To Stave Off Decline, Churches Attract New Members With Beer

sermonindex Nov 4, 2013

With mainline religious congregations dwindling across America, a scattering of churches is trying to attract new members by creating a different sort of Christian community. They are gathering around craft beer.

Some church groups are brewing it themselves, while others are bring the Holy Mysteries to a taproom. The result is not sloshed congregants; rather, it's an exploratory approach to do church differently.

Leah Stanfield stands at a microphone across the room from the beer taps and reads this evening's gospel message.

She's a 28-year-old leasing agent who's been coming to Church-in-a-Pub here in Fort Worth, Tex., for a year, and occasionally leads worship. ...

D

DEADn Nov 4, 2013

Limit everyone to one beer with munchies and it is ok. Go beyond that and they are asking for trouble.

P

PaulWest Nov 4, 2013

This reminds me of a non-denominational church not too far away from where I live. A few years back they had a competition among members to see how many new people they could get to join the church. As an incentive, the leadership was offering an all-expense paid luxury cruise to the Bahamas to the winner who generated the most "invites".

L

lylewise Nov 4, 2013

They will know us by our love for one another.......and nobody loves everybody better than someone who has exceeded his limit. The idea is presented that this is an effort to attract new members. Is that not a red flag flapping in the wind or better yet two sheets? Without taking this to the same old argument of rightousness by what one takes into his body or substains himself from, it does seem a bit wordly like so many other methods (gimmicks) to attract the crowds that have come before it.

I think of Christ telling his disciples to feed the crowds. Would have made for quite a different story and lesson had He told his disciples to put on a big fish fry and advertise it.

Did you say Ft. Worth?