As churchgoers, we are always encouraged to invite friends to church. We are urged to spread Christ in our workplaces, our schools, and our neighborhoods. It’s not a bad thing to pursue, and there is legitimate scriptural emphasis on making followers of Christ. However, I am deeply struggling with the exact nature of this command, and I am often disturbed by the way it plays out.
I think that in many cases, church promotion goes too far. I see a trend in today’s churches: we promote friendship Sundays, and have special youth group days where we bring school friends. At these events, we make pitches about why our church is great and welcoming. I don’t have an issue with bringing friends to church—I think it’s a perfectly acceptable thing to do—but to make it into a sort of promotion is sick. People are not number generators, nor are they tools to build a ministry.
I am tired of big holiday productions, when churches know visitors will attend and use events as a hook to bring new people in. I am tired of over-the-top visitor centers that give out free T-shirts promoting the “brand” of the church. I am tired of testimonials about a church’s programs being pasted all over its websites in an effort to attract congregants. I know these examples seem, and in many ways are, extreme, but I have honestly witnessed way too many of them. I see the well-meaning nature behind these events, but I cringe at how fake and contrived they are. Frankly, non-Christians can easily see how cheesy and obvious these efforts are, which may end up having the opposite effect that these churches intend.
I see it happen in subtle ways everywhere. It’s the little pamphlet you make sure the visitor gets on their way out, or the free Bible, or the pen with the church’s name on it. It’s the little mental game we play, where we ask, “We’ll see you next week, right?” and the visitor sort of feels guilty if they don’t show up. It’s our desperation not to ‘lose’ the person, which replaces genuinely love, care and friendship.
Think about it: it should not matter to us if this is the first and last time someone enters our church. We should treat them the same as if we knew that they would become a full-fledged member, even if they are just passing through. If we do “lose” that person, they may still become a Christian. Maybe they weren’t comfortable here, but will be at another church. We should meet people where they are at and work with them to grow their own faith, not to accept our denomination’s faith. We should stop trying to reel them in, and start treating them just like we treat everyone else. We should stop obsessing over people until we “got ‘em,” and we should stop losing interest in them if we gain their membership.
We need to actually invest in people. We should stop asking “Where have you been?” after a person’s long absence and start asking “How have you been?” We should start looking at humans as God’s work instead of as potential demographics that we use a formula to capture. Instead of using community events to benefit our numbers, we should use them to benefit the community. When we use daycares to get the desperate single mother into a seat on Sunday, we have stopped caring about the real work of Christ because we’ve clouded our mission with self-serving practices that we see as kingdom-building.
I hate to go on such a rant and not give a solution to my own disgruntlement. I suppose the biggest solution is to be relational in our everyday life. Be a person who anyone can approach. Be a person that thinks only “I bet this a really cool person I’d love to get to know” when a visitor does walk through the door. We need to stop thinking about getting people to join, and start just being hospitable without strings attached. God wants followers and disciples, not satellite sites and sales pitches.
Alanna is a senior majoring in Spanish and intercultural studies.