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paradox3

paradox3

Peanuts Fan
Pronouns
She/Her/Her
Anyone hearing anything about this new initiative of the United Church?

It is a call to prayer and conversation about our future.
 
Oh noes, here we go again.

It needs a better slogan. I propose "Chasing the Spirit with a Fish"
 
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Great. So be "Bold". Be "Daring". What does that mean to the United Church? Because I doubt it will result in either of those things. I find it difficult to believe it will even be "Deep".

Please, prove me wrong.
 
chansen said:
I propose "Chasing the Spirit with a Fish"
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"Fishing for Spirit" would be more succinct.
paradox3 said:
The full tagline:

Deep spirituality
Bold discipleship
Daring Justice
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Too bad "Challenge the Mind, Nourish the Spirit, Act in the World" is already taken by the UUs here in London because it covers similar terrain but is more "active" in that it uses actual sentences with imperative verbs rather than just nouns with descriptors.
 
chansen said:
I'll try to not be negative, but I feel like we've been here before.
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We definitely have. We have seen it at the national level and I have personally participated in many local initiatives. Many of our members here will likely say the same.
 
It is very like healthcare in Ontario. Every new government launches some great initiative that is supposed to revive, revamp and improve the system but by the time the next government comes into power, all the same problems are there. That's speaking from my perspective of 26+ years with a healthcare provider in Ontario.
 
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I just just listened to half the fecking thing, and then I skipped to the end, and do tell me rita if there is anything in there beyond:

The United Church of Canada got it wrong because they tried to emphasize social justice over religious control/obedience.
 
That seems to be the message, interspersed between dozens of bad AI images.

To be a growing church, you need to focus on the unbelievable and stop caring. They may not even be wrong about that.
 
paradox3 said:
We definitely have. We have seen it at the national level and I have personally participated in many local initiatives. Many of our members here will likely say the same.
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Such as The WonderCafe marketing campaign?

Long time members of WC/2 might know all this but I did not.

Here is a summary of what I found:
The aim was to project the UCC as open-minded, diverse, and welcoming, spark curiosity, foster dialogue, and ultimately encourage visits or joins to local congregations.

For the original study, see Haskell's paper on Academia.edu.

Key findings:
  • The campaign sparked some curiosity and positive perceptions of the UCC as progressive/open.
  • However, it often failed to inspire action (e.g., attending a service).
  • Participants expressed frustration with perceived "vagueness" or reluctance to state clear opinions on theological/social issues.
  • Overall, it highlighted limitations of religiously oriented marketing — especially internet-based — in persuasively promoting denominational affiliation amid decline.
  • Haskell concluded the efficacy was limited, with the provocative, question-posing style not strongly motivating deeper engagement.
Broader Context and Outcomes:
  • The major ad components wound down by fall 2009, and the original WonderCafe.ca forum eventually closed (though an independent community, Wondercafe2.ca, formed from active participants and continues as a discussion space welcoming diverse backgrounds).
  • Contemporary commentary (e.g., Catholic Register in 2010) criticized the edgy tone as pushing boundaries too far and suggested simpler promotion of the UCC's good works would have been more effective and cheaper.
  • Membership decline continued unabated post-campaign: The UCC lost significant numbers through the 2010s and beyond, with critics (including op-eds referencing Haskell's work) pointing to WonderCafe as an example of misguided "adaptation" strategies that emphasized openness over doctrinal clarity — failing to stem the tide.
Some Positive Notes:

The campaign was described as "bold" and "daring" by UCC insiders and supporters at the time. It created spaces for genuine online discussion (including international participants), engaged some non-churchgoers in faith conversations, and aligned with the UCC's identity of diversity and exploration. It wasn't a total non-event — it generated buzz and some ongoing community — but it did not translate into measurable growth or reversal of decline.

In summary, while innovative for its era, WonderCafe did not succeed as a recruitment or revitalization tool. It remains a frequently cited case study in discussions of why progressive marketing approaches struggled in mainline Protestant contexts facing secularization.
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The UCC has since shifted focus to strategies like migrant/new faith communities and the Toward 2035 vision for renewal.
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O' "ffs" is an out of "offing" directive ... a regular put off that mortals find roughly impressive ... as it incarnates (appearing as it isn't) so we can't observe ... just to raise curiosity about the strangeness of the other side?

As a result or consequence there will always be someone out there ... I've experienced it even if some declare there is no OBI ... off'd bodies ... nothing remaining but the delicate parts ... gentile now ... especially if reading intuit!
 
BetteTheRed said:
I just just listened to half the fecking thing, and then I skipped to the end, and do tell me rita if there is anything in there beyond:

The United Church of Canada got it wrong because they tried to emphasize social justice over religious control/obedience.
Click to expand...
I listened to the whole thing and found it very repetitive. Was the data presented inconsistently?

For a long time, the popular narrative had mainstream denominations declining while evangelical churches continued to grow. When did this start to shift?

Now it seems evangelical denominations are losing members too but not as rapidly as we are.
 
Rita’s just being a lil btch.

(Yeah I know I’m going to get in trouble for that but it’s true. In urban vernacular it’s non gender specific. It feels better to say - like the f bomb. Explaining it kinda defeats the purpose.)

Rita stop being a lil bych

Your relative dedicated his life to his mission with UCCan, and was an intelligent, good man. You’re shallow and petulant and all you want to do is find ways to irritate people.

I suspect trouble for my comment, but will the mods do something about WhyCzar?
 
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