Skip church? Some in U.S. being asked to

By Michael Conlon, Religion Writer

CHICAGO (Reuters Life!) - Next month across the United States several hundred Christian congregations plan to tell their faithful to skip coming to church -- and head out into the community to help those in need.

Ministering to the hungry, sick and needy is a central tenet of Christianity and other faiths, but it isn't always visible and can become fragmented in today's busy lifestyles, backers of the church-closing effort believe.

"You can get so focused on your church trying to get a building built ... you have to remember it's about being one church and reaching out," said Rev. Kim Cott, senior pastor at the River of Life United Methodist Church, near Jacksonville, Florida.

Her new congregation of more than 200 is still trying to get its first permanent church building erected. But earlier this year they participated in a test phase of the church-closing project that planners are hoping will be deployed in a major way in October.

"We did a soup kitchen. We had a car wash to raise money for missions. We worked on the houses of some elderly people in the community," she said in an interview.

The congregation also contributed money to buy AIDS care-giver kits that World Vision, one of the sponsors of the project, distributes in Africa.

ENCOURAGING PEOPLE

Up to 200 people, including children and teens, participated in the effort, which has continued to bear fruit in the weeks since it ended, Cott said.