In 1903, President Theodore Roosevelt signed a bill of Congress for the creation of a new railway station in Washington D.C. just blocks from the Capitol. It simply stated, "A bill of Congress to create a Union Station—and for other purposes." A century later those other purposes include the purposes of God. Today, Union Station serves as the home of National Community Church, one of the fastest growing churches in the city.
The story of National Community Church (NCC) began twelve years ago when an optimistic pastor named Mark Batterson moved his family to Washington D.C. from Chicago to start a church. His plan was conventional: begin with a small group, then meet in a rented public school, and finally buy or build a permanent church facility. But Batterson's plans were dashed when the public school his small church of thirty-five was meeting in was closed for fire code violations.
Frustrated and uncertain about the future, Batterson was walking through the shopping mall at Union Station when he had an idea. He found the manager of the movie theater and asked for permission to conduct a church service there on Sunday morning. The manager agreed. Suddenly, Batterson found himself leading a church located at the center of the most visited destination on Capitol Hill.
After experiencing rapid growth NCC changed its strategy. Batterson no longer wanted a permanent church facility. Instead he saw the benefits of being in the middle of the marketplace. Today, NCC meets in four theaters located at Metro stops throughout D.C., and in 2006 the church opened its first permanent facility—a coffee shop. Ebenezer's, also located on "The Hill," is a popular, award-winning coffee shop that was previously the location of a crack house.
Apart from its unorthodox facilities, National Community Church also has a unique membership. Nearly 70 percent of the church is single twenty-somethings, most of whom are government staffers working for Congress or the Administration. Some politicians have also made NCC their church home, including an attorney general and a former presidential candidate.
We met with Mark Batterson in his office, located above Ebenezer's, to talk about leading a church in the shadow of the Capitol.
You've led churches in other cities. What's different about pastoring in Washington, D.C.?
Being four blocks from the Capitol, compared to being somewhere else in the country, means that everything is intensified. You can't avoid politics. It's just not possible. The people I'm talking with everyday are working on political issues during the week. They're the ones drafting legislation one way or the other.
Were you aware of the political dynamics when you decided to plant a church here?
It was actually appealing to me. I wanted to influence influencers. What's unique about Washington is that no one's from here. Almost everybody came here to change the world, to make a difference. By pastoring a church in D.C. I felt I could be around people that really had a drive and a vision to make a difference in the world. Even something like our decision to open this coffeehouse tapped into that. A lot of people in our congregation really wanted us to serve only fair trade coffee. But we had some on the other side of the aisle saying fair trade was a sham.
How did you handle that decision?
Fair trade coffee would cost more, but it was a way of knowing whoever was harvesting those beans wasn't being taken advantage of. So we decided to err on the side of caution. We went with the fair trade coffee. But that was an example of what Abraham Lincoln said—you can't please all of the people all of the time. So it's a dance. That's what leading a church in D.C. feels like. It feels like a dance.
The Church seems to be playing a larger role in politics today. Did politics play a role when you started NCC?
We live in a culture where Christianity has been affiliated with one party or the other at different times. The pendulum swings, but recently it would be fair to say that in most quarters of our country it's swung more to the Republican side of the spectrum. But after moving to Washington, I started meeting God-fearing, Christ-loving people who are on both sides of the aisle. They were all very different politically, and I had to find a way to fit with all of them.
Part of my driving desire as a pastor is to remove every obstacle except the cross that would keep people from coming to faith in Christ. That means we don't want to affiliate with a party. We don't want to affiliate with a candidate. But we also don't want to avoid important spiritual issues simply because some people consider them political.
Homosexuality is a good example. It's a huge political issue, but it's also a spiritual issue. So I'm certainly not afraid to talk about it. I'd rather be biblically correct than politically correct. But there is a way to do it without igniting a political debate. That's why I try to focus on the positive message rather than the negative. That means celebrating sex as a gift from God intended for a husband and wife in the context of marriage.
By not being politically affiliated, has NCC been able to draw people from across the political divide?
From day one we've been diverse, and not just politically. At our Union Station location, we'll have a hundred homeless friends come through our weekend services, and we'll also have members of Congress. I like being a part of a church that has both. And we've found that even people affiliated with a political party love being part of something that is trans-political or cross-political.
So people are really finding their unity in Christ rather than politics.
Right. And that's a biblical thing. Galatians 3:28: "There's neither slave nor free, Jew nor Greek, male nor female." What about Republican and Democrat? There's something about the church that unites people in a way nothing else can. The church is a place where we ought to celebrate diversity as a reflection of the kaleidoscopic personality of God. Too often it's not, but when it is it's a beautiful thing because it unites people that would otherwise be divided. And so I think there is something refreshing for people when they realize they can leave their political affiliation at the door.
That is what motivated us to be apolitical when we started NCC. I saw too many churches using the pulpit as a political platform to talk about public policy issues. I felt like our people eat and breathe politics five days a week. They didn't need more in church. They needed to focus on the spiritual dimension that will inform their political positions. So we try to focus on their relationship with Christ and trust that out of that they'll be formed and revitalized to do their political work during the week.
