The New Tent-Makers
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"Well Tim," I said "I'm about to feature you and Scott in my writing. Perhaps you can become one of the role models." Maybe future seminarians (as well as seminaries of the future) will realize that bivocationalism should not be seen as a failure, but in fact can be a successful strategy and a legitimate way of pursuing one's calling.
Coffee Church
Scott Woller leads a church in the North Loop area of Minneapolis. Corner Coffee/Corner Church is actually two distinct legal entities sharing a single location—and the same vision. Monday through Saturday, Corner Coffee is, you guessed it, a coffee shop. Their product is coffee, although creating a sense of community is the underlying goal.
Given that a fair amount of this article was written in the coffee shop, I'm able to attest to the fact that Scott and his team are accomplishing this goal. Corner Coffee is a for-profit LLC that creates neighborhood jobs. While the coffee shop has never paid a salary for Scott or other church staff, 100 percent of the profits of the coffee shop go toward the church's operating budget. The church, as a legal entity, is the sole shareholder of the coffee shop. Scott is, in effect, the coffee shop's volunteer CEO.
Corner Coffee was conceived as a way to plant Corner Church in an urban setting. Being an Assemblies of God plant, members of that denomination would feel theologically quite at home at Corner Church, just so long as they don't mind the espresso machine hissing in the background. By having a fully-functioning, profitable business six days per week, the separately incorporated church has very low overhead for Sundays, and is able to meet in a comfortable, casual setting. (By the way, it took two years for Corner Church to be profitable. Scott hastens to add that a coffee shop is not a way to make "easy money.")
Being in a non-traditional environment is crucial for the work of Corner Church. The vast majority of the church's Sunday attendees are formerly churched individuals, many of whom have been scarred by past church experiences. Some of these negative experiences involve issues with the offering plate. So to grow and reach new attendees, Corner Church must keep a low overhead and strive to keep pressure around giving low, especially for newer attendees. In addition, Scott explains that being held in a coffee shop allows Corner Church to be an important part of the neighborhood. Scott feels meeting in a coffee shop "as church" sends that signal quite naturally.
Scott never wants to have a conversation about why the church doesn't pay taxes: Corner Coffee does! And he never wants the neighborhood to have a sense that the doors are closed or the parking lots are gated Monday through Saturday. And most of all, Scott doesn't want the "church community to let their faith become dormant during the week. We want the church facility to encourage people to live out their faith every single day."
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Displaying 1–5 of 9 comments
Dave Weidlich
Very helpful and encouraging article. I am a bi-vocational pastor of a church plant in CA North Bay Area - The Vine Church of Petaluma. I was intrigued by the bi-church model too - church on Sunday and for-profit business Monday through Sat. It's not new. Many churches added preschools to better use the buildings and reach out in new ways. Maybe the church/coffee shop is the next combo idea. I would add a book table or book shop too. Don't overlook the tremendous ministry of churches providing jobs, especially for those who have difficulty finding jobs. We want to be that kind of church. http://www.thevinepetaluma.org
Chris Kopka
Chris Kopka responding Chavoux. Caveat: I have not gone to seminary & I am not a church planter. That said, for the "tent maker" who still would appreciate some training & resourcing of some type, the good news is that church bodies, academic institutions and equipping minisries have at least some degree of readiness to support lay pastors, including tent makers. A church body example: Path 1, the church planting arm of the United Methodist church, has formed the "Lay Missionary Planting Network," which includes a training curriuculum for lay planters. (See www.path1.org/lmpn.) An academic example: The Seminary Consortium for Urban Pastoral Education (www.scupe.com) has created certificate programs as well as the non-accredited Congress on Urban Ministry. (See www.congressonurbanministry.org.) Equipping ministies example: Exponential is a veritable cornucopia of resources, and, on line, much of it is free. (See www.exponential.org.) There are certainly more examples, too!
Beady Blossom
My dad was a Bivocational in 1948. He was willing to sell his business and go full time as a pastor but God doubled his business income and the church was so small it really couldn't support a family full time. He took a salary of $100 per month which enabled the church to support more missionaries. It freed our family from critism which gave us the freedom to also be very involved with the congregation. My dad prepared 3 sermons and 1 Bible study per week, made time to spend with family and run a business with 8 employees. The pastors of today have it much easier since most only preach one sermon per week and have co-workers in charge of other programs.
Chavoux
Do you think theological training/seminary is needed for "tentmaking"? Are there any alternatives, especially for church planters/missionaries who are not called to be pastors?
Ron
Bi-vo Ministry also provides the minister with the freedom necessary to truly follow God versus being marginalized and placed in a position to have to pander to the people who pay his/her salary. It establishes credibility with others who also "work for a living". Finally, the pastor paying his way also frees the church up to do ministry, to meet needs w/in the body and outside in the community, and it has the potential to facilitate real and life changing/life giving work for the cause of Christ. It takes cash to make the wheels turn. It's too bad that so much of what is given in church is spent enabling pastors to maintain their lifestyles at the expense of the greater mission.
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