We have never tried to determine the average age of our five hundred or so parishioners here. But I suspect it's not far off the city average. It may even be a bit older. We have some younger members, and even a few families with young children. We have a good educational program for kids--bopth midweek (which attracts quitre a few "non-church" kids) and Sunday mornings. We also run our own weekday preschool. But by-and-large our members are retirees, often snowbirds. Here for the winter, but gone three to six months of the year.
We do a fair amount of hand-wringing around here about church growth. We need younger members, we need to bring in the young families! I hear that a lot. But what if they aren't there to be brought in? Or, what if what we have to offer just doesn't meet their needs?
I love church. I love Sunday worship. I love the various accoutrements that surround the institution called church. I even love a good stewardship campaign! But I just turned sixty-one. I'm not even bringing down the average age anymore! Only one out of my three children is a regular church goer. I share the fate of most of my parishioners.
What if church as we know it is on the verge of extinction, what then? How will we, in this liminal time, best serve those in the gray belts and buttons, while still moving into the future? I wish I had the answer--I'd hire out as a highly paid consultant! I'm sure it is not simply a matter of guitars and drums in worship, and Starbucks in the social hall. But what is it? How do we institutionally carry out our mission to love God and neighbor in this rapidly changing world?
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