One often speaks of "my church" in the same way one would refer to "my family," "my school" or "my company." In a recent article from the Alban Institute, an ecumenical and interfaith organization, Dan Hotchkiss posed the question, "Who owns a congregation?" While he is specifically addressing this question to the governing body, it is an interesting question to consider.

The answer we give to this question has implications for how we make decision, how we welcome new members, how we interact with the diocese and how we define our mission. And there are lots of possible answers. 

A lot of the recent debate in the Episcopal Church in the USA has focused on who owns a particular church and, therefore, has the authority to make radical decisions about its assets and its future. The vestry? The majority of the congregation? The priest? The diocese? The bishop? The one who owns the church is the one who gets to decide its future. So who owns our congregation? [Legally, according to the NYS State Religious Corporations Law, Episcopal churches are held in trust by the local congregation for the Diocese and The Episcopal Church.—Ed.]

In his article, Dan Hotchkiss states, "A congregation does exist to serve its owner — but the members are not the owners in the same way stockholders own business corporations. Who then is the owner? Jesus? God? Perhaps a more useful answer, I believe, is 'The owner of a congregation is its mission.' A congregation exists to serve its mission."

According to this statement, we, the members of "my church" exist to serve our church's mission. But what is our mission? In the Gospel of Matthew we hear it proclaimed in words known as the Great Commission: Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you."

And what have we been commanded to do? To love God with all our heart and with all our soul and with all our mind, and to love our neighbors as ourselves.

What might be another way to state our mission? The mission of the church is to change lives. Of course, no one congregation, no matter how large and well endowed, can change all lives. so the question for "my church" is whose lives do we intend to change and in what way?

While that can be a difficult and complex question for any congregation to wrestle with, it is easy to know those congregations engaged in that struggle because that is where Christ is, that is where the Holy Spirit is. As former Presiding Bishop Edmond L. Browning stated, "We know the presence of Christ is alive in a community when that community is inclusive, not exclusive; collective, not individual; active, not passive; engaged, not detached; serving, not only being served."

"My church" — your church and mine —  is called to be inclusive of all who walk through our doors, welcoming all to join us in our life together. "My church" is called to join with other churches in our community, in our deanery, in our diocese, and even throughout the world as we engage in our mission to change lives. And "my church:" is called to be active and engaged participants as we serve Christ in all persons.

May God, who has begun so much good in us, through His love, bring it to completion.