Winston Churchill once said, “We shape our building, and then they shape us.” So true. One couple recently told the story of moving from one large city to another, but choosing to attend a smaller church rather than the larger one in their former home town. They noticed they struggled to connect and wondered why. They then realized it was a building issue as much as it was a people issue. Their former church had a dedicated, well designed building space outside the sanctuary for people to gather and get to know one another. Their new church had no such space and, as a result, it was too challenging to form friendships. One church had built with fellowship and welcoming guests in mind, the other hadn’t. As Churchill said, “We shape our buildings, and our buildings shape us.”
St. Giles has dedicated spaces for worship and prayer, for education and staff, for recreation and sharing meals. What we lack is space for the visitor . . . the guest in our midst. How important is this? Even the great cathedrals of the Middle Ages were built with large piazzas in which people could gather before and after worship. If you’ve visited a larger church recently you noticed the expanded space to gather outside the sanctuary. Even the Temple in Jerusalem was designed with a “court of the Gentiles” to welcome those new to the faith.
Our new St. Giles Welcome Center is about belonging. It’s about those who are long-time members of the church being able to gather regardless of the weather, but it’s also for those who are newer to St. Giles and seeking a church home or to learn about this Jesus they have heard about. We plan to have an Information Desk, coffee bar, and plenty of ADA compliant bathroom space. We plan for lots of room and easy access to both our sanctuary and our church nurseries. We are planning for heightened security, especially for our children.
We hope you’ll examine the building plan and watch the videos. We hope you’ll also join us in giving towards this new, important project. Is it about brick and mortar? No. It’s about people. After all, we shape our buildings and then our buildings shape us.
