Tag Archives: church re-start

New Beginnings

Posted on January 4, 2012 | 2 Comments

On December 24, 2011, I did something I don’t always do on Christmas Eve.

I went to church.

More than that, I led worship at the First Unitarian Church of Norton – the first public worship we have had since the re-start began.  It was an amazing experience – not just to be leading worship again, but to see this community literally grow and begin to take shape on a beautiful Christmas Eve.

Several people have asked “How many were there?  Were there more than ten? ”  There were in fact, more than ten…..our final head count came in at seventy-eight.  It was a fun group of people – a warm and welcoming group, which I believe will continue to grow because of our warmth and welcoming.  People were so happy to be there!

It was an amazing thing, to be leading worship for a congregation that has such a history and yet is so entirely new.  We learned some important things about our historic building – for example, that the current electrical circuits cannot carry both lights and a coffee pot simultaneously on the same breaker – and that the church decorates beautifully for Christmas.  We also learned that the creation of community is magical.

Our next worship will be January 29.  We will be having monthly services for January and February, and see where we are in March in terms of our goals and needs for our growing community.

Someone said to me several months ago “This re-start is just a giant experiment, you know.  But so are all churches, and communities, and societies of people.  So just enjoy the science of it all.”

I have to tell you, this is the most fun experiment I have ever been part of!

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Posted in Church, Community, First Unitarian of Norton, Ministry

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Boot Camp

Posted on June 7, 2011 | Leave a comment

A couple of weeks ago I attended a conference called New Church Start Boot Camp.  I’m normally not a huge fan of conferences – it’s hard to guarantee quality, and scheduling long (and sometimes overnight) days away from my family is never a fun thing to do.  But I decided to attend this one with the encouragement of my friend Royce, and with the vague hope that I might leave with a nugget or two of useful information.

Oh.  My.  Goodness.

This conference was AMAZING.  It was sponsored by the Massachusetts United Church of Christ office (where it was held) and Griffith Coaching.  Jim Griffith and Paul Nickerson presented, and let me tell you, if you want to know anything about new church starts or re-starts, they know it!  I’m not going to try to explain the information here, but if you’re interested you should totally buy Jim’s book.

One of the things that was most rewarding for me personally in attending this conference was that these people have DONE IT.  They’ve done it personally and they have coached other people to success.  And not just two or three churches – Jim has started 5 churches, and has coached over 1500.  There are people who have started with the dream of a new church and made it a life-giving reality!

To a lot of people I talk to, the work we’re doing in Norton is so unusual they can’t even find the words to express it.  ”A church re-start?  A new kind of church?  A church that is relevant to people where they are today and is doing a series on the Spirituality in Star Wars?  What do you MEAN???”  To Paul and Jim and the other people at this conference, this work is normal and understandable and even has methodology.  A methodology that has been documented!

I have a whole new outlook on conferences.

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Posted in Church, First Unitarian of Norton, Ministry

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Norton Unitarian Website is UP!

Posted on May 17, 2011 | Leave a comment

Norton Unitarian

And let me tell you, it’s been quite the adventure.

When you are working with a church re-start, there’s a lot of “typical information” that simply doesn’t exist yet.  Who attends this church?  What is it all about?  When are services?  What is your role in the community?

Boy, those are some good questions.  And this month, the one-year anniversary of my hiring to the First Unitarian Church of Norton, many of these questions are being answered.

Over the past year, I’ve spoken with hundreds of people.  I’ve talked with people who live in Norton and the surrounding towns, students and faculty at Wheaton College, business owners, mothers and fathers, long-time church attenders and people who are spiritual but not religious.  The oldest person I’ve met with who is interested in the church is 81 – the youngest is 13.  Through these conversations I’ve gotten a sense of what people are looking for and what Unitarian Universalism might look like in this place, at this time.

Our website does not answer all of those questions; the vision for this church is still emerging.  And, to be honest, will probably continue to emerge and change as long as this church exists.  Churches have to move and to breathe with the world around them, otherwise we will cease to be meaningful and relevant.

But our website shows a beginning of the vision for this church, at this time, in this place.  And it’s a great vision.  I’m so inspired by the people I’m working with, and by all those who are involved and interested in the First Unitarian Church of Norton re-start.

So go check it out, and share with all your friends!

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Posted in Church, First Unitarian of Norton, Ministry, Unitarian Universalism

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Time’s a-tickin’

Posted on February 24, 2011 | Leave a comment

Somehow, the last two weeks have gotten away from me.  My “smart” cell phone blew up (in the software sense, not an actual explosion…..though it felt that way), family came to visit and I had a birthday.  We held our second gathering of the first Small Group at Norton Unitarian Church last night, our second Small Group is almost full and will likely start meeting in a week or two.  I’m now speaking to people about joining the churches third Small Group, interviewing childcare providers (because children are not puppies) and putting final touches on the website mock-up.

Suddenly, there is momentum beyond me in the church!

It is so wonderful to talk to so many people interested and excited about the church I’m hoping Norton Unitarian will become.  I’ll be honest – I’m not trying to build something that looks like our “traditional” Unitarian Universalist church.  I want to be part of a religious community that speaks to a different need – a need that doesn’t seem to be being met by many of our current options.  A need that is about connection and vibrancy and faith.

By throwing the doors open to the church and presenting new ideas, new cultures are starting to emerge.  We are at the very beginning yet…..the very beginning….but the goal of the church is to be a place of meaning and joy. A place where we don’t have to always worry about what has been, but where we can look at where we are today and say “What works?  What makes sense?  What do we want in our lives?  What makes us grow spiritually and become better people in the world?”

This church is about faith today.

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Posted in Church, Church Administration, First Unitarian of Norton, Ministry

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So How Do You Re-start a Church?

Posted on February 2, 2011 | Leave a comment

I get this question a lot.

It would be great if there was a one-sentence answer.

There isn’t.

I’m not sure I know how to re-start a church.  But I do know how to listen.  And that’s been the most important part of what I’ve been doing for the past several months.  I’ve been meeting with enormous numbers of people, and I’ve been listening to what they want and need.  I’ve been listening to why they don’t go to church, in what ways they feel disconnected, and what they are looking for in a spiritual community.   I’ve been meeting people where they are, in their coffee shops and homes and offices.

I’ve also been listening to myself.  At the beginning of this process, I put one bottom line in place, which is written on a post-it note and stuck right next to my computer screen.  It says:

“The purpose of this church is to help people grow spiritually and to make the world a better place.”  This isn’t a congregational mission statement or faith statement or any other kind of institutional reflection.  It’s just my bottom line.  It is why I’m doing this, why I get up every morning and work on building a congregation….to fill a building standing ready, waiting to be filled with mission and vision and purpose.

From listening to people, I’ve found that I’m not the only person who is looking for a church that helps me grow spiritually and makes the world a better place.  There’s a lot of us out there, looking for something deeper to connect to.  We are thinking about death and happiness and forgiveness, and want to participate in the world in a more active way than voting on American Idol.

And as we all come together, something magic is starting to happen. Something that is precious and extraordinary and simple and common.

We are building a church.

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Posted in Church, Community, First Unitarian of Norton, Ministry, Spiritual life

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