NEW PALESTINE — More time to linger over coffee or a conversation. More opportunities to connect with a small group or a ministry.
New Palestine United Methodist Church is hoping less will be more.
The church is embracing a new Sunday morning format that begins on Easter. Consolidating three services into two and shifting service times and program offerings is designed to make it easier for young families to make it to worship.
Church leaders also hope the changes will give members of the congregation more time to connect with each other and with classes and ministry opportunities.
The church previously had offered three Sunday morning services, each with a different style, ranging from traditional to contemporary.
“I think it’s a good thing,” Charles Merlau, lay leader emeritus, said of the changes. “We pulled the best out of all three services.”
The changes picked up steam in recent weeks, endorsed by the church’s worship committee, and were met with largely positive feedback at an informational meeting that drew about 80 in late February.
The retooling is expected to offer several benefits. For example, said the Rev. Mark Wesler, senior pastor, people who go to a contemporary service usually favor a later service time, and the new schedule puts that service later in the morning than before.
“This whole thing isn’t done with just our folks in mind,” he said.
Starting Sunday, there will be two services. The earlier one begins at 9:15 a.m. and will be known as “The Bridge … Where Tradition Remains Fresh.” It will include hymns and the musical doxology. When the church choir and handbell choir share music, they will play in this service, too; previously, they were not in the earliest of the three services.
“The traditionalists are not losing any aspects of the service,” Wesler said.
A 10:45 a.m. service, “The River … Where the Spirit Flows Among Us,” will feature a praise band. Maria Poor, another member of the team that worked on the changes, plans to attend that service.
“It will have a great house band, dress is super casual, and it will be a packed 45 minutes of worship,” she wrote in an email to the New Palestine Press.
Between the two services, from 10:15 to 10:45, there will time for coffee, doughnuts and fruit — as well as mingling with fellow worshipers — in the church’s Welcome Center.
“We’ll just be a little closer-knitted church, I think,” Merlau said.
“We have people who have been coming to church for years who don’t even know each other,” Wesler said. “It’s going to be a hub of activity.”
Poor said there will be information about getting more involved, monthly blood pressure checks and occasionally smoothies.
Other changes are coming to appeal to young families. Children at both worship times will begin in the service with their families; they’ll be dismissed to their classes after a brief children’s message by Wesler.
Adult class offerings are expanding, with a class coming for those under 40. A high school Bible study on Wednesday evenings begins in April.
Merlau said the switch to two services means there won’t be a need for as many volunteers to serve as ushers and in other roles during worship. “We’ve got more people that we can direct on other kinds of missions and church work,” he said.
Wesler thinks the changes will better meet needs, both for those coming for the first time and those already attending. Poor does, too.
“I am very excited about our plans for enhancing the experience new attenders will enjoy as well as people who have been coming for years…” she wrote. “It was hard to decide to make so many changes, but we are hoping it will appeal to people in our community, particularly young people and families, who are looking for a comfortable and welcoming experience.
“We decided that we needed to freshen up our look and our approach to reaching out to our community.”