When someone new arrives at National Community Church, how do you encourage them to leave their politics at the door?
Loud silence. In a city that's always talking about politics, it's noticeable when we don't talk about it. We want church to be a safe place to hear a dangerous message, and it's not a political message. It's the message of the cross. We're very intentional about avoiding political stuff or anything that will distract from our core message. So, we're screening our bulletin, we're analyzing what we say up front. We keep it pretty simple. And I think that's what's really protected us from being distracted by the politics around us.
You want to focus on the gospel and avoid politics, but is that possible when the gospel has political implications?
I agree, the gospel does have political implications, but what was Jesus' intent? Was his intent for his followers to pass government laws and policies to create programs like welfare, education, and healthcare? Or was his intent for the church to take ownership of these issues and care for people? The early church didn't focus on getting Rome to pass laws to alleviate problems. They saw the church as the solution to the world's brokenness. Sometimes I feel like our focus on politics is a copout. We need to focus on how the church can be the solution to the problems around us and not just look to the government to solve everything. Government has an important role, but I think it's gotten out of proportion for many Christians.
What does that mean for the people in your church who work in the government?
I believe with every fiber of my being that the people in our church working in the political arena are just as called as I am. Strategically speaking, we need a generation that feels called into those culture-shaping occupations. We absolutely need believers in those capacities who don't just have the right values but also the power to leverage those values in a way that influences society. From Joseph to Daniel to Moses—God has given spiritual leaders a platform of political power to accomplish his purposes.
How do you "influence influencers" but not talk about the political issues they have the power to influence?
I think we influence by teaching people how to think critically and biblically. I may never tell them in church how to think about the war in Iraq or how to think about the environment, but I want to impart the values that will impact their thinking on those issues. We're going to trust that when they are in decision-making roles they're going to make really good decisions that flow out of being united with Christ. Ultimately, we're trying to shape people's souls, and priorities, and values. And then we trust them to live it out.
Has the presence of political leaders in the congregation ever caused a problem?
I'll tell you what. There was a time when a member of the President's cabinet was attending—he was in the middle of a political storm. I wouldn't say he was extremely popular. I knew that kind of affiliation could really hurt us. But you stick up for people that you believe in. That has always guided me when dealing with controversial political leaders in the church. I'm going to be loyal to the people even if they make a mistake. Even if I don't agree with them politically, I'm going to be loyal to them.
Do you see politicians differently now that you're responsible to pastor them?
I think there's a very negative perception of politicians outside the Beltway. Much of it is justified. But in their defense, a lot of the people that I pastor, even ones I may not see eye to eye with politically, I still respect tremendously.
Seeing behind the scenes humanized Washington, D.C. for me. Sitting in on Bible studies in a senator's office, speaking to members of Congress or their staffers about the Bible, humanizes politicians. I've come to appreciate them as normal people who just happen to work in a highly charged political arena with a ton of insecurity, and infighting, and posturing. It is extremely hard to be a genuine Christ follower in that environment.
How are you helping them live out their faith in such a hostile environment?
Small groups are one really important part. We have 83 small groups right now and some of those groups meet right on the Hill. We have other people working and meeting at the White House. Those groups are the way we are helping people follow Christ 24/7 and helping people connect relationally. This is a city where if you get in with the wrong circle of friends it's easy to fall away from Christ.
Do these groups also cross party lines?
Yeah. I remember one guy who was looking for a job on the Hill working for a Republican. His small group included Republicans and Democrats. They were all fasting together and praying for him. The Lord opened up some amazing doors that allowed him to get his first job on the Hill. People are helping each other and loving each other regardless of their politics.
How do the elections impact your church differently than other churches?
In the country at large, someone wins and someone loses and that's it. The next day you wake up and life goes on. But for a lot of our people, their jobs are on the line. If the person they work for loses, they're out of a job. And every four years when the administration changes, we lose a lot of people from the church. They get ushered out and leave D.C. And a lot of new people are ushered in with the new administration. Some of them will land at NCC.
How are the young people at NCC motivated to live out their faith beyond the political realm?
The twenty-somethings are incredibly energized by social justice issues. I think the social implications of the gospel have been so deemphasized and neglected that the church is now, in a healthy way, swinging back. Of course some people will swing back into a social gospel that is all social and no gospel. But we should be motivated to care for the poor and reach out to them the way Christ has commanded us.
Last year we hosted a "Week of Justice" where we invited different people each night to discuss different topics—everything from AIDS, to poverty, the environment, and human trafficking. These are the ideas that energize our younger congregation.
Are you finding Democrats and Republicans in the church united around these causes?
No, there's not absolute unity. They don't see eye to eye on every issue. But we really emphasize Rupertus Meldenius' statement: in essentials unity; in nonessentials liberty; in all things charity. That needs to frame the way we think and the way we treat each other. We're all going to have nonessentials that we disagree on, so we need to agree to disagree. There are too many churches focusing entirely on peripheral issues. They become one issue churches. I don't want that to happen to NCC. I want us to always make it about the person of Jesus.
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