We're on the road again, in Berkeley to visit family, so off we went to All Soul's church in North Berkeley. I've blogged before about our trips to this parish. It's tucked amidst the pleasant homes and small apartments at the base of the Berkeley hills just north of the UC Berkeley campus. This is one vibrant community, with lots of young families as well as many older people; the church was absolutely packed on this average Sunday with tons of kids. Our regular venue, St Paul's Cathedral in San Diego, is also full, but as a downtown church in an urban district, its members have a different demographic --not many young families live in downtown San Diego--and of course its style of worship appeals to us in a different way. But the full seats at St Paul's and All Souls' makes it clear that predictions of a dying church are greatly exaggerated.
Of course there is one demographic missing from most churches, whether Episcopal or not, and that's the late teens/young adults. I've decided that whether by design or accident, young adults give themselves a rumspringa with regard to faith matters. It's one of the reasons I feel very strongly that kids should be raised in a religious tradition; I think having that structure as a familiar is important, so that they have something to rebel against, as well as something to which they can return. Kids without familiarity are much more at risk, I've always thought, and much more vulnerable to bad choices and bad companions.
True, I'm not sure what gives All Souls such vibrancy. We've been in very nice, friendly local parishes elsewhere that are clearly struggling to fill the pews. All Souls is in a very established community and has been there for over 100 years, but there's nothing staid or complacent there. If we lived in Berkeley, we'd be happy to be part of it. Still, I must admit that I miss the incense and the English polyphony of the Cathedral service to which we will return next week.
5 comments:
Of course there is one demographic missing from most churches, whether Episcopal or not, and that's the late teens/young adults.
Of course, if you see a vibrant Episcopal campus ministry, you may see a good bunch of 'em there (that's where I was at that age!).
Good point. All Souls is not the campus ministry (that's St Marks) which may different. i base this in part on what OUR kids are doing. Which is not church.
All Souls is not the campus ministry (that's St Marks) which may different.
...which, as I've mentioned previously, is where my mom and dad met ;-) (although in their late 20s/early 30s, respectively).
Does SDState not have an ECM, or is "The Boy" just not interested? [Oop, he still considers himself RC, right? I have to say---when *I* in college, a zillion years ago, the Newman House (RC CampMin) at UC Davis was outstanding, and I hung out a lot w/ them, too. But that was the early 80s, and the RCC was still in that halcyon Post-V2 era... *Le Sigh*]
The Boy (still RC) is just not that interested, right now. Neither is his sister. (Given that their mother has a very active faith life, it's not for want of example). Campus Newman centers are still good places, for those so inclined, though we've heard that some are getting, er, disciplined for their liberal views.
Well there is also the humanists though only a few universities have humanist chaplains.
The Catholics and the Evangelicals seem to have the numbers at Stanford. Mainline protestant are much less prominent (though the local liberal university Presbyterian minister is quite outspoken on peace issues).
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