(ABP) — Survival is a question thousands of American churches confront each year. Estimates of annual church closures range from 3,500 to 7,000. That’s likely to increase as younger generations, including the rise of the “nones,” increasingly avoid organized religion.
One of the biggest dangers facing those churches is the failure to see the financial trap that puts them in, said Chris Gambill, manager of congregational health services at the Center for Congregational Health in Winston-Salem.
“A lot of established, traditional congregations don’t realize how close they might be to this scenario,” he said.
That scenario can spell trouble because aging members are the biggest givers in most American congregations. Gambill said 60 to 75 percent of giving comes from members who are 60 and older.
Gambill said those older members are often resistant to changes in ministries, and their giving isn’t being replaced after they leave or pass away.
While shutting down is a nightmarish concept for most churches, others have found it to be a graceful way for aging members to leave a legacy, said Molly Marshall, president of Central Baptist Theological Seminary near Kansas City.
In 2008, a St. Louis-area church closed and gave $2.2 million to the seminary. The money was used in part to create an endowed chair and programming that continues today, Marshall said.
Another church donated its property to the seminary, which is using the facility as a church start for a new congregation, she said.
“Congregational health doesn’t mean that you live forever,” Marshall said. “It means you are able to make wise decisions about your future, and sometimes wise decisions are to merge, move, sell or give away.”
Gambill agreed and said the center is hearing from an increasing number of churches wanting to know how to go about shutting down. But most inquire about other options, including mergers with other congregations. “I think it’s a time for reinvention and re-imagining,” Gambill said.
Churches faced with these situations must be creative in the way they think about their facilities, revenues and ministries, Gambill added.
“Most established traditional churches need to think about their funding models and wrestle with the idea: is it realistic to think we can support this institution simply by passing the plate?”
Innovative solutions increasingly tried include hosting business incubators, schools, social service nonprofits, coffee houses and bookstores, Gambill said. Parking lots can also be revenue generators during non-worship times, he said.
“I think the day has passed that we can build big buildings and expect to be the only ones who use them,” Gambill said.
Jeff Brumley is assistant editor of Associated Baptist Press.