A New Way to Be the Church in Syracuse On a Sunday evening in Syracuse, New York, long tables fill with plates of food, the hum of conversation, and the sound of music that seems to soften even the most weary souls. This is Two Rivers Dinner Church, a community where the barriers of traditional church are set aside so that anyone—no matter their story—can find a place at the table. When more than 100 people gathered to celebrate the dinner church’s one-year anniversary, the atmosphere was electric. There was laughter, there was gratitude, and there were baptisms—visible signs that lives had been changed over the past year. Danielle Towers, one of the leaders, described it simply but powerfully:
Worship Beyond the Walls It all began with a simple request. A local retirement community, Fleming Farms, wondered if our church might be willing to provide something regular for their residents. Rather than asking people to come to us, the Spirit was nudging us to go to them. What started as a brainstorming lunch quickly grew into a shared calling. After prayer, reflection, and some nudging from family, we stepped forward — not alone, but with others from the congregation who were eager to serve, sing, and share life. The result was W.O.W. (Worship on Wednesday). We didn’t know what to expect, but from the very first hymn-sing, it was clear God was already at work. Residents came with joy and keep returning week after week. Together we sing, hear a short word from Scripture, share prayer requests, and celebrate birthdays. A Community of Giving and Receiving The surprising gift of W.O.W. is how it has shaped our whole church. Each Wednesday for the past 17 months, people who normally worship only inside our sanctuary are stepping into a different kind of sanctuary — the community room at Fleming Farms. They are meeting new neighbors, sharing stories, and discovering that worship doesn’t have to stay within four walls.
As King Street Church was forming in 2013, we began looking for a way to start a church that met our neighbors where they were and formed a new kind of church there. After several months of research, we stumbled upon Fresh Expressions. I was immediately taken by the process in which these new forms of church were started, a process called The Fresh Expressions Journey. The Fresh Expressions Journey is a six-step process that most fresh expressions walk through as they form. Of course, the process is never as simple as it looks, but these steps gave me a basic framework to envision how King Street Church might form. Now, as a cultivator and coach of fresh expressions in western North Carolina and beyond, I point fresh expression leaders to the Journey on a daily basis. I ask questions like, “What stage of the journey have you been working on?” and “How might you begin to move into the next stage?” As John Maeda, President of the Rhode Island School of Design, says: “Making a process visible makes a practice reflectable.” In this series of posts, we’ll reflect on each stage. The Six Stages of the Fresh Expressions Journey
It’s been said that the seven last words of a dying church are, “We’ve never done it that way before.” Pastor Brett DeHart is not content to maintain the status quo. He’s been the Pastor of Aldersgate United Methodist Church in Augusta for nearly three years now. He is intentional about keeping the church’s traditional worship vibrant, but is very open to new ideas and new ways to meet and minister to people. Aldersgate began in the early 1960’s, as people made the move further out of Augusta. The church has a strong history of reaching families and supporting missions. Its growth continued into the early 2000’s and since that time, attendance has dwindled. Pastor Brett has observed that Covid contributed and probably accelerated what was already going on. One upside to the pandemic was that it gave folks an opportunity to evaluate the role and level of importance the church played in their lives. The church’s traditional worship is still a solid part of the church’s life and ministry. However, as Pastor DeHart is quick to point out, “We are finding new ways to reach new people.” One of those ways is through Messy Church. It got its start about 20 years ago. Pastor DeHart said, “England of course is a good couple of decades ahead of us on the church trajectory. Their churches have declined throughout Europe at a much faster pace than in America. They had to get more innovative and creative sooner, and so we’ve learned some things from them. Messy Church is one of those.” Messy Church started during Covid with three drive-in events. It’s been going on for about 18 months now. It’s an interactive experience for adults and kids with games, crafts, a Bible story, and dinner for the whole family. Messy Church currently meets monthly on Sunday afternoons, with about 50 people participating. “For most of the folks, initially at least, it’s their first church experience, which we’re perfectly fine with,” Pastor DeHart said. “It’s just church done a little differently. The goal was how we can reach people that might not be open to our traditional settings. Recovery, really is in that same vein.”
As I drove my well-worn Honda Odyssey packed full of friends staying at the local homeless shelter, Ron, a particularly boisterous and often shameless individual, asked James, “Do you have any cigarettes?” “No, go fish.” James replied. The whole van belly-laughed the rest of the way to my house. We arrived to find a lively house. The sound of people introducing themselves and the smell of honey ham filled the downstairs. My pregnant wife was putting the finishing touches on our Easter feast. We set our table and brought a folding table from church to make room for everyone. It was an eclectic group: folks experiencing homelessness sitting with college students and former board room big wigs. Yet around the table, all were equal—hungry and eager for seconds of pie.
