Choosing a church - Does it Matter?

Whenever a close friend or family chooses to join or leave a church, questions arise. What was wrong with their old church? What caused them to join the new? Does it really matter what church we go to as long as we love God in our hearts?

This article addresses the question of what are fundamental reasons for choosing or not choosing a church. While it considers most directly choosing a particular congregation within a broader church, many of the principles apply to choosing one's major denomination and faith as well.

For the Christian, criteria for choosing a place of worship should include the following:

1. Is the life of Christ visibly present in this congregation, not so much in what they say, but in what they do? Are they willing and able to serve each other and the surrounding community?
2. Is the Word of God proclaimed honestly, truthfully, regularly? Is there apparent love and reverence for Holy Scripture? This implies knowledge of the Bible in the first place of course.
3. Is the teaching of the church in accord with the history of the Church in the broadest sense? Is there reference to the earliest church fathers - those who learned from Jesus and his disciples directly and proclaimed the faith in the first centuries? Be cautious of a church that prefers modern "innovation" to truths that have withstood thousands of years of persecution. Is the unity of the Old and New Testaments proclaimed, the contribution of Judeo-Christian history and ethics recognized?
4. For Catholic churches we must add the criteria of sacramental vitality. The lifeblood of the church flows through the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, Confession, Eucharist, Marriage, Holy Orders... Through these vessels the essence of the Holy Spirit is conveyed visibly and effectually from generation to generation until Jesus returns to the Earth to claim his own.

What should NOT be primary criteria for choosing a church?

1. Are all the current members of the congregation perfect saints? (No church presently in existence meets this criteria).
2. Which preacher is the most charismatic and dynamic? The prior point refers to pastors/priests as well. They are imperfect humans like the rest of us. They have good and bad days, and may err at times. Many people have left a sound church/congregation over a personal disagreement with the pastor, and this is a mistake.
3. Which is the prettiest church in town?
4. How cool is the music?

This second list is not to suggest that places of worship and the liturgy practiced there should not reflect the glory of the creator of the universe. It should be that as much as we are capable of making it.

Aesthetics no doubt do play a major role in attracting people to a church initially, but they will not keep them there. No one will die for the color of paint on the church walls, or the style of music played on Sunday (although they may be willing to bicker over it quite a bit over coffee or in a church council meeting).

What they will die for is the truths proclaimed by that church. That Jesus Christ is fully divine and yet fully human, one god, but also a blessed trinity.

When there is division in a church or community, the root cause is almost always emotional and the vice of pride inevitably rears its ugly head. One person insists something must be one way. Another insists the opposite. Neither can find it in their hearts to listen to the other and understand their point of view enough to compromise. We don't have to look any further then our own experience, and the unfortunate myriad of divergent Christian denominations in existence today to know that this is true.

This brings us back around to the question we began with. Does it really matter what church we go to as long as we love God in our hearts?

The answer is, it certainly matters what faith you proclaim and theology you believe to be true. It should matter so much that you would be willing to die for it if someone tried to deny you that right to practice it, as it did for martyrs from the time of Daniel to those persecuted for the faith in various countries of the world today.

It also matters that you worship in a specific local congregation, and which one it is. Private worship is necessary, but not sufficient. Same goes for communal worship. God created us for a relationship with him, but for relationships with our fellow man as well, and we cannot live in balance unless we are able to nurture and connect both dimensions.

If you are blessed to live in an area where there are multiple churches in your chosen faith, secondary issues of aesthetics can be used to decide between them. If there are no churches in your area that meet the primary criteria, it is worth traveling to find one that does.

Having chosen a community, do not leave it simply because the lectors or music ministry is having an off season. Ask yourself, are you committing as much of your personal talents to the community and liturgy as you could be to make it all it can and should be. A community is only as dynamic and vibrant as its' members, and their willingness to share their unique gifts.

Keep "first things first" and "secondary things second" and you are sure to find a place of worship that benefits you spiritually.

May God bless you on your spiritual journey, and may all roads lead us to the house of our Father in Heaven.