Grounds for worship
Posted on Saturday, May 10, 2008
URL: http://www.nwanews.com/adg/Religion/225319/
Ah, coffee. The rich, steamy brew is a Sunday morning staple.
Whether it’s a massive percolator filled with Folger’s or a creamy mocha latte from the in-house cafe, coffee and church seem to go hand in hand. Friends catch up over a cup of joe before worship services and visitors find comfort in the familiar ritual. Call it the connecting power of coffee. “I think people feel more comfortable visiting with each other when they can do it over a plate of food or a cup of coffee,” says the Rev. Don Morrow, pastor of WaterWay Christian Church and First Christian Church in Bentonville. Morrow calls it “coffeehouse Christianity,” or providing a comforting, welcoming atmosphere at church. It’s a concept he incorporated into the WaterWay church. The worship center isn’t a sanctuary, it’s more of a coffeehouse, complete with a stage, band and clusters of tables and chairs. “It fits what we’re trying to do,” Morrow says. “Some are not comfortable in a formal setting and this gives them an entryway into church, and I think it’s fitting with what Jesus would be doing — hanging and talking rather that preaching at them.” The congregation of WaterWay started out in a school cafeteria. Sitting around tables, worshippers would grab a cup of coffee and a snack and sit down to visit or read the newspaper before services began. They’ve kept that laid-back vibe in their new building.
INFORMAL SITE “We liked that feeling,” Morrow says. “It felt more relational, so we decided even after we left the cafeteria we wanted to keep that. We really like the informal space.” Morrow says the worship space isn’t a typical sanctuary. Instead of pews or chairs arranged in rows, the room has chairs and bar stools scattered around and also grouped around tables. “We hope they’ll look up front every once in a while, but also spend time looking at each other, forming relationships and talking about things that are the heart of Christianity,” Morrow says. “We hope it will be a place where people will be comfortable to come hang out and worship.”
The church, which averages about 80 worshippers weekly, serves free coffee, doughnuts, bagels and fruit. The offerings vary from week to week. Sometimes it’s just a plain old cup of joe. Other times it’s the fancy stuff — vanilla nut, mocha and even “Wicked Doodle,” a gourmet blend flavored with hazelnut, caramel and cinnamon. Worshippers are welcome to grab a drink or snack during services. Some arrive early to chat and many stay late to visit, unlike at the school. While meeting at the school, worship services would end at 10: 25 a. m. and five minutes later the place was empty. Morrow would leave promptly to drive across town to lead services at First Christian Church, which he still does. “Now, sometimes I have a hard time getting out because people are hanging out and talking,” he says. It’s a problem he’s happy to have.
USING THE OLD BEAN PontiacChurch in Springdale has more than a passing relationship with coffee. The new United Methodist congregation meets in a coffeehouse — Pontiac Coffee House in Springdale. The church logo is a coffee bean.
“It’s a conversation starter,” says Mike Felder, the church’s pastor.
While searching for locations for services, Felder drove around Springdale looking for something that meshed with the vision he had for the church. It had to be casual and welcoming. He spotted the Pontiac Coffee House and went inside. The atmosphere was just right.
“It’s comfortable,” he says. “There’s a sense of familiarity and it sets you at ease.”
That casual feeling suited the church’s mission to reach those uncomfortable in a traditional worship setting, or those who have felt hurt or abandoned by a church. “We want to attract those who are searching and don’t have a faith or church connection, and the location in the coffee bar is attractive,” Felder says. The coffee shop and the congregation benefit from the arrangement. The coffeehouse, located in a former Pontiac dealership, provides space for worship services in the service bay. The church, in turn, buys coffee, drinks and snacks for the congregation before worship each Wednesday night. Services are a blend of contemporary and traditional elements, with Christian and secular music. The group has a “meet-and-greet” time to talk and get to know one another over coffee or soft drinks.
MEET AND GREET “It’s like an intermission where we mingle and meet people,” Felder says. “You can have a conversation with somebody... We are a communal society and we all need people around us, to visit and to interact.”
While WaterWay and PontiacChurch offer free coffee and snacks, some churches use coffee bars as fundraisers, or charge for the products to break even. Grace Point Church in Bentonville has a Beyond Borders Cafe. Their motto is “drink coffee, do good.” Proceeds from the sale of coffee, tea, muffins, cookies and snack items go to support the church’s mission work in the African nation of Mali.
The Church at Pinnacle Hills in Rogers has a full-blown bookstore and coffeehouse in its building — the Reach for Life Bookstore, a LifeWay church business — offering books, music and gourmet coffees.
In Little Rock, Fellowship Bible Church will soon offer two cafes for worshippers — the Common Grounds Cafe and the Fireside Cafe. Becky Porter, cafe manager, says she relies on at least 50 volunteers to staff the two locations Sunday mornings. She has a pool of 70 who serve on a rotating basis. One cafe is a fast-service venue with coffee, pastries, bagels and muffins. The other offers made-to-order omelets, pancakes, doughnuts and a variety of breakfast sandwiches from McDonald’s, as well as gourmet coffees and fruit smoothies. The revamped cafes will open May 18. “It provides an inviting place for our members to fellowship and, of course, we think it makes it really great for young families,” Porter says. “We have high chairs and booster seats, so they can get ready and show up for breakfast.”
A PERSONAL TOUCH The church has about 7, 000 members. In such a large crowd, forming relationships and connecting with one another can be challenging, especially for newcomers. The cafe settings provide a place to sit and talk and get to know each other. It’s what the church’s name — Fellowship — is all about, Porter says.
Not every church has specialty coffee and made-to-order breakfasts. Some, like First Presbyterian Church in Huntsville, stick to the basics.
“We just have ‘good old coffee’ and tea, along with some sort of sweet bread or muffins, or whatever someone brought that day,” says the Rev. Georgia Senor. “It’s very casual... just visiting.”
The small church of about 50 offers a coffee / fellowship time between Sunday School and worship services. It lasts about 20 minutes.
“One of my parishioners described this time as ‘a family get-together before worship,’” Senor says. “Indeed, because we are Presbyterians, we emphasize the corporate nature of Sunday worship, we foster that kind of connectivity prior to the beginning of worship, shifting the mode from ‘just me and God’ to ‘us and God. ’”
Senor says the coffee time gives members a chance to catch up on each other’s lives, and gives visitors time to meet people before heading to services. Sometimes it’s difficult to end the chat sessions.
“Sometimes I have to get their attention... and say, ‘ Come on, now, let’s go do church !’” Senor says. “But the truth is they are already ‘ doing church’ by having fellowship.”