In our churches, Jesus takes precedence

It’s sad to think of a church in ruins.

Land and Sea, the entertaining CBC television documentary show that chronicles the joys and struggles of Atlantic Canadians, recently had an interesting feature on churches in the region that have fallen into disrepair.

Many of these churches from all denominations are too expensive for dwindling congregations to maintain. The program documented initiatives to raise money to keep the churches going and told of disappointing conclusions when churches were de-registered and sometimes dismantled. Other churches in the region were sold to private bidders or taken on by community groups and repurposed.

A popular Nova Scotia author who wrote and directed the riveting documentary talked about it one morning on CBC Radio. The author explained that as a youngster, she was a regular church-goer but, like many others, abandoned the pews in adult life. The discussion turned to the importance of churches as a galvanizing force for residents and a meeting place for neighbours. No other community institution brought people together as the church did.