ROCKFORD (WREX) -
Many of our grandparents spent every Sunday morning at church. Over the years, the number of loyal churchgoers started dwindling.
That's the case for First Presbyterian Church of Rockford. In the 1950s, about 500 people of all ages came to worship on Sundays. That was during the church's heyday. Now, only about 60 people show up for worship, most of them retirees.
The church no longer needs or can afford the 51,000 square foot building at 406 N Main St. so it went up for sale in January. The congregation looks to merge with another church."We're downsizing but we're not going away," says Rev. Beth Wagner.
Meanwhile, another Rockford church is going in the opposite direction. This past weekend, Rockford First added a second service. "We are preparing for a lot more people to come here on Sundays," says Pastor Jeremy DeWeert.
The non-denominational church brings upwards of 2,000 people together and grew 20% since last year. "It's not necessarily the church they grew up in or the church of their childhood, it's something they feel they could really fit in." The church uses bright lights, modern music and new technology to connect with parishioners." Communication and the methodology should always change. The theology, though, and the bible should never change."
So why is Rockford First seeing more people at worship on Sundays and First Presbyterian is seeing fewer people? "I think that we have to look at church history and realize that we are in a birthing process. That the church as a whole is in a transitional piece. That transition could last 50, 100 years," says Rev. Ken Storck of Gloria Dei Lutheran Church of Rockford.
"I think that the crisis is that we are competing in a performance mode instead of getting back to the basics of the word of God and challenging people to do what the Lord says," says Rev. Dr. Kerry Newburn of Bethel Baptist Church of Rockford.
Several local clergy members say mainline churches need to evolve to attract younger generations."I think we are working with a paradigm from the '50s and '60s that no longer seems to work," says Rev. Storck.
Pastor Michael Simmons of Spring Creek United Church of Christ believes there's a need to let go of some of what's familiar and embrace something new. "The music, the form of worship, I think has to speak to new generations. It has to be done in a way that really connects to where young people are. That's been a real challenge for the mainline churches," he says.
Rev. Wagner started asking the question, "Is this just something we do because we do it, or do we do it because there's a reason behind doing it?" Now, she only offers communion on special occasions.
Some local clergy members from Presbyterian, Episcopalian, Lutheran and United Church of Christ denominations expect mainline churches to make changes and a comeback.
"I think the church is going to emerge into smaller groups, cell groups and that building will become less relevant," says Rev. Storck.
"We will be sharing spiritual groups where we come together and study the bible or talk about our spiritual journeys, but denominations as we have seen them in the past may be less and less important in the future." Rector Dr. Joyce Beaulieu of Holy Trinity Episcopal Church.
"I just know that there are a lot of people in this City of Rockford who want and need to be a part of a faith community and I hope that they will," says Pastor Simmons.
