Crystal Cathedral, take two?
We've reported earlier on the financial difficulties that the Crystal Cathedral has been experiencing. What's not been reported until now is that there are actually two churches that see themselves as preserving Robert Schuller's legacy; the original church that Robert founded and a new expression that has Robert's grandson Bobby as the driving force.
"Bobby's church, The Gathering, takes a low-key approach to worship. Sunday's services aren't in an opulent church. Young band members open the service, and it's intimate — people don paper name tags and shake hands. All of these elements represent a 'post-boomer' style of worship popular with 20- to 40-year-old Christians, said Richard Flory, a sociologist of religion at USC.The cathedral, on the other hand, is known for grand productions, robed pastors and traditional hymns. The age of its average congregant is 53.
'They are totally outdated,' Flory said. 'They are so committed to a plot of land and a building, and they've got a problem.'"
More here.
Interesting take. It may be the day of edifices and mega-churches is coming to a close. In someways, by being willing to invent church to make it appropriate for the context of the community in which it is set, Bobby is doing the same thing his grandfather did - when he started a church in a drive-in theater.
Whether you meet in a living room or a Crystal Cathedral, I would suggest the question is the same: Are you reaching the world with the Gospel of Jesus Christ? Are you committed to evangelism or the edifice?
Certainly, if one HAS no building, there is no edifice to be committed to--which is both freeing and limiting. Freeing, in that there is no building upkeep, limiting in that there is no sacred space, no geographic locus of the gathered community. Either way, the question of mission is paramount. Different forms will appeal to different people, but if the vibe when one enters is "We're committed to this church (building)!" rather than "We're committed to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and all of this is merely a tool for the proclamation of that Gospel" then people will intuitively know.
Posted by Tom Sramek, Jr.![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.episcopalcafe.com/lead/nav-commenters.gif)
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November 27, 2010 11:20 PM
We're committed to the Gospel of Jesus Christ
...not to mention the gap between SAYING that (or putting it into some kind of multi-point faith-statement), and actually DOING it [In my experience, the louder the "proclamation of that Gospel", the less Jesus is actually being FOLLOWED (au *HOT* contraire, in many cases!)]
JC Fisher
Posted by tgflux![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.episcopalcafe.com/lead/nav-commenters.gif)
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November 28, 2010 11:24 PM