North Falmouth – Little Church, Big Heart
Some “success stories” are more exciting to tell than others. When that is the case, it is usually because there is an element of the (pleasantly) unexpected in unfolding of the story. It is exciting to be able to tell this genre of story about my work with the North Falmouth Congregational Church. Even as I write this, I hear “the little engine that could” Church.
The story that formed the basis of the beginning of our work together was all too familiar and is told by congregation after congregation in our nation right now: dwindling numbers (both human and financial), a post-pandemic “lostness” about mission and purpose. Reluctance on the part of some to let go of “what has worked so well in the past” and to, instead, “try something completely different” is a frequent undercurrent of conflict. Still others think they need to “deal with the handwriting on the wall” and close, pre-emptively. In short, most approaches are binary.
When I go in to work with a church, I inevitably need to point out early in our work, the incongruity and “dead end” represented in the back to back statements I hear, that: 1) “all we need are more, young families to come in and support the church in time, talent and treasure,” and 2) “We do not want to change.” To understate the obvious, visitors will not become engaged in the life of the church if what they hear is any version of “this is the way we do things here,” signaling that their new ideas are not likely to be welcome or tolerated.
There are clearly options for how traditional main-line Protestant churches can move into the future as healthy, vibrant, strong and mission-driven communities of faith.
Typically, I present six or seven PowerPoint slides, articulating options that congregations in the nation (with whom I am working or have worked) have engaged in. Taking the extremes first, I notice that the church can close (examining what it means to become a legacy entity), or try to remain open, doing as they have always done and expecting different results (does anyone know the definition of insanity?). Then, I begin to articulate other options: sell (to like-minded others), and rent back the use of necessary space for viable programming; sell, and rent space for worship in another location (neighboring faith community site or local municipality); retain ownership and become a “benevolent landlord”, welcoming in other like-minded non-profits, as much space as possible, to as many as possible; consolidate with another community of faith in some way; and, stand as is, and collaborate with another community of faith, sharing staff, etc.
When I went down to begin my work with N. Falmouth, I was prepared to think in these terms and to work alongside them as they discerned which path or avenue was the one to which they were being called. However, within a relatively short period of time, our whole approach and strategy shifted and when I went down to present my traditional PowerPoint slides, I found I needed to create an eighth slide to accurately reflect the exciting new approach that was working in their midst!
This one? Double-down and reach out!! Through a combination of attractive signage along town access roads, bookmarks, welcome mugs, word clouds, oversized postcards, banners, a new look in front of the church, marketing, media coverage, a new website and focused, mission-driven outreach, informed by a careful assessment of the unmet needs in the area, and of viable community partners, this congregation had begun to make a publicly-recognized difference in their neighborhood and town. Yes, people are finding their way to the doors of this small, tucked away building and the community of faith that worships there, for varieties of reasons.
Faith communities in the US will continue to have challenges in “becoming church” in the world for years to come. This “little church with a big heart” is paving the way for a new way of stepping up to post-pandemic revitalization and charting a new, successful course! This has been an unexpected and successful path into a revitalized expression of being church in the world!
