As of right now, I am currently a member of a church that has, for all practical purposes and intents, just formed. They currently have no established ministries or programs. They're still figuring out their identity (which they've been trying to do for approximately two years). There are no people in my age range or circumstances at this church, which means that I am once again a constituency of one. Somehow, this sounds oddly familiar.
And that's because at the last church where I was a member, I was a constituency of one. My experience at that church did not turn out well. Why? That particular church was run my a social organization that was exclusive, that did not want outsiders interfering in their affairs, that did not care one whit about religion--only their social club which they called a church. I tried to integrate myself into that organization, but because I was an outsider and apolitical for their tastes, I was ostracized.
So is there a difference between my last church and this one? I think there is. This church realizes that it has to do something to survive. They are not nearly as hung up on trifles and minutiae as my previous church. They are not afraid to move forward. Or are they? TCC was formed by two dying congregations about two or three years ago. They formed one congregation, sold both old churches' old facilities, and got into new digs. All good things, except, now that they have taken these steps, they don't seem to know where they are going.
TCC took a step forward, but they have to take another one if they are to survive. I think they realize this, but I don't think they know what that step is. More to the point, I think they are looking past the first step they need to take to the one they want to take. There are some intermediate steps that they need to make before they can really move forward, and I think this church may have gotten into analysis paralysis. That is: everybody recognizes that there is a problem, but they don't know what the problem is, or, in this case, what the direction should be.
Assuming that they do figure out a direction, it is by no means one that will be to my needs or desires, and even assuming that it is, it may take months or years to implement, and even assuming that it is successful, there is no guarantee that I'll find what I'm looking for.
Am I better off than I was at RCC? Probably, but not by much. Should I continue with this church or continue the search? What do you think?
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