In the movie Jesus Revolution, there’s a scene where
the pastor is remonstrated by a curmudgeonly old congregation member about how
the barefooted hippies are ruining the church carpet with their dirty feet. The
pastor (played by Kelsey Grammer) responds by washing the hippies’ feet as they
enter the church. The lesson, of course, is that people are more important than
carpet, and an unblemished heart is worth more than an unblemished floor.
Today, we have found another way to irritate the curmudgeons
among us and ruin the carpet simultaneously—through the addition of a coffee
bar at church. Actually, my pastor is careful to call it a coffee area
instead of a bar. Evidently, he doesn’t want to give the wrong impression. We
don’t want our coffee to be associated with that other social beverage.
And therein lies the appeal of coffee. Besides the fact that
it helps us stay awake during particularly boring sermons, coffee is a social
drink—if it is being used as such. While I have reservations about the place of
coffee in the sanctuary, coffee that stays in the foyer is the best church
innovation since the invention of the overhead projector.
If any of the crankier members of my particular congregation
were concerned about what coffee was going to do to the sanctuary carpet, they
must have either left the church or given up the fight long ago. My nephew, who
is a grown man, kicks his cup over at least once a month. He’s trying hard to
ruin the carpet, which must be some sort of super stain resistant variety as he
has yet to leave a mark on it. Part of his issue is that he’s forgetful, part
of it is that he has a toddler who is a whirlwind of chaos and destruction, but
mostly it’s that my nephew worships with his entire body. It’s hard to pay heed
to the cup of coffee at your feet when you’re on your knees with eyes closed
and arms upstretched.
Coffee in hand or resting on the floor is a surefire way to
discourage freedom in worship. I, myself, am far less prone to dancing when I
have my hands wrapped around a Styrofoam cup. Although coffee may be
problematic in the sanctuary, coffee in the foyer invites conversation. Of course,
in order to foster true communion over coffee, churches also need to provide both
comfortable seating and time to fellowship. When combined with such time and
space, coffee communicates to the congregation that there’s an expectation that
they will stop and talk before settling into their customary pews. We are
supposed to be part of each other’s lives. Coffee and conversation give us a place
to build those friendships.
The coffee in church trend began as part of the “seeker
sensitive” movement, a movement which still causes grumbling in some quarters
of the church. While much of the criticism of that movement is warranted, a
coffee bar (excuse me, I meant area) in the foyer is the best addition
to come from it, not because seekers are going to be won to Christ because they
like the coffee, but because it gives everyone—seeker and saintly curmudgeon
alike—something warm to wrap their hands around as they build relationships.
And those relationships—the communion of saints—is part of what church is all
about.
Discussion Questions:1. How does your church encourage people to build relationships?
2. How do you feel about churches serving coffee on Sunday mornings?
(Author's Note: if you're a guest who stumbled upon this post, feel free to either ignore or respond to the discussion questions as you see fit. The questions are for my students, who are being forced against their will to read and respond. No doubt, they now regret assigning me a 500-word essay about coffee).
