Keep it Simple

Ok, how about this:

The Core is a church.

The Core has a building downtown, under renovation, called the Front Porch.

The Core has a gathering Sunday morning called Re:Group. It hopes to add other similar small gatherings in homes, or wherever they can occur.

The Core has activities, including Open Mic Church, Missional Relationship Workshops, Leadership Meetings and Hangouts on the Square.

The Core has a strong outreach element, which enables members from other churches to get involved in meaningful ways, and results in plenty of potential uses for the Front Porch.

The Core has team members, currently they number 7. Team members are expected to be involved in a substantial way, but are not required to attend Re:Group, or abandon memberships with other churches.

The Core has overseers, currently they number 6. Overseers are expected to guide the overall vision and direction of The Core, and are expected to be committed to an effective weekly small group.

The Core has family members, including everyone we have contact with.

The Core has supporters, who see the need for what The Core is doing, and want to help.

The Core has a vision to be an example to the World of what it means to have a relationship with God, and put all your trust in Jesus. It also has a vision to be an example to the Body of Christ of what it means to BE THE CHURCH, and not simply go to church.

The Core is simple. As it grows, it may become more complex. However, there is no need to add complexity prematurely. And even as complexity comes, it must be organic, and spring from the diversity of people's gifts and callings, rather than a confounding administrative structure.

This proposed re-statement arises from a realization of mine: You have to pick your battles. We cannot re-define the entire church all at once. We have to conform to certain things in order to maintain meaningful points of contact with Christendom. My concession to call The Core "a church" would be one of them. Here is another one:

Lots of churches have a strong commitment to small groups. The church Matt & Melissa Stephens are attending in Chicago has virtual 100% involvement in weekly small groups among members. Instead of trying to start The Core from scratch, and alienate people ideologically, let's start with something everyone understands, and just make some modifications.

Almost every church has a weekly service (let's call that a "worship gathering".) And many churches, as I mentioned, have weekly small groups (let's call them "home fellowships".) I think the worship gatherings are a good thing to have regularly, but having them weekly really causes people to put too much emphasis on that type of activity.

So let's have our home fellowships weekly, and have a worship gathering monthly, so the focus is on the small events, not on the big ones. Also it will free people up to get more involved in regular community-building and outreach efforts.

Then let's give the home fellowships an extra level of autonomy, so they are not expected to do everything "through" The Core, or "in concert" with The Core. Their meeting places, discussion & teaching topics, music, fellowship and giving can happen however they see fit. Also, we can ordain their leaders to conduct baptisms, weddings, funerals and communion. The Core will maintain oversight of home fellowships in order to manage their finances, hold teachers accountable for biblical doctrine (and provide them training,) urge them to contribute to wider fellowship and outreach efforts, and help them grow without losing intimacy, splitting ineffectively, or lacking strong leadership.

This concept is not unlike the "Free Market" cell-group model that has recently been gaining popularity.

Then our monthly worship gathering could occur, let's say, the third Sunday evening of each month. We could probably even start out by holding it at the Bellwether, and then switch to the Front Porch when it's ready. It wouldn't have to be terribly different from a typical up-to-date "church service" except that it would happen less often, take place in a much more casual, stimulating atmosphere, and probably be more interactive, thoughtful and unpredictable. It could be geared toward believers (without being too intensive) and near-believers (without being too secular.) Those who are interested in a more instensive experience can join a home fellowship. Those who are interested in a more secular, open-ended experience can come to Open Mic Church.

I think that's it for now (as if that's not enough to chew on!)