Aged Exit

The foundation of the Church is our Lord Jesus, described as the head of the body, according to
Colossians 1. These verses can inspire us:
18 And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.
19 For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell,
20 and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross.

If we, as members of the local church, are keeping focused on Christ, then He will work in and through our relationships with our brothers and sisters in the Lord.  If Jesus is truly regarded as our head and if we make it our ambition as the local church to honor Him and His Word, we can have a great impact on the communities we serve. All in all, with Jesus as our focus, we can follow His direction and reflect His glory.

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The church of the living God is more than a building and more than a social club - the Church is
intended to be a living organism that represents Christ on the earth. We can read in 1st Timothy 3:
14 These things I write to you, though I hope to come to you shortly;
15 but if I am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.

Here is a news story where the words may be changing, but the core conditions seem to be remaining the same. ChristianHeadlines.com is one of the media outlets that related about a church in Minnesota that had essentially asked the older congregation members to leave to make room for younger ones.  The article linked to the Grand Forks Herald, which stated:

“I pray for this church, getting through this age-discrimination thing,” said William Gackstetter, as the gray-haired heads around him nodded in agreement.

Gackstetter and other members of the Grove United Methodist Church in Cottage Grove are upset enough that their church is closing in June. What makes it worse is that their church is reopening in November — pretty much without them.

The church wants to attract more young families. The present members, most of them over 60 years old, will be invited to worship somewhere else. A memo recommends that they stay away for two years, then consult the pastor about attending the Cottage Grove location again.

Officials say the church needs a reset, and reopening the church is the best way to appeal to younger people.

The church, which has around 25 or 30 members, is reeling, not only from trying to rebuild the congregation, but from the poor PR it has received as the result of widespread reporting that basically implies that the older people are being sent elsewhere.  A subsequent Christian Headlines article incorporated statements from church leadership.

"Everybody is welcome,” Lead Pastor Daniel Wetterstrom of Grove United Methodist Church told KARE 11 news.“Our hope is they're not going anywhere. This is their church.”

The church sent a letter to church members on January 21 in which Wetterstrom and other leaders...

...maintain media coverage “did not accurately portray what is happening with the Planting Project.” The church operates at two separate campuses, the main church in Woodbury, and the smaller congregation meeting in Cottage Grove.

“The worshippers at Cottage Grove are beloved members of our church family; their presence and contributions are part of our identity,” the letter read.

The letter also stated:

...Discussions of a full closure have surfaced over the years. Instead of letting that happen to this beloved faith community, we determined a new path.”

To that end, current members “have been invited to serve on a transition team to identify the traditions and values that are important to them and to explore options during and after the relaunch.”

The pastor, acccording to the article, invited the displaced older members to worship at the Woodbury campus. And, there is the incentive - the United Methodist Annual Conference is kicking in $250,000 for this re-launch.

Well, we do know this, that change is hard, and churches should ideally be sensitive to the communities around them.  It certainly takes the leadership of the Holy Spirit and openness to innovation.  And, it may involve some pain.

But, the Church consists of its people.  This isn't like tearing down an old restaurant and building another one in its place, like an instance in downtown Montgomery.  Sure, employees are being displaced temporarily, but they'll be back at work.  The Minnesota situation does come across as if the existing congregation members are being "hidden" so that the new people they are trying to attract won't see them.

Even after the attempt to spin the situation, it does seem that the basic framework is still there - the previous congregation is being shipped off to keep from interfering with these bold, new plans.  You have to wonder if the church can re-launch while keeping the existing congregation in place and really enabling them to experience a sense of buy-in.

Bottom line: while a local church congregation does have business aspects and capable administration is needed, the strength of a church is its people.  Perhaps Cottage Grove could have sent that message a bit clearer.  And, we can all make an effort to affirm the wisdom of those who have valuable life experience and demonstrate a love for Christ.

A younger couple in the church, according to the Grand Forks Herald, aren't on board with the plan.  The article says:

Stella and Jon Knapp of Cottage Grove were the only members with children at the service, and they say they hate the plan.

“If it happened, I wouldn’t come here any more,” said Stella, 34. As six-year members, the couple loves the church, and do not see how any Methodist miracle can draw in more people like them.

But did it bother them to be the youngest members at the Sunday service?

“Not at all,” said Jon, 34. “This church is very kind to us and our children.”

And, a note here: there may be theological issues at play. So, the plan is to stay progressive, embracing ideas that have been detrimental to the denomination. According to Slate:

The Cottage Grove church’s internal drama is happening concurrently with a larger denominational drama over same-sex marriage and gay clergy. Earlier this month, UMC leaders proposed a plan to formally split the denomination, with “traditionalist” churches leaving the existing church. Both Grove UMC congregations fall on the progressive side of that conflict, Wetterstrom said.