I'M NOT DONE WITH THE DONES

People leave the organized and institutional church every week, people who once were active and supportive participants. Some sociologists and researchers have dubbed them the 'Dones.' These formerly involved church members are 'done' with church.

Brandon A. Cox is a church planting pastor and a blogger and a fine young and sincere gentleman. He confessed that he too considered leaving the church but he changed his mind. Now he is all in. He wants to persuade 'Almost Dones' to stay. He wrote 'Ten Terrible Reasons to be Done with Church'. If you are serious about understanding the heart-wrenching thoughts of departing church members, Cox's reasons won't cut it. At least no 'Dones' I know use these. The church is so judgmental. The church is full of hypocrites. The church is too institutional. The church is too political. The church complicates my life. The church is too dogmatic. The church just wants my money. The church doesn't care about issues that matter. The church seems irrelevant to my life. The church let me down.

To Cox's credit, he acknowledges the validity of the reasons he states and the church's responsibility for generating them, and his appeal is for people not to bail but to stay and to work out issues to be part of the solution. He thinks this is game-changing. However, the reasons cited by spiritual, honourable, thoughtful people whom I know, are multifaceted and arrived at through painstaking reflection. Cox's simple appeal has been considered and it is ineffectual for them.

Regrettably, Cox tops it off with the stock 'biggest' reason you can't leave the church. "Jesus died for her. The church, as imperfect as she is, is the love of Jesus' life … You need his people and you need to be humble enough to see the church as 'us' and not 'them.'"  The 'Dones' I know are part of the church that Jesus loves even outside the walls and the authority of the local church. They are not done. They don’t call themselves by that name. They are committed to Christ's church. They seek new ways to make disciples, to heal broken people, to feed the hungry, to make a difference in their communities and to bring people to his church. They are convinced this can be done effectively independent of organized church. I personally am not done talking about the “Dones” nor am I done with the Dones.