“I often wonder if religion does have a place in modern society,” mused Pastor Ron. “ I certainly believe that the church of our era has become irrelevant too many. I believe that the church has quit challenging people to live full lives and has become more interested in butts in pews.”

The Pastor continued: “Jesus was a radical Jewish rabbi who challenged followers to live in radically different ways. Although it may not increase Sunday morning attendance, as a Pastor I feel compelled to offer my congregation the challenge of radical discipleship. This requires a focus on issues of social justice that are often absent from the worship or mission of the church.”

According to the Pastor, the Church has made itself ‘irrelevant’ in the West. “The US Church and all churches in the West have sacrificed a compelling message and mission for some vague promise of 'heaven' in some equally nebulous 'afterlife.' People aren't attracted to that message.  They want meaning in the 'here and now.' As far of changing this situation I don't have an answer. I can only do what I think provides relevance and a dedication to mission.”

Have you ever heard of a church having an Instagram page? I haven’t before. Well, Wantagh Memorial Congregational Church has one and it’s got 60 followers. I’m willing to bet the church would be even more well-known if it uploaded pictures of its signs to its IG account. A good way to spread some smiles, don’t you think?

The church, founded in 1889, describes itself as a place of worship for believers coming from different Christian denominations. “The Wantagh Memorial Congregational Church is an open and affirming congregation of the United Church of Christ which renews and strengthens its commitment to advocate justice and equality for all people in all areas of society.”

While many of us think of the United States of America as a very religious country, the fact of the matter is, faith is declining in the US. According to The Guardian, Pew Research Center has shown that within the last decade there has been a 12 percent drop in people who identify themselves as Christians.

It’s mostly younger Americans who are moving away from the faith of their forefathers. Furthermore, in the last decade, there has been a 17 percent increase in people who say they’re atheist, agnostic, or even “nothing in particular.” Now, around a quarter of all Americans fall into this category.

Fewer people are going to church as well. Those who attend church at least once or twice each month has fallen by 7 percent in the same time period. Attendance has fallen so much that nowadays more Americans say they attend church a few times each year than each month. Obviously, the reasons for this are very complex, but Wantagh Memorial Congregational Church seems to have the right approach to at least draw attention to religious matters.