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Hello, dear Broadview readers,
Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic was declared in March 2020, we’ve been reading headlines about the so-called “demise of the church.” From people leaving their congregations to find spirituality elsewhere, to congregations of different faiths sharing services and even in some cases merging, to churches being sold to condo developers, to permanent church closures — congregations have been going through major changes.
But, if you look at it from a glass-half-full perspective, change is good and transformation is needed.
In November, our Question Box columnist Rev. Christopher White answered a worried reader’s query on whether the United Church is going to disappear due to all the church closures they’d been hearing about. I find White’s words reassuring, although they may scare others.
“I believe that the United Church is evolving into something different, so no, it won’t disappear,” White wrote, noting the decline in membership over the past few decades. “But will the institutional church as we know it disappear? Yes, I think it will.”
But what he says next gives me hope: “Our current structures are designed to maintain an institution, not create something new. But here is what I see as good news. Once we stop spending so much energy on palliative care, we can move into rebirth.”
As I noted above, some churches have turned to private developers to build condos, with a small chapel on site, but others are looking for other options that preserve their mission and find new ways of connecting with their community.
That’s where Kindred Works comes in.
As our intern Tobin Ng writes, “Developed in response to the housing and climate crises, Kindred Works wants to transform church properties into mixed-income rental housing and community spaces… [and] is also aiming to make at least a third of the housing units available below market rent.”
Read more about how Kindred Works is reimagining the role of churches across Canada here.
Let me know: What do you think of this idea? What do you think churches need to do to survive? What is your church doing to keep itself relevant to new members and old? Is your church doing anything new and exciting? Email me at c.tejada@broadview.org. I’d love to hear your thoughts, ideas and stories.
Take care and thanks for reading Broadview.
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