Church Versus State

About two decades ago, Lyle Schaller predicted that one of the great challenges for local congregations would be restrictions placed on the churches by governmental authorities, particularly local municipalities. My reaction at the time was that Schaller was overreacting to a few isolated examples, and that such a development was unlikely.

I was wrong. I see the reality of church versus state taking place on a regular basis.

My Awakening to Reality

I began serving as a consultant to local congregations in 1988. My assignments for the first few years were not out of the ordinary. Should we build a new facility? Is it time for our congregation to relocate? How do we have a better assimilation ministry? What type of staff should we add? How do we break out of the 200-attendance plateau?

But in the late 1990s, I began receiving calls of a different nature. Local congregations were being challenged or prohibited from moving forward by governmental authorities on a number of fronts. With increasing frequency, I was called to be an expert witness, to sit for a deposition, and to testify in court when churches and municipalities were challenging each other. To read more, click here.