Mainline Protestantism has been in decline my entire lifetime. Since it is the tradition I know best and the one that has shaped and continues to shape my religious identity, I strive to understand these changes. The Presbyterian Church (USA) was created by a merger of the United Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. and the Presbyterian Church in the United States in June 1983. In one of my more popular blog posts - Presbyterian Decline: PCUSA -The First 35 Read More …
PCUSA
Top 10 Posts of 2022 (#2020)
2022 has been a year of transition and change - planned and unplanned. My wife and I relocated to a new home and said goodbye to a congregation, I survived a brutal assault, and I parted ways with the academic institution that awarded my M.Div. The top ten posts published on So What Faith during 2022 (based on page views in 2022 to date) reflect these life happenings and also feature posts about the two Mainline Protestant denominations I know best: Ten Reasons for Concern About HSU's Read More …
Ending My Time at FPC (#1999)
My season of being involved as a member at First Presbyterian Church in Fort Worth is drawing to a close. How it All Began In January 2018, my partner and I moved from Corinth (just outside of Denton, Texas) to downtown Fort Worth. At the time, I was engaged in a short-term ministry venture, which included preaching every Sunday. When that role concluded in March 2018, we started looking for a church home. This journey, which came to be known as our search for a church, lasted over a Read More …
New Beginnings at First Presbyterian (Fort Worth) (#1928)
First Presbyterian Church (PCUSA) has been a part of the Fort Worth community for 148 years. Originally established in 1873, this urban congregation moved to its current location in 1956. Like many congregations, it ceased all indoor gatherings early in the COVID-19 pandemic. Unlike most congregations, it also completed a search for a new pastor and head of staff during the pandemic. On February 7, 2021, the congregation elected the Rev. Dr. Brian Coulter to serve as its next pastor Read More …
Reopening for In Person Worship: 5 Congregations (#1926)
Over the last four weeks I've visited five mainline Protestant congregations in the Dallas - Fort Worth metro area that have recently reopened for worship. All five experiences required that I pre-register to attend, and that I commit to a covenant or list of expectations regarding my participation (i.e., not attend if I had a fever or was experiencing COVID-like symptoms, while attending wear a mask and remain socially distanced from others while indoors, etc.). Additionally, all five Read More …
Giving Up the Old and White Church (#1924)
I've spent my entire life in congregations affiliated with Mainline Protestant denominations. For Lent, I’m giving up something big: the church I always knew. And, unlike past Lenten disciplines that ended on Easter, this change is one I expect to be permanent. Here in the final post in this series, I'm giving up the old and white church. Old According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the median age of all Americans is 38.4 years (2019). By comparison, the Pew Research Center Read More …
First Indoor Worship Service in a Year (#1921)
Last Sunday I attended my first in person worship service in over a year. For that outdoor service at First Presbyterian Church (Fort Worth, TX) I sat masked in a socially distanced chair with fewer than 20 other outdoor attendees - a group which was supplemented by folks worshipping in a nearby parking lot in their vehicles. (For more on this check out my post titled First in Person Worship Experience in a Year.) Today was another milestone day: I attended my first indoor worship service in Read More …
First In Person Worship Experience in a Year (#1919)
I attended in person worship for the first time in over a year earlier today! First Presbyterian Church of Fort Worth created and has continually updated and followed a reopening plan that is based on data not dates. After a few months of providing a parking lot service during which all attendees were required to remain in their vehicles (I shared my initial experience in "New Year, New Worship Experience"), the congregation added an in person element to this weekly worship service Read More …
New Year, New Worship Experience (#1908)
It has been ten months since I last walked into the sanctuary of a church to participate in worship. Given the current spike in COVID-19 cases where I live and the slower than expected distribution of the vaccine, I am unsure when I may next participate in worship as I'd always known it before COVID-19. Today, for the first time since the onset of the pandemic, I gathered in the same physical place as others for worship. Preparation Last month, First Presbyterian Church (Fort Read More …
Top 10 Posts of 2020 (#1905)
2020 has been the year of the pandemic, and a year marked by more changes in the life of the American church than any in my lifetime. This year's top posts reflect this reality while also including content focused on the always popular topics of good books and Mainline decline. My Seminary is Closing (February)Dear HSU Trustees (February)My Seminary is Closing - The Bigger Picture (February)May Love Overcome and Justice Roll Down (January)Easter Miracles: Empty Tomb, Empty Churches Read More …