Church Branding - eternal, worldly & local

The Short Story: heard a great sermon this weekend.  Rev. Chris Chase from Good Samaritan Episcopal Church in San Diego taught on Church Branding.  His lesson

• In Revelation we learn that there will be those who will be marked/sealed as belonging to God -eternal.
• Jesus teaches us to "love one another" as a sign to the - world.
• The local church needs to identify itself uniquely in it's community - local - and Good Sam is in that process.

The Longer Story: This past weekend I traveled to San Diego to lead a branding discovery session with church leaders from Good Samaritan Episcopal Church - or "Good Sam" as they are know to friends and family.  Good Sam is a beautiful place filled with people who are easy to be around. They describe the worship service as a "lighter and relaxed interpretation and presentation of the Episcopal tradition."  It was that. Liturgy, robes, communion and an altar girl wearing orange canvas shoes. They are warm and welcoming bunch and they quietly pour themselves into the lives of each other andhurting people - locally and beyond.  Over and over they described their experience at Good Sam as one of "healing."  One member of the discovery team, Julia, a bright young woman in her Junior year in high school, described Good Sam as "Mrs. Weasley's house from the Harry Potter series." She said, "it's a little clunky, and the people are sorta quirky, but it's a place you can totally just come be yourself."  Every head around the table nodded in agreement.  

 This was an interesting day because, in addition to attending worship services and leading the discovery session, I was also invited to teach a Sunday school class, Church Branding: What Story are we Telling?  Communication Director Leanne Shawler invited me to lead this session, helping the congregation toward better understanding and fostering discussion on the topic.  Often, the work of church branding is done behind the scenes and then revealed to the congregation.  At Good Sam, it's a collective experience.  While a team will lead the effort its the congregation is well aware of what's underway.  Not only was there a class on church branding, but Rector Chris Chase's message presented a fascinating perspective as well.  The entire branding team and process was lifted up for prayer.  

Chris outlined three distinct and powerful perspectives on church branding - eternal, worldly and local. The highlights:

1. In Revelation we learn that there will be those who will be marked/sealed as belonging to God - eternal.
2. Jesus teaches us to "love one another" as a sign to the - world.
3. The local church needs to identify itself uniquely in it's community - local - and Good Sam is in that process.

  The message is about 20 minutes long.  It's worth a listen.  

Comments

[Church building]

I'm specifically talking about the seen local church. Whatever package it may come in: building(s), cathedral, living room, rented warehouse, etc... What IS the local church?

What are the ESSENTIAL ingredients a "fellowship/group of people" need in order to function as a church?