As millions leave organized religion, spiritual and secular communities offer refuge
Vinings Lake Church ― Mableton, Georgia:
When Deese invited a member of the Muslim faith to address the congregation about Islamophobia, people walked out. Others did the same when he brought in a blacksmith to make art from melted-down reclaimed firearms acquired from the local sheriff’s office.
But the real exodus, Deese said, took place when he attempted to address the topic of Christian nationalism.
“Bottom line is, if you need to know how to shrink a church, I’m your guy,” Deese said wryly.
A congregation of 800 plummeted to 100. The budget shrunk by $1 million. Some staff members had to be released.
Awakenings – Houston:
The community has about 40 core members, and while the Bible is the text most often referenced, Awakenings attracts people of all faith traditions, Norman said.
Aldea Spiritual Community – Tucson, Arizona:
A typical Sunday gathering features talk, music and meditation and draws half of the community’s membership of about 150, nearly all of whom are people who have left traditional organized religion, Haber said. [150/2 = 75 lol]
Heartway Church – Davie, Florida:
“We lost a lot of people in the process,” Prada said, blaming much of that on his own zeal, immaturity and antagonistic approach to the faith he was shedding. “I felt like it was my duty to prove that way of Christianity was wrong and this one was right. Even now, a lot of people can’t go where we continue to go, and they fall by the wayside.” ...
Attendance averages between 120 and 140 on any given Sunday, he said – a showing he considers respectable given the church’s location in conservative South Florida. It includes individuals who consider themselves spiritual but not religious as well as nones, those who don’t affiliate with any particular religion.
C3 Spiritual Community – Grand Haven, Michigan:
Sunday gatherings average around 90 attendees and are built around a topic presented by a group or guest teacher bookended by community discussions.
The community began as a Reformed Church in America, part of a network of mainline Reformed Protestant churches. Its separation from the RCA began in the 1990s after the church let a gay organization conduct meetings in a church office.
As the community went through its theological transformation – the name C3 refers to its former identity as Christ Community Church – many members fell by the wayside; it now meets at a community center but has seen recent growth among younger generations, executive director Shannon McMaster said.
