Why should anyone go to church? Pastors and readers respond
Religious participation has been on the decline for decades in the United States, a fact which has consequences for our social fabric. The Erie Times-News asked faith leaders what they would say, briefly, to encourage unchurched or disengaged people to consider religious practice. Here are answers we received. They came not just from pastors, but believers and nonbelievers alike. We thank everyone for taking the time to taking part in this conversation. If you'd like to see it continue, please share your perspectives for possible publication via email at letters@timesnews.com.
A place to ask big questions, together
A parishioner recently brought to my attention your appeal for a quick elevator pitch from Erie County faith leaders on the topic of why someone should be involved in a church or faith community. I certainly understand the brevity needed for publishing reasons, but what you ask is part of the problem: being part of a community of faith shouldn't involve a sales pitch or smooth, polished advertising. Younger generations (think millennials like me and after) are tired of being advertised at. People don't want or need a quick, insincere sales pitch. Faith communities are not selling tires or products.
The choice to not be part of a faith community is a large, complex, and deeply personal issue that is often fraught with shame, trauma, and a sense of unwelcome. Maybe what people need is not a quick-tongued salesperson spewing a rehearsed script. Instead, maybe what they need is the authenticity of a people (or person) who says, "I get it. I want to hear all about it and I'm here to walk alongside you."
As a faith community leader, I'll be the first person to tell you I don't have all the answers to life's deepest questions and am just as appalled by faith communities becoming exclusive, judgy clubs as those who have been thrown out of them. But I can say that I have a genuine desire to know and love people and walk alongside them on life's journey. When communities of faith are being their best selves, that's exactly what they offer: A group of people from diverse backgrounds and circumstances who are willing to see through difference and live life and ask big questions together.
Peace and Joy,
The Rev. Drew Himes, pastor, Church of the Cross (PCUSA), 5901 Millfair Road, Fairview
Come and see - in church we journey together
Hiking alone is not always the most advisable activity; injuries, animals, and accidents are all easier to deal with when accompanied by another person. That is how I feel about the spiritual journey: you can go it alone, but the road to becoming our truest selves and discovering the presence of the Holy One is not always advisable to do alone. Healthy community is valuable to keep us from straying into the worst aspects of religion and spirituality: mistaking our truth for universal truth, developing practices that are egocentric or self-abnegating, and forgetting that spirituality has relational implications. When our narratives about God or our ourselves get skewed, worship reminds us of the truth: that in the Christian faith, we are a beloved child of the loving triune God. If we believe our connection to the Sacred grows us into kinder, more loving people, we need to be around people who can accompany us with compassion, to practice that love and kindness.
And when the journey is rough, when illness stalks us, the job is lost, or death claims someone we love, putting one foot in front of another is easier when someone is walking beside us. Being part of spiritual community surrounds us with people who are trying to trust God and walk in love; when we journey together, we are not alone on that road. In community, we can create healthy space for one another to grow, to share wisdom, to laugh and cry together — we belong to each other and we belong to God. It is a good place to be: why don't you come, and see?
The Very Rev. Melinda Hall, dean, Episcopal Cathedral of St. Paul, 134 W. Seventh St., Erie
Gift of church revealed in love, joy and peace
I am not a faith leader.
The following thoughts are from one who attends church on a regular basis because the experience nourishes and sustains me. I believe that conversation with seekers who are considering involvement with a church is a ministry for all churchgoers as well as for faith leaders.
The early Christians did not belong to a church. They were members of close-knit communities who pooled resources, shared fellowship and meals in their homes, and supported one another. They went about their daily lives with a love and joy that was observed by others and led many to joining their communities.
Today's houses of worship need to continuously create a spirit of community that piques the curiosity of seekers who may want to know more.
And when the seeker initially presents, it is not the time to proselytize, evangelize, recruit, or overwhelm with tenets and dogma. It is the time to listen with our hearts as well as our ears and to be patient and nonjudgmental as the seeker shares his or her story. As the Scottish minister John Watson is credited with saying, "Be kind, for everyone is fighting a hard battle."
Let the love of God and God's gift of church be revealed to others by the love, joy and peace we exude as we go about our daily lives. Through prayer, our ministry will be guided by the Holy Spirit.
Jim Dimperio, Erie, St. Jude the Apostle Church, 2801 W. Sixth St., Millcreek
What can happen when churches change
Church — everything has changed, scripture readings, responses, even the benediction. As a consequence I've lost connection to the church in which I was so long a member. Now I feel apart.
I come away hurting instead of comforted, feeling deprived rather than fulfilled. I've returned to the church many times, seeking the warmth of the familiar, a way to worship together, which has been part of my life.
As I head home, I question going back again when time there brings reminders of even more which has been lost. The passage of time has separated me from my loved ones, and my past sense of security. It erodes my independence, confidence, and health with declines in strength, sight, hearing, balance. Life changes with time but also with arbitrary decisions of others for what seems no good reason except change.
