The End of an Era

We have decided to close the doors of our little church. It is a gut wrenching decision, but we have run out of money and people. Our building is a quaint little shingle and clapboard building built in 1910 or so. It has no insulation and just single paned windows. Even in mild winters the gas bill is over $100 a month and that is just for heating the church an hour each Sunday. The folks who come to our services are in no position to put much into the plate when it is placed on the altar. We have decided that whatever we have been spending in our efforts to keep the doors open could be better spent in one of the two Episcopal congregations within 20 miles of our small community. In 1910 it was necessary to have churches in each community because of travel time. Many people in the US spend more than 1/2 hour to get to church, so we will be in good company. We just returned from our Diocesan Convention where we gave the members of our convocation (Deanery)the news. They are small struggling churches as well as we, and they understood our decision and our pain. It ain't fun.