Will COVID-19 finally be the end of the church collection plate?
COVID-19 and the rise of a cashless society may make passing the collection plate, which once was crucial to church finances, less important. The collection plate is passed during an Easter Sunday service. Photo courtesy of the National Archives
April 22, 2021
(RNS) In the 1984 film “Mass Appeal,” Father Tim Farley, played by Jack Lemmon, gives a young, aspiring priest a lesson in church finances.
Give a good sermon, and church coffers will fill up. But a bad sermon comes with a cost.
”It is no accident that the collection comes after the sermon,” Farley warns. “It’s like a Nielsen rating.”
The Patterson Foundation Welcomes Lilly Family School of Philanthropy Scholar as Fellow
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Connor LaGrange has been selected by The Patterson Foundation in its third year of the Fellows Program SARASOTA, Fla. (PRWEB) March 10, 2021 The Patterson Foundation, in partnership with the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at IUPUI, has selected Connor LaGrange to become its next Fellow. This is the third year of The Patterson Foundation’s Fellows Program a year-long opportunity for aspiring philanthropists to gain experience and learn innovative philanthropic principles while contributing to initiatives strengthening people, organizations and communities.
The Fellows Program is an opportunity provided by The Patterson Foundation under its Advancing Philanthropic Leadership initiative. This initiative encompasses a series of creative efforts developed in collaboration with the Indiana
It’s a pandemic shift no one saw coming at the start of 2020.
Faith communities began the year expecting members to attend worship in person at least somewhat regularly. Perhaps they’d come to a potluck lunch now and then toting a covered dish.
Now, as churches have moved online, people can belong, officially or informally, without ever darkening a church door.
Some congregants enjoy the flexibility to watch services in their bathrobes. Others welcome the opportunity to find a church that feels like a good fit, regardless of geography.
For Hanne Peterson, virtual worship meant the opportunity to return to a beloved church after moving halfway around the world. She had been missing All Saints Episcopal Church in Bellevue, Washington, ever since she returned to her native country in 2016. Having felt disoriented and not warmly welcomed at churches in Denmark, she seized the chance to be active again at All Saints.
Itâs a pandemic shift no one saw coming at the start of 2020.
Faith communities began the year expecting members to attend worship in person at least somewhat regularly. Perhaps theyâd come to a potluck lunch now and then toting a covered dish.
Why We Wrote This
As churches have had to go online to hold services during the pandemic, they have learned something surprising: Practicing religion in cyberspace works. Many have attracted faraway followers and rejuvenated congregations.
Now, as churches have moved online, people can belong, officially or informally, without ever darkening a church door.
Some congregants enjoy the flexibility to watch services in their bathrobes. Others welcome the opportunity to find a church that feels like a good fit, regardless of geography.