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Giving Up the Output Oriented Church
I’ve spent my entire life in church. More specifically, I’ve been a part of a dozen congregations affiliated with a group of denominations most continue to label Mainline Protestant (for more on my...
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Giving Up the Tech Averse Church
For Lent, I’m giving up something big: the church I always knew. And, unlike past Lenten disciplines that ended on Easter, this change is one I expect to be permanent. Slow to Change I remember...
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Giving Up the Old and White Church
I’ve spent my entire life in congregations affiliated with Mainline Protestant denominations. For Lent, I’m giving up something big: the church I always knew. And, unlike past Lenten disciplines that...
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Reopening for In Person Worship: 5 Congregations
Over the last four weeks I’ve visited five mainline Protestant congregations in the Dallas – Fort Worth metro area that have recently reopened for worship. All five experiences required that I...
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New Beginnings at First Presbyterian (Fort Worth)
First Presbyterian Church (PCUSA) has been a part of the Fort Worth community for 148 years. Originally established in 1873, this urban congregation moved to its current location in 1956. Like many...
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Pandemic Regathering: 8 Experiences
When I first learned about COVID-19, I had no idea what to expect. In March 2020 when in person gatherings of all kind were discontinued, I never imagined it would be more than a year before I would...
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First In Person Worship Service in Florida
Naples United Church of Christ (photo by Greg Smith) After not attending indoor worship services for over a year, I re-entered this world in mid-March 2021. Over the next two months I visited 8...
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My “Next Normal” Communion Experience
Trinity Episcopal Church (photo by Greg Smith) COVID-19 has forever changed the church. While exactly what the “next normal” of worship will look like will vary regionally and, within regions, between...
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My First Complete In Person Worship Experience
Cathedral of Hope United Church of Christ Choir and Orchestra on July 11, 2021 (photo by Greg Smith) Until March 2020, I took for granted that nearly every Christian congregation would offer a weekly...
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Latest Church Trends: Membership & Giving
The decline of American Christianity has long been the most popular topic at So What Faith. As the pandemic continues, the significance of the decline becomes more apparent both at the macro level and...
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Mask Up
Back in January, I shared my experience of getting the COVID-19 vaccine. In that post I wrote, “During the COVID-19 pandemic, one clear way to love one’s neighbor is to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.”...
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Worship Attendance Cut in Half
Three common measures of success for local churches are worship attendance, annual budgets, and facilities (sometimes referred to as butts, bucks, and buildings). Worship Attendance Congregations vary...
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UCC Membership Decline: 2,193,593 to 773,539
Membership in all Mainline Protestant denominations has been in decline since before I was born. The United Church of Christ’s membership decline is not extraordinary or unusual when compared to other...
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Contrasting Missional Priorities
What do you consider to be the church’s top missional priority? According to a survey conducted by Barna in 2020, Protestant pastors answers differ dramatically depending on whether or not they are...
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Lifelong Retention: A Religious Challenge
Do you still affiliate with the general religious tradition of your childhood? If so, you are among the majority. In his new book, 20 Myths About Religion and Politics in America (Fortress Press,...
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Great New Books (March 2022)
The best new books I’ve read in the last month are (5+) 20 Myths About Religion and Politics in America by Ryan P. Burge (Fortress Press, 2022)(5.0) Fight Like Jesus: How Jesus Waged Peace Throughout...
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In-Person Worship Attendance: Continued Challenges
In a pre-pandemic world, when people mentioned attending worship, I assumed they were speaking of an in-person experience. This assumption in no way minimizes the many ways in my lifetime people have...
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Just How Christian are Christians?
Holy Week is a time when many Christians spend more time engaged in overtly religious activities than any other week of the year. Given such, it seems an appropriate time to ask the question, “Just...
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PC(USA) Membership Declines by 62%
Since the denomination was formed in 1983, the Presbyterian Church (USA) has experienced a membership decline of nearly 62%, shrinking from 3,121,238 members in 1983 to 1,193,770 members in 2021. The...
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Mainline Decline: 1990 to 2020
I’ve been hearing about Mainline decline for my entire life. As a lifelong participant in multiple denominations within this tradition, I don’t remember a time when I was not a part of conversation...
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