On Sunday mornings, Clint Pehrson and his family drive from their home in Queen Anne to University Lutheran Church in the University District. On the way they pass three other Lutheran churches.
Why drive so far?
"There's a level of discourse here that [we]'d miss anywhere else," Pehrson said. He and his family come for the congregation's socially, culturally and politically progressive attitudes.
Many parishioners of the U-District's churches travel from beyond the neighborhood for similar reasons. The Rev. Tom Quigley and his wife live in Mukilteo, but attend University Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).
"[Parishioners] come either because they're attracted by the [social] mission (as with my wife and I) or they lived in the U-District," Quigley said.
Quigley and Pehrson are at the forefront of a movement that could result in dramatic changes for several U-District churches. The congregations are exploring two separate, yet related, proposals: first, moving in with each other into a shared facility, and second, worshipping together as the U-District Ecumenical Parish. The latter would integrate multiple denominations into a single parish. Congregations can join one without the joining the other.
Three congregations - University Christian, University Lutheran and University Temple (United Methodist Church) - have committed to forming an ecumenical parish, and at least three others are considering it.
Reaching 'critical mass'
The Stewardship Task Force is leading the effort to build a shared facility. It consists of members from eight neighborhood congregations: University Lutheran Church, University Temple United Methodist Church, University Christian Church, University Baptist Church (American Baptist), University Friends Meeting (Quakers), Christ Episcopal Church, University Congregational Church (United Church of Christ) and Third Church of Christ, Scientist. Participation on the task force does not require commitment to a shared facility.
Together, the congregations own an estimated $40 million worth of real estate. (This estimate includes Covenant House, home to the University of Washington campus ministry programs of several church bodies.)
In the near future, the task force will present each congregation with the "nitty-gritty" financial details of "a nine-figure development project," said Pehrson, chairperson of the task force.
"It's the traveling road show," he said. "We're at a point now where we cannot move forward without a buy-in from a critical mass of churches."
Three to four churches would be a critical mass, Pehrson explained. He expects to reach that by the end of 2006. While possible sites have been discussed, no decisions have been made.
Christ Episcopal and University Congregational are not expected to sell their respective properties.
Together, but still separate
Almost all of the U-District church bodies own their property outright. At the same time, building and property maintenance strain many congregations' respective budgets. Most of the facilities are at least 50 years old, have questions of seismic safety and are energy-inefficient.
Moving in together would allow the churches to share overhead costs, and a new structure would cost less to maintain.
Declining membership is a factor. The congregations have experienced a drop beginning in the 1950s and '60s, when the construction of Interstate 5 cut off Wallingford. However, they are still active church bodies. University Lutheran just recently opened Elizabeth Gregory Home, an eight-bed shelter for homeless women.
A shared facility would be a place for the community, as well as a place of worship. It would be "something that beats with the heart of Town Hall," said Pehrson, who is on Town Hall's board of directors.
The facility also would allow for consolidation of myriad social and human services administered by the U-District congregations, such as ROOTS emergency shelter, U-District Food Bank and Sanctuary Arts Center. Many of these services are administered jointly.
"A lot of social services have been started by the churches coming together and sharing resources," Quigley said. "So cooperation...is not a very new thing in the U-District."
Other details
An ecumenical campus ministry was established by the U-District's churches in 1969. Now, nearly four decades later, several congregations are moving toward the establishment of an ecumenical parish. A coordinating team is leading the effort; Quigley is one of University Chris-tian's representatives.
The participating churches would hold services together, while retaining their independent status. A congregation can join the ecumenical parish without moving into the shared facility and vice versa.
Local grass-roots cooperation between churches has increased, and "there has been a growing theological awareness that our beliefs aren't that different, national and worldwide," Quigley said. He was president of the Church Council of Greater Seattle until 2001 and has worked as an administrator for church councils in Louisville, Ky., and Dallas, Texas.
The major hurdle facing an ecumenical parish will be "getting people from three to four congregations to make decisions in the same time period," Quigley said.
Also, the final name is still in question. The working name, U-District Ecumenical Parish, was too vague and lackluster for many on the Coordinating Team.
Other faiths
Theological matters make joining an ecumenical parish unlikely for some congregations, such as the Roman Catholic parish, Blessed Sacrament, and Christ Episcopal.
But the coordinating team has raised the possibility of approaching non-Christian faiths in the area to participate in some form.
Congregations who are not committed to joining an ecumenical parish or a shared facility support closer interfaith ties. "We can be more effective working together," said the Rev. Stephen Garratt, rector at Christ Episcopal.
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