Comments on: A church for all people? http://doingpublicwork.org/2008/02/19/a-church-for-all-people/ renewing liturgy, building community Wed, 07 Jan 2009 14:16:10 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.7 hourly 1 By: Pamela Smith http://doingpublicwork.org/2008/02/19/a-church-for-all-people/comment-page-1/#comment-11 Pamela Smith Fri, 29 Feb 2008 00:07:33 +0000 http://doingpublicwork.org/2008/02/19/a-church-for-all-people/#comment-11 At the Mission at Saint Luis Obispo in southern California - on the entrance tickets - circa 1978 - Park at your own Risk NO BAILMENT IS CREATED Via con Dios! It made quite an impression on me - At the Mission at Saint Luis Obispo in southern California - on the entrance tickets - circa 1978 -

Park at your own Risk
NO BAILMENT IS CREATED
Via con Dios!

It made quite an impression on me -

]]> By: Miranda http://doingpublicwork.org/2008/02/19/a-church-for-all-people/comment-page-1/#comment-7 Miranda Mon, 25 Feb 2008 01:52:05 +0000 http://doingpublicwork.org/2008/02/19/a-church-for-all-people/#comment-7 A church I know has a sign on its parking lot that says, "Welcome to So and So's Episcopal Church... Park at your own risk." I could go all deep here about the risks of being included, and of including... but I think I'll just leave it be. A church I know has a sign on its parking lot that says, “Welcome to So and So’s Episcopal Church… Park at your own risk.”
I could go all deep here about the risks of being included, and of including… but I think I’ll just leave it be.

]]> By: QFC http://doingpublicwork.org/2008/02/19/a-church-for-all-people/comment-page-1/#comment-5 QFC Sun, 24 Feb 2008 00:06:00 +0000 http://doingpublicwork.org/2008/02/19/a-church-for-all-people/#comment-5 This is an interesting counterpoint to another sentiment starting to emerge (or re-emerge?) in our church (and in Protestantism generally), which is that we can't be all things to all people, so let those who feel excluded go off and start their own church. All successful organizations have to stay true to their core values in order to cohere as an organization, offering a product or service in line with those values. At least as far as the church is concerned, I suspect the solution here is not to try to make our "product" more appealing to a broader spectrum of people, but to offer more and diverse kinds of products, all together under God's big, happy trade show tent. This is an interesting counterpoint to another sentiment starting to emerge (or re-emerge?) in our church (and in Protestantism generally), which is that we can’t be all things to all people, so let those who feel excluded go off and start their own church.

All successful organizations have to stay true to their core values in order to cohere as an organization, offering a product or service in line with those values. At least as far as the church is concerned, I suspect the solution here is not to try to make our “product” more appealing to a broader spectrum of people, but to offer more and diverse kinds of products, all together under God’s big, happy trade show tent.

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