National Cathedral Dean Thinks Churches Will Be Obsolete in Ten Years

We know that liberals try to offer the cartoonish argument that conservatives should not be granted positions in government because they don’t believe in goverment. By that statement, why would you offer the job of Dean of Washington’s stately National Cathedral to a minister who believes the church as an institution is obsolete?

Washington Post “On Faith” founder Sally Quinn interviewed Rev. Gary Hall at Pub Theology Night in the cellar of the Bier Baron in downtown Washington. Hall told Quinn a big old church was no place to evangelize the people:

Hall responded to question No. 1 (“Name three things that will be obsolete in 10 years?”) by saying about the church, “institutions will be defined in another way. The issues that defined institutions are no longer issues.” He went on to say that the “nones” — those who say they have no religious affiliation — “have the same spiritual religious questions. I don’t think this is about believers or nonbelievers. People want to explore God in their lives but they look at the churches and synagogues and say, ‘This is not where I want to explore these issues.’”

Quinn headlined her column "Beer, burgers, and a side of spirituality in DC." An informal chat over Speakeasy Prohibition Ale is probably a lot like the early Christian church, argued the Episcopalian minister:

“The early church was probably something more like this,” said Hall. “The question is, is it possible to have a transcendental experience and have different modes of spiritual practice? How can we make Sunday morning more like this?”

One obvious suggestion is for Hall to take his flock to a bar instead of a cathedral.

National Journal recently noticed his first anniversary in the National Cathedral job, a year of fiery sermons against the National Rifle Association agenda and in favor of the LGBT agenda both in America and around the world. "I'm not trying to really rock the boat," Hall said to the magazine. "But I am trying to sort of stand where I think Jesus wants a public church to stand."