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Tag Archives: deconsecration

Salt, Soup Sunday and a YES vote | Dream project blog: part eight

That is what this has always been about: it’s not about Grace’s survival or St. George’s growth. It’s not about downsizing or upsizing. It’s not even about a whole community finding a new home. It’s about the hope and expectation that there are so many others out there who need to hear the invitation to find their place at the table. Continue reading

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A parable

The handful of Sunday regulars has decided that this little church’s time has passed. The decision is made and the paperwork is done. The bishop came out this morning and led a service of deconsecration. Everyone there said it was a beautiful service. It really was too. It was a holy goodbye. Continue reading

Posted in Citizens of Heaven | Tagged , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Are we in uncharted waters? Dream project blog: part seven

Uncharted water is the course of the church. Period. We can remind one another of the lessons we have learned along the way that allow us to find joy and peace and chart our course, even on the choppy waters of life and even into—and, yes, out of—the eye of the storm. Continue reading

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Good grief! The range of reactions to considering a church merger. | Dream project blog: part five

Grief is good when we come through it better than before. Continue reading

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Michael Mondloch | Dream project blog: part two

At the beginning of July, an announcement was made in two of our St. Catharines Anglican churches. In this second blog in a series that considers the possibility of a parish merge, The Rev. Dr. Michael Mondloch outlines five “universal truths” observed in “The Great Reveal.” Continue reading

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Setting a new precedent: sometimes a church needs to die in order to rise again.

Simply put, churches don’t come back from the dead. Decline is the norm. Resources are almost always dwindling. At the end of the day another set of doors will likely be closed for mission and ministry… for ever. But does this always have to be the case? Continue reading

Posted in The "and then" Gospel | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

41 church deconsecrations and counting—but I believe in the “and then” Gospel!

I’m a 34 year old Anglican priest. I grew up in the days of large confirmation classes and cozy traditional worship services, but within my lifetime all of that has changed. My sorry claim to fame as a young minister is that I have witnessed the deconsecration of 41 Anglican churches and counting. Continue reading

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