Adam from pomomusings brought my attention to the following website from through this post.
Letters from Leavers was created by Tim Bowers and Jason Loftis. The site was launched in February 2007. From the website:
Have you ever left a Christian Church Community?
If you have moved on from church, we want to hear from you. Speak up and express your thoughts and feelings. Post a letter to this blog about your church experience and why you left. Write your letter with a specific church in mind or address it to the Church as a whole. It’s up to you.
We created this website to be a safe space for those who have left to freely tell their stories. Please tell us yours.
There are specific guidelines for letter writers, comment writers, and church members. I find these guidelines to be very helpful to guide a helpful conversation, particularly around this subject.
At Resurrection, there have recently been efforts to reconnect with people who have fallen out of regular worship attendance. This has been reasonable successful in both reconnecting people to the community and discovering family or pastoral care issues that may need to be addressed. This is dependent on current contact information for the individual.
- What are your thoughts about the concept of Letters from Leavers?
- Are you part of a community that intentionally reaches out to individuals who once were regular participants and have moved away from being a part of the community? If so, how is this outreach made?
Rev. Andrew Conard 