Planting a church isn’t easy. Anyone who has attempted to do so will surely tell you that. The reasons behind that difficulty are numerous: finances, convincing people that joining a new venture will be worthwhile, finding the space to meet, being comfortable with failure. But perhaps most importantly, keeping the fire under your vision when one or more of these things fall apart or take longer to develop than imagined is the trickiest act of all.
Emily M.D. Scott writes of the ups and downs of planting a church in New York City known as St. Lydia’s. It is notable by many other churches for its pioneering of a movement known best as “dinner church,” in which a faith community centers its worship life around the creation and sharing of a meal. The church may hold a certain place of esteem in many circles now, but For All Who Hunger pulls back the curtain on just how difficult establishing this imaginative expression actually was.
Read the rest at The Englewood Review of Books.