Holy Smokes! The Church is on Fire!
I first visited the cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris in the spring of 2004 as part of Rosedale Bible College’s European Study Tour, and have returned several times since then. It’s not the oldest (that would be St. Denis), tallest (Amiens), or most monumental (Chartres) of the medieval French Gothic churches, but due in large part to its location, it is the most visited and best known. The soaring spires, glowing glass, spidery structure, and grotesque gargoyles identify it as a church in the minds of many.
The May 2004 issue of the Beacon, published while I was on that tour, contains several articles about churches from different perspectives:
- a few of my thoughts on the relationship between
theology and church building design - a feature on my friends Dan and Lynelle Delagrange
and their adventure in church planting in Ecuador - a profile of Sunnyside Mennonite Church in Illinois, a
church I frequently attended during my university studies
Due to the imprecision of the English language, the word “church” can refer to a building, a group, or an event. When a church can have church in a church, it’s not easy to avoid mistakes about what is being referred to! The relative importance of the things that “church” can mean become confused.
Francis Chan points to a model of church that encompasses devoted worshipers, loving families, equipped disciple-makers, spirit-filled missionaries, and suffering sojourners—no buildings required, though we find them a convenient place to facilitate our activities. Even some of the things that have become a customary part of our gatherings can be secondary to our calling, though we find them comfortable. The people, working together with God to establish his kingdom, should be central.
Sometimes it takes a disruption in the routine to rekindle a focus on the priorities of what a church should be.
Notre-Dame caught fire on April 15, 2019. The roof was destroyed, the upper walls damaged, the interior marred by water and smoke, and the site contaminated by molten lead. Work began almost immediately on stabilizing the structure and preparing to rebuild. Architects and photoshop artists around the world submitted proposals for replacement of the roof with a stained-glass structure, a greenhouse, and even a swimming pool—all of which were wisely rejected in favor of a historically accurate reconstruction, which is expected to cost several billion euros and take up to twenty years to complete. Visitors today can look above the construction wall to see the cranes, the scaffolding, and the wooden forms supporting the flying buttresses. President Macron insists that the building will reopen in 2024, five years after the fire, even though much of the work will remain to be done.
Sometimes it takes a disruption in the routine to rekindle a focus on the priorities of what a church should be.
While there’s plenty of information available about Notre-Dame’s building, the story of the people associated with it is more obscure. The Masses that were performed there have moved to Église Saint-Germain l’Auxerrois, near the Louvre, but one is left to wonder how the congregation is doing.
Sunnyside Mennonite Church caught fire on March 26, 2021. Only a few things—two benches, a Bible, and a bell—could be salvaged; the rest of the building was a total loss and had to be completely removed. Construction of a new facility began almost immediately and they have already begun meeting there for worship. The congregation temporarily met in the gym of a local school, and other churches and local businesses have helped in various ways. Associate Pastor Luke Goss reports that the unity of the members has been strengthened as they work and worship together, and rediscover how much they need each other.
The Delagranges completed their term of service in Ecuador several years ago, and Comunidad de Fe has matured into a member of Iglesia Evangélica Menonita Ecuatoriana, a CMC international affiliate conference. The church has demonstrated practical nonresistance by paying for their property several times over as a result of fraud and subterfuge. As I’ve visited several times over the years, I’ve been impressed by their enthusiastic worship services and creative approaches to evangelism. They remain faithful despite recent challenges from the pandemic and economic uncertainty. Although their attempts at a next-generation church plant have not yet ignited, the vision for doing so survives.
Fire is used in Scripture to describe trials of faith, but also to represent the work of the Holy Spirit. Is your church building on fire? Call the fire department! Is your church on fire? Fan the flames!
