Advertisement

How do we move past the logo to the logos?

"Lord, help us be the people your grace thinks we are." — Rebecca Messman

Public theology An image resembling a quilt with a cross. The cover of the Outlook's issue on public theologians.

Growing up in the Bible Belt, I passed church signage every day. Benign letter boards at the corner church chirped out messages, from the cheeky (“Lord, help us be the people our dogs think we are”) to the menacing (“Feeling distant from God? Who moved?”).

As a pastor, I have changed many a church letterboard sign, dodging the yellow jackets that seem far more drawn to the sign than the people driving by. The same committees that manage the signage also hope that flyers, postcards, giveaways, bumper stickers, websites, canvas bags, T-shirts, Facebook posts, YouTube channels and even Super Bowl ads will draw people in. Church marketing often behaves like corporate sponsorship, just with a cross on it. The intentions might be honorable — but what draws people to the life of faith usually has little to do with the logo and more with the logos, Word made flesh on the move in this world. Instead of sponsorship, the logos calls us to leadership, stewardship and relationship.

The church should focus on community leadership. The vigil after a tragedy is not a marketing ploy, nor should it be — but people often stagger into the church in moments of shock and pain and return later because they experienced genuine healing there. The funeral the church offers to host because it was too large for the funeral home is not a branding opportunity, nor should it be — but I can’t count the number of times someone has come through the receiving line on a Sunday to say, “You probably don’t remember me, but I was at so-and-so’s funeral and the love I felt that day has stayed with me. I didn’t realize how much I missed this.” The community organizing efforts, community cleanup days, disaster relief, 12-step groups, hypothermia shelters, affordable housing advocacy, soup kitchens, marches, tutoring programs and food pantries that the church leads are not about expanding market share, nor should they be — but they are the primary cues telling people in the neighborhood that the church cares about something beyond the normal ABCs: namely, attendance, buildings and cash.

That said, a welcoming space communicates thoughtful stewardship, another marketing effort that is rarely understood as such. Once someone steps foot through the door, does the facility communicate what is happening now and tomorrow, or what happened yesterday or years ago? My friend Tim filmed the moment his team removed the dank carpet of an old sanctuary in Baltimore, Maryland, to reveal the hardwood flooring underneath. The video had the contagious energy of an HGTV show and also reflected the theology of redemption and hope. My friends Ashley and Juli stewarded their own congregations through redeveloping church property into affordable housing and revamping congregational spaces. A by-product of great stewardship in these examples was great marketing, as local and national media outlets championed their rebirth.

But relationships have no substitute. Most people arrive at a new church on the arm of someone else. A neighbor risked inviting them. A friend risked sharing how a sermon or a prayer touched them, how a mission experience changed them, how the choir replenished them, and a doorway deep in the heart of another opened. Then when the new person arrived at church for the first time, which always feels risky, someone welcomed them — the next time, someone remembered them. The welcome had no quiet asterisks next to it, no sneaky ifs: if you are dressed this way, if you are married, if you are straight, or if you attend everything we do. An entire person was invited and – over time, if the welcome was sincere – an entire person arrived.

The sinewy contours of the body of Christ might be the only things that can reach the jagged, weary people of this world, whether they come to a physical building or not. And only muscles honed by discipleship, fellowship and worship can hold what people bring with them. But thanks be to God, this is what the great ship, the church, is built for.

Lord, help us be the people your grace thinks we are.

LATEST STORIES

Advertisement