehrich, writer for On a Journey, suggests that churches declare August customer service month in his most recent column for the Indy Star. The reason? Churches are competing for “business” in much the same way that banks and hardware stores. It’s not that salvation is a commodity, he notes, but he was inspired by customer service agents poised to meet his needs from the moment he walked in to his new bank.
Churches can be sizable institutions with serious administrative responsibilities. To what extent should the Church look to the secular business community for assistance? These are questions that are explored in a commentary by Tom Horwood in the Guardian.
The Rev. Michael Ruk is one of an apparently growing number of priests that are heading up more than one church. But what’s interesting about this phenomenon is that it is allowing small churches with a community focus to remain open, when consolidation to larger parishes might otherwise be the trend.
God has returned to Europe. So reports The Wall Street Journal. The question is, why? The WSJ offers up the supply-side theory, and the facts appear to fit.
The Episcopal Church has largely failed to attract new twentysomthing members according to most demographic data. Bishop Kirk Smith of Arizona thinks that the Episcopal Church has much to learn from Emerging Chuch movement.
A University of Texas study, based on data from more than 10,000 Americans from adolescence through young adulthood finds that those who attend college are less likely to lose their faith than those who never attend college….
Religion is becoming increasingly visible in virtual environments such as Second Life, according to the Washington Post. And users of the popular “sim” world are creating an Anglican Cathedral there and building a community for Anglicans and Episcopalians around the world.