The Tourist Church

We enter into these beautiful churches, tourists in an unfamiliar land, gazing at the beauty of the church.  Learning how the church was built hundreds of years ago, relying solely on manpower.  Tourists standing in line for hours to see the wonder of the church building.  While embracing the awkward role of a tourist, gazing up at the Notre Dame, I realized that I didn’t actually think about God.  I thought about the building, the painter, the laborers, the architect who designed it.  I never stopped to think about the purpose behind the building.  I never once stopped to wonder at the beauty that ultimately God created.  It was almost as if I was worshipping man who drew, designed, and built these historic churches.  I wasn't actually worshipping God in this holy place.  I forgot who created man, who gave man the creativity and knowledge to be able to design such a feat.

Maybe these historic churches have become an idol.  Maybe we need to rethink the meaning and purpose of a church building because the reality now is that the church is not just a building.  The church is a community of believers uniting together through a common belief.  We live together, we encourage one another, we hold each other accountable, we learn from each other, we engage in conversations that challenge and deepen our faith in Christ.

Through conversations with family in the Netherlands, I learned how drastically the church continues to shrink.  Beautiful historic church buildings are being bought and turned into tourist attractions, bars, restaurants, and apartments.  Congregations are merging together because they no longer have enough members and funds to upkeep their buildings.  The church is shifting.  While the more traditional denominations are shrinking, the evangelical movement has grown in the Netherlands.  With knowledge becoming easily accessible through the internet, the role of the pastor in the church is changing.  The way we learn has shifted dramatically, from rote learning to much more discussion based, student centered learning.  Sunday is no longer a day of rest, with many people working on Sundays.

My most spiritually enriching moments in my life have not been in a church building.  Most often times, they are moments when I am surrounded by other Christians who challenge me and encourage me in my faith.  They are moments when friends come together and engage in discussion about the challenges we are facing, trying to live Christ-like in a secular world.  When we dig deeper into what the Bible teaches us about how to love and trust God more.  They are moments when a random woman in Panera who overheard my conversation, senses my fear of the future, and comes up to me and tells me not to be afraid because God has something incredible in store for the next six months.   They are moments when we can worship together in unison.  Well, the church shouldn't just be "moments," it should be constant, a habit, stable, a foundation.  This is the church, a community of like-minded people living Christ-like.