I’m getting pretty geeked out about my research for my doctorate. I’m looking at the 30 largest metro areas in the U.S., pulling demographic reports, and in each city figuring out where churches are being planted over the past 3-5 years. I’m looking at numerous denominations and church planting networks to figure out where they’re planting churches. So far the results have been more than sobering.
I am looking at 3 locations for church plants. (1) in metro areas. For example, all of Chicago and it’s suburbs (Chicagoland). (2) within the city limits, i.e. Chicago proper. (3) in a 2-3 mile radius in the downtown core of each city.
Church planting networks and denominations who talk about how they value the city aren’t planting in the city compared to the suburbs. One denomination even gathered church planting leaders who live and work in major cities in the U.S. to talk about planting in the city. One of the model cities where this denomination works over the past 3-5 years has planted 34 churches. But 29 out of the 34 were in the suburbs (85%). Over half of this city’s high-tech industry (which is very influential) is located in the downtown core which has around 140,000 people living in a 2 mile radius yet I couldn’t find any church plants.
Another example is a church planting network known for their passion for the city. In my focus cities (again, the top 30 largest in the U.S.) 69% of their church plants were in the suburbs. On the flip side in numerous cities they were overwhelmingly located in the heart of the city.
Are there holes in this? Yes. Because if you look at a whole metro area (MSA) most often the city proper isn’t that large. For example, Denver has 588,000 in the city proper but the area has about 2.4 million. Atlanta has 519,000 people but the metro area has 5.2 million. However, there are other cities like Philly, NYC, Chicago, and Phoenix with large urban populations.
What I’m trying to figure out ultimately is how we can plant more churches in our cities. As gentrification picks up pace and the once hollowed-out city centers are now vibrant places to live, work, and play the church has become a no-show in many cities.
February 12, 2009 at 7:18 am |
Sean,
So how do we who are church planting in the suburbs encourage our people who work in the city to be indigenous church planters with their coworkers? Any type of training for them or strategies and materials that might work for them in a more urban setting? It just seems to me that so many who live in the suburbs actually spend most of their waking hours in the city limits, not in the suburbs. We have to encourage our people to think proactively and intentionally about the kingdom where they are, not just where they hang their hat at the end of the day.
Vicky
February 12, 2009 at 9:00 am |
What about workplace churches? A church plant in a given building, industry, hospital, etc. They would have the advantage of cultural homogeneity, identifiable community whose connection is in the same “third space”. Work is our most frequented “third space”.
February 17, 2009 at 5:08 pm |
Good point Vicki. I still think at the end of the day we need to be planting churches where we’re immersed in the community. That could be simple churches in the workplace indeed. But at the same time how could we recover a “theology of place” where we claim an area for Christ and regardless if the whole demographic changes we’re still invested.
February 17, 2009 at 5:09 pm |
Yes Renee. I’d like to see that as well. I guess it all depends on the type of work and so on because in many places co-workers may be on different schedule and are like passing ships in the night.