Why do decision-makers continue to separate us from tradition, from the comforting ties to that which has built a "coming home" feeling each Sunday through the words of the service, the scriptures, and even the lyrics of the hymns — all of which have been changed.
"They" lament declining membership but do not see people drift away with the loss of the bits and pieces which helped people to feel a part. Familiar threads once reached out to welcome us back each week, but are now abandoned. I long to hear Bible passages and our service strike a beautiful chord with the familiar. Instead, Sunday service is a reminder of yet another loss.
When going to church stirs up a persistent reminder of what is missing, what is lost, how can that encourage a person to be there? I come away with sadness and sometimes anger in my heart instead of solace or an uplifted spirit ready to face each day.
That final phrase, needing to find "solace" and the blessing of "an uplifted spirit, ready to face each day" is what, in the past, I have found in my church. It is essential because it is a vehicle for my communion with God. Lessons come from the reading of scriptures, words of church leaders, voices of the congregation lifted in hopeful, pleading, or praising song.
So, I guess I would say to that stranger in the elevator, the most important part, to me, has often come after the benediction — a time of quiet to prayerfully begin to process all that was offered, to use those teachings to guide me in a better directed week, day by day, asking God's help in that which I have never been able to do alone.
Diane Boesch, Millcreek, Lutheran, Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church
Where's the proof? An atheist weighs in
While I realize the prompt was to local theists asking them what they should say to someone like myself to get me to attend church, I thought I would take a moment to weigh in on how I would respond should I be asked to maybe save some believers some time.
Here's the thing, those of use who are atheists are not convinced with hellfire and everlasting torture. We want evidence for the soundness of the claims your religion makes. We disbelieve not because we are angry at god as many theists claim. We disbelieve because we cannot see the difference between your god and any other unfalsifiable claim.
There are other issues as well. Are you providing evidence for the god of the bible? Let's say you convince me that god is real, you still have to convince me that worship of that god is a moral thing to do and that is going to be a challenge. The god of the Bible has advocated for genocide, slavery, indentured servitude, torture, murder, and all kinds of other horrific things.
If you want me to attend your church, you genuinely need to provide evidence and convince me that your god is real and worthy of worship. But generally speaking, things worthy of worship do not require it — which is another issue.
So in short, we atheists, agnostics, and "nones" need a few things other than a "gotcha" statement or some threat to change our ways and come to church. We need evidence for your god; we need sound reason to accept horrific things advocated for; we need sound reasoning to worship before we attend your church.
Apart from that, I'm not convinced your church, or your god is needed in my life.
Kaycee Hyde, atheist, Cambridge Springs
A place to help each other live in truth
I'm interested in the truth. Here's why: I believe that the truth is reality and reality always wins, so I am going with the truth, no matter what.
Most times truth has sharp edges with me because I'm a selfish man (you can see that much better than I can). But, because I am committed to the truth, I know that those sharp edges are worth the trouble.
The glorious thing is, my friends at my church are also committed to learning and living the truth. That means that they keep me accountable and their friendship helps to dull the sharp edges of the truth. In other words, because I like them, it is not so hard to swallow the sharp-edged truth that they keep handing over to me.
My friends and I all have our blind spots. I see some things that they don't see. They see some things that I don't see. Together we get a more rounded view of reality. Together we are able to live more realistically. We call this community or church.
The good news is, if you are committed to learning and living the truth, we need you. We'll cover your flat spots and you can cover our flat spots and we can be friends who help each other.
Jesus is the Truth. Once you know the truth, you know Jesus. Once you live the truth, you live joy. Once you know and live the truth, you realize your purpose.
Did I mention that we are selfish, broken humans? So don't get too hyped up about my church. We're just regular folks who are committed to the Truth (Jesus) and His Revelation (the Bible). People started calling us Mennonites hundreds of years ago (it wasn't our first pick of a name, but it works).
I'd love to tell you more, but this is all the space I have for now. Come by for a visit, so we can chat!
Caleb Martin, layman, Lake View Mennonite Church, 10995 Smith Road, North East
Church - not a building, event or organization - but a people
One of the best answers to the question "Why go to church?" is found in the Bible, in these words from the Apostle Paul to the church in Rome: "In Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others." (Romans 12:5) "Church" is not an organization or a building or an event that we go to; "church" is people who belong to Jesus Christ by faith in Him; and as a result, they belong to each other.
So the reason why anyone should "go to church" is to meet with those to whom they belong! Jesus promised to meet with those "who come together in my name," (Matthew 18:20) and while we all need to meet Him one-on-one in daily prayer and worship and Bible study, there is something special about meeting Him together. When our church gathers for worship, and we sing to Jesus, and pray to Jesus, and remember His death in Holy Communion, He is with us and it is wonderful!
There is also something special about meeting together with brothers and sisters in Christ. If there is anything that the pandemic has taught us; it is that people need human contact; we need each other to survive! The Bible says, "Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another — and all the more as you see the Day approaching." (Hebrews 10:25) Many people will "go to church" to celebrate Christmas, the Day of Jesus' first coming, and that is great. But we urge everyone to continue meeting together regularly as we wait for the Day of Jesus' second coming, because we belong to him and we belong to each other!
