I’m Sara, and church is in my DNA.

My earliest memories are in the second pew on the right side of the sanctuary of a small church in Michigan where my dad pastored. Every time the doors were open, I was there. And nearly every significant milestone I’ve had since can be traced back to a local congregation — that’s even how I met my spouse! 

I care deeply about the church, which is why faithful closure is so important to me.  

I’m ordained in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), and have served as a Youth/Associate Minister and Senior Minister. My spouse Jonathan is an active duty Army chaplain and ACPE Certified Educator, so I have lived and served all over the country in the last few years, thanks to frequent Army moves. We have three tween/teen kids who have grown up in church just like I did, and I’m passionate about leaving the Church a healthy place for future generations. 

My story of church closure echoes many:

We were an older congregation with depleting funds. When I arrived, they had already made the difficult decision to sell the building, though even that was not enough to be financially sustainable. By tracking our accounts, I created a trajectory of where the congregation would be quarterly, with a date on the calendar for when funds would be depleted. We were already in that trajectory when COVID began. Our decisions were accelerated–but not caused–by the pandemic. 

Even in the midst of decline, not everything was going down. On any given Sunday, we had a dozen youth and kids in attendance, and it was a healthy and thriving congregation. That experience taught me that sometimes the most faithful option is to close congregations before it’s absolutely necessary. We were able to close from a place of health, sharing resources with ministries we cared about. 

Disciples of Christ congregations (unlike many other mainline denominations) have autonomy over their own property and structural decisions, with denominational staff offering guidance and support. I was fortunate to have several wonderful colleagues and friends who journeyed with me through this process, in addition to my judicatory leaders. 

And yet, it would have been incredibly helpful to have access to  a network of people who had actually done that work — who could offer suggestions and lessons learned, and who could journey through the beauty and the humor of closing as well. 

That’s why I’m so excited to be a part of Good Friday Collaborative — to offer that insight and collegiality to people involved with all facets of church closure. We recognize that every clergyperson, congregation, and circumstance is unique – and that we are called to function as One Body, helping each other as we are able.

Valued Resources:

The Art of Gathering* by Priya Parker: Parker’s work is not necessarily about congregations or even faith communities at all, but is very informative in conversations around groups and gatherings, particularly when reimagining what community could be. This was helpful both in the context of worship services/programming, and also in the “gathering” of discernment and business meetings.

How to Lead in Church Conflict: Healing Ungrieved Loss by K. Brynolf Lyon and Dan P. Moseley: Even if a closing conversation isn’t oriented around conflict, this book informed my pastoral care and leadership tremendously. There is always loss and grief in church closing, and by addressing that grief directly, we were able to move toward places of joy and resurrection together.

*The Good Friday Collaborative is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. Purchases support both the Good Friday Collaborative and local independent bookstores. Find more books on closure, merger, and congregational transformation at the Good Friday Collaborative’s Bookshop!