A reporter contacted us. He's working on a story about a church selling its church building so that it might have more money and freedom to do ministries here and abroad.
Is this unusual? Or a growing trend, especially in light of the economy as economic realities are causing churches to re-think the amount of money and time they put into buying/maintaining physical facilities?
In your opinion, what challenge does a church face by going church-less?
If you know of such a church that's gone building-less, please post its name and website below.
I have occasionaly heard of churches doing this, but not kept a list nor followed up to see what happened. I look forward to your comments.
Warren Bird, Ph.D., is Research Director at Leadership Network, and co-author of 21 books on various aspects of church health and innovation.
I know of several churches doing exactly this. I can't post the names due to confidentiality. Glad to discuss them on the phone.
Posted by: Tom Doyle | July 21, 2009 at 11:20 AM
Rivertree Christian Church, Massillon, Ohio, www.rivertreechristian.com, founded in 1966, where Greg Nettle has been senior pastor since 1989, has continued to meet in rented schools so they can use more of their money to do good to their community and to other people.
In recent years they staged a multi-million dollar building campaign, but then decided to cancel it and use the money for community and missions. When the decision was announced, the congregation cheered wildly.
Posted by: reggie's friend | July 21, 2009 at 11:57 AM
I've run across several such churches in my research on congregational collaborations. I'm sharing my research in a web site, www.churchcollaborations.com. The "Church Without Walls" page has a great example of a Lutheran church that has thrived for over 40 years without its own building.
Posted by: David Raymond | July 22, 2009 at 05:50 PM
We have church in a bar. No overhead.
Posted by: Aaron B. Reddin | July 27, 2009 at 03:47 PM
On 7/27/09, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution published an article on this topic (and which quoted this blog). Here's a relevant excerpt, plus a link to the entire report by Christopher Quinn:
At the Rolling Hills Baptist Church in Fayetteville, the pastor is trying to sell the building from under his congregation.
Amen, said the congregation, which is $150,000 away from paying off $1.4 million worth of land and buildings.
In a metro area known for megachurches, prosperity preachers and church-owned sports fields, Rolling Hills, which has 100 congregants, has joined a national movement that is challenging the very idea of what makes a church.
In this time of economic famine, Rolling Hills wants to lose the mortgage, air-conditioning bills and insurance costs and move members off the pews so they could do more work in their community, in downtown Atlanta, and in Mexico and Honduras.
. . . So . . . last October, in a 95-to-5 vote, the church agreed to sell the property, which is on the market.
Once the building is sold, the church may look for a general-purpose building to rent, where congregants can meet for services, store clothes to be given to their foreign-missions projects or use for community programs.
http://www.ajc.com/news/fayette/churchs-radical-act-sell-building-use-money-for-outreach-101316.html
Posted by: Warren Bird | July 30, 2009 at 09:36 AM