“One of the first things we discovered about adapting congregations was that they simply notice what is going on around them. Declining congregations often barely realize that the world has changed.” — Nancy T. Ammerman and Carl S. Dudley
What can I do to find out more? What can I research?
Consider all the ways the world, our community, and your life have changed since the onset of Covid. Now consider how society and the role of faith, spirituality, and religion have changed in you life and the lives of loved ones, especially those born in the various generations following the baby boom.
The world has changed, the community has changed, and over the last two decades our congregation has changed as well.
Today we seek to face these realities with gratitude for our past, wisdom in the present, and hope for the future.
Below you will find resources that speak to the ways in which the world, society, faith communities, and our congregation have changed.
Oct 2023
Churches Growing Together
In October 2023, our Governing Board invited our Area Conference Minister, Rev. Carol Steinbrecher, into a conversation as we wondered about the possibilities for the future of our ministry.
Rev. Steinbrecher complimented our congregation for asking these “big questions” and for our openness to seek God’s guidance and listen to the wisdom of others.
This conversation became the catalyst for the “Churches Growing Together” gathering, which we hosted in February of 2024. During the workshop, attendees shared their hopes, challenges, and things that they would like to explore with others.
The following images are the first part of Rev. Steinbrecher’s presentation, where she highlighted a few trends churches are facing in these times.
Churches Growing TOGETHER presentation courtesy Rev. Carol Steinbrecher
March 2024 "2nd Hour"
In March of 2024, the Governing Board hosted a Second Hour conversation to share with those who could not attend the important points and observations from the Churches Growing Together Workshop.
Vice Moderator, Bruce Staehle, shared the presentation below to summarize attendance and giving trends, as well as some of the ways congregations are faithfully seeking to meet this moment. NOTE: Redundant slides from Rev. Carol Steinbrecher’s presentation have been removed.
Church Attendance Trends
ChurchTrac, our Church Management System provider, recently published a blog summarizing obvious, interesting, and curious trends regarding The State of Church Attendance: Trends and Statistics [2024]
As one might expect, attendance in mainline churches such as the UCC is down. However, 40% of millennials report attending church at least once a week.
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