Sunday, January 29, 2023
Sunday Reflection: Space and Worship
While looking for something else this week, I stumbled on materials for the Aspen Group, a church-design firm that seems to be very forward-thinking about the spaces we use for and around worship.
One thing they suggest is that the lobby of a church should be more than just a place to flow through, but a space to linger and hang out. I had never really thought about that before, but it's true-- church would be a different experience if there was a space more conducive to informal socializing that was actually on your way from here to there. Some places actually do that pretty well. Meetinghouse Church in Edina (formerly Colonial Church) is probably the church where I have most often hung around after the service, and it occurred to me upon reflection that it is designed for that-- there are places to gather right where you walk out, and a big fireplace that makes it seem like a place to be on a winter's day.
I've written before (and will again) about the crucial loss of churches as "third places" in our culture-- that is, places we form bonds after the first and second places of work and school. Part of that loss is because churches are becoming less relevant and less full, and part of it is a failure to adjust to what people need. Their spaces are generally suited to formal socializing like a potluck dinner or a big meeting, and not so well suited to informal gatherings. I have heard people say that coffeehouses are the new church (and they are more full on Sunday mornings), and perhaps there is something to that.
Churches are dying-- and lack of creativity and inclusiveness are a significant cause of death.
