Unwelcoming

I probably haven’t earned the right to say this, but Christ Church Anglican is not a welcoming congregation. Not to the stranger and visitor. Perhaps we are better than most other churches our size, but we are still not warm towards those who would try to make their way into our church family. I hear this enough from our newcomers that I felt it would help to write about my concern. Maybe it’s the old “Episcopal reserve” carryover, or maybe we are just too comfortable in our own skins and close knit circles to reach outside of them, but I hear this enough to know that we are far from the radical hospitality the Bible describes. I am sure we have drifted from how it was when we were smaller and first beginning, when we considered every visitor a gift.

People are dying for relationships with people who really care for them. There are 100 “one anothering” verses in the Bible: bear one another’s burdens; encourage one another; love one another as Christ loves you, etc. This is clearly what God had in mind when he invented “church.” There is nothing in Scripture that envisages a church where people can come and go for the sacraments and a decent sermon, and not invest in the lives of the people around them.

I’m sure that most of us do not remember what it is like to visit a new church for the first time – to not know what to wear, where to sit, when to stand, the awkwardness of exchanging the peace, who might or might not turn to them after the service is finished. In fact, it takes enormous courage and effort in our post-Christian world for someone to make their way to the front doors of Christ Church Anglican. Even to find us is nearly impossible, yet God sends new people our way almost every single Sunday.

When I circulated this to the staff, they quickly reminded me that much hospitality towards visitors quietly goes on at CCA, and, of course, they are right. But what would happen if just five or ten of us (or 50?) made it our mission and ministry each Sunday to be aware of the newcomers around us? I don’t mean the official greeters who gladly and eagerly do their part every week, but I mean unsolicited volunteers (you and me!) who organically care enough to break out of our circles of friends for a few minutes. I believe that even this small effort could make a huge difference. I can see this organically happen, people saying, “I don’t think I’ve met you; I’m Chuck Collins.” Or, “Are you new to Christ Church?” “Oh, you are a hiker, can I introduce you to David or Nikki?” Or, “A few of us are going to lunch, would you like to join us?”

If I can be honest (as the guy on his way out as Interim Rector), CCA is a very tight-knit community of people who loves each other deeply, and our pastoral care ministry (thank you Carolyn Irish!) is second to none. But it takes herculean efforts to make it in to the “in group” to become one of us. People tell me that we are not friendly. I think there is only one remedy for this that is obvious. God, please convert our hearts to care for those you send our way; help us see them again, not as intrusions, but as gifts.

In Jesus’ Name,

Chuck Collins
Interim Rector