ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1995, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, December 3, 1995 TAG: 9512050009
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: the back pew
SOURCE: CODY LOWE
This time of year, lots of churches are going out of their way to get people through the doors.
There are special music programs, pageants, children's activities, decorations, a little extra effort to come up with creative sermon topics.
All this special effort makes you wonder why some churches do a better job than others of attracting visitors - and new members - week after week.
There seem to be as many theories on successful membership recruitment - what we used to call evangelizing - as there are churches.
One fad in some places is to avoid a denominational name for a church on the sign in the front yard. It's popular just to name a congregation something like ``Bethel Church'' or ``Bethel Community Church,'' even if it is affiliated with a denomination.
The disadvantage is that people looking for a particular kind of church might not think they have enough information to risk a visit. They may even wonder if the folks inside are ``really'' Christians.
The idea is that if you are turned off by the label ``Baptist'' or ``Lutheran'' or ``Pentecostal'' you might come in and give the place a chance before you realize what denomination you've signed up for. If you try it, you might like it.
There are other places where labels are avoided because the members of the congregation are ashamed of their denomination for one reason or another. Maybe there's been a lot of publicity on a certain controversial dogma or there has been so much in-fighting that members fear no one would want to get involved.
Some other churches seem to want to say too much on the sign out front.
A church I pass every day says on its sign that it is ``fundamental, historical, exegetical, categorical, expository.''
The advantage to such a sign is that it details what anyone coming into the church for services ought to expect - provided, of course, that the visitor understands what all those words mean.
Perhaps every Christian ought to be a serious student of Scripture and know that ``exegetical'' comes from ``exegesis,'' which has to do with studying and interpreting specific passages in depth. Or that ``expository'' means to explain. Or that ``categorical'' means without conditions or exceptions.
But many passing by won't understand what those terms mean in Christian theology and may be intimidated by them.
Still other churches are good at using special events to draw in people who might not otherwise come to church.
This week, thousands of people will attend one of the performances of the annual Christmas pageant at Roanoke's First Baptist Church on Third Street. It is a lavish, spectacular production with a far-reaching reputation for the quality of the drama and the music. A significant portion - perhaps even the majority - of those who attend will not be members of First Baptist Church.
That's just what pageant director Doyal Spence hopes for each year - that some of the audience will be people who otherwise wouldn't step into a church. Maybe they will be attracted by the message and the music and the place. He hopes they then will return to visit another worship service.
But while his pageant may attract the throngs, Spence knows it takes something else to keep those visitors coming back. First Baptist has a reputation for fine preaching, excellent music, an abundance of programs for all ages.
Yet even all of that won't be enough to keep new members. They must feel welcomed. They must feel at home. They must feel they are among family. And that's the job of the whole congregation - a job Spence appreciates the importance of.
That, of course, is the key no matter what method brings the visitors inside. No new name or program or concert will make a difference unless the people do.
LENGTH: Medium: 72 linesby CNB