Dr. Ed Huntley, associate pastor, Federated Church of East Springfield, 11995 Main Street, East Springfield
Where you are welcomed and loved as you are
Church is where you hear that you are loved, no matter what — no matter what your history is, what you bring with you, who you love, who you identify as, or what you struggle with. It's a place to hear that you are worthy and enough, just as you are, both in God's eyes and in the community's eyes.
Not all churches are great at this, but I am grateful to work alongside faithful congregations that understand community and value others, encouraging and supporting one another in the highs and lows. In a world where there is constant competition, where you question if you are enough, where isolation is so common, and where judgment is everywhere, church invites you to a place of rest and hope — you don't have to prove to anyone why you should belong or hide parts of yourself to be there; you are welcome as you are.
It is absolutely possible to have faith and to walk that road on your own, but doing this work and living out this faith in community makes it so much easier. You have people to remind you of the grace that's been given to you, people to care for you in times of need, and a community that will show up for you. This hope and love guides us and encourages us as we live out the gratitude for all that God has done for us — not with guilt trips, but just with thanksgiving for all that we have. Church is where you are embraced and known — by God and each other. This community helps us hold on to hope here until we enter eternal life.
You are welcome to join us, just as you are!
Pastor Kristen Papson, Mount Calvary Lutheran Church, 1603 W. 32nd St., Erie, and Lamb of God Lutheran Church, 606 E. 38th St., Erie
A place for faith, belief, and even doubt
Why should anyone go to church? Communities are simply better places and individuals are happier and healthier when congregations are strong and active. Of course, there have been failures, some of them horrendous, as there have been in many other organizations. But most every congregation I know has not suffered these kinds of grand failures and the overall impact is strongly on the side of the greater good. And most churches I know are open to learning from people of other religions (and none) and to working together with them for the common good. And most every congregation I know would gladly welcome anyone who would like to participate in congregational life and mission, simply to share in its social and personal benefits.
But there is a deeper reason to participate in congregational life — faith and belief. Speaking as a Christian, I agree with the theologian who said that Christians understand God to be the God who brought Israel out of Egypt and who raised Jesus from the dead. This led to a community of faith, and that community underlies any spiritual, moral, or social principles it seeks to practice, as well as any social or personal benefits. The truth claims of Christianity can be investigated and, if found to be compelling, will lead to participation in the life of the Church, a community of faith which has persisted and been renewed throughout history, as will likely be the case again, even in this challenging time.
And most every congregation I know would gladly welcome people at any point on the continuum of faith and belief, from earnest seekers to strong believers, to folks (like most of us), who hold their faith alongside questions and even doubts.
The Rev. John P. Downey, St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church, 1070 Dutch Road, Fairview
The peace of Jesus - not the world
In the midst of the chaos around us, our hope lies in the belief that once, in the history of the universe, a dead man came back to life, never to die again. That puts a different spin on everything. So, if you're befuddled by Bible battles, secular agendas, and wearied by religion and politics using and abusing each other, and would like to know the peace of Jesus — which is different than the world's peace, he said so! — we invite you to walk with us. We're moving forward by looking back to the ancient, Undivided Church — "the faith once for all delivered to the saints" (Jude 3).
Fr. William Henry Shontz, Outpost Erie Anglo-Catholic Mission, 1114 W. 24th St., Erie
A source of fellowship and salvation
You need the church. You need to interact with other people like you. You need people with whom you can discuss your joys, sorrows, dreams, and disappointments. You will get sick or disable yourself in some way. You will back yourself into a corner whether it be financially, relationally, or emotionally. You need the church to help you navigate these difficult times. Finally, if you are like me at all, you sin. Sin will destroy your life. The church can aid you by providing teaching so that you can recognize sin and learn how to overcome it. The church is also filled with Christians to whom you can confess your sins and struggles so you can find freedom and wisdom.
People need you. This world is broken. People go hungry, get sick, and lack shelter. The church provides an excellent way to find the needy people in the world. There is an older couple in our church who needed a new van. I found out about the need because the church leadership decided to help them buy a new one. If I had not gone to church, I would neither have known nor cared about their need. The church also provides ways to help people beyond itself through connections to many aid ministries.
Where this conversation started: Erie pastors, if you could invite someone to attend services, what would you say?
From the Rev. Brenda Martin: 'God was in that room,' a near-death experience and the change it brings to life
You will die. Admittedly, the church is not the only organization that can fill the roles listed above. But the church is the only organization tied directly to the salvation of your soul. No, church attendance will not save you. But the church is the body of Christ. For it Christ died. It is His means of protecting you and training you how to be His child. If you reject it, you are one step away from rejecting Christ and the salvation from eternal death that He provides.
Isaiah Martin, Mennonite, North East
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Why should anyone go to church? Erie faith leaders, readers respond
