How Many Christmas Eve Services Should Your Church Have This Year?

How Many Christmas Eve Services Should Your Church Have This Year?

How many Christmas Eve services should your church have this year? In many places, worship attendance numbers are down. Volunteerism is down. And things haven’t really bounced back up to pre-pandemic levels.

So you may be feeling disappointed as you consider Christmas. Before you go too far down that road, though, remember that the need for faith, for belonging, and for tradition is still high.  And the people who worship with you this year may just discover something they didn’t know they needed: tradition, community, and a larger purpose.

Let’s take a closer look at the question of how many Christmas Eve services your church should have this year. Here are four different factors to consider.

 

#1 Who are you trying to reach?

Who do you hope will attend your Christmas Eve services? Perhaps families with young children, older adults, people of different cultural backgrounds, teens, young adults, people who live in another part of town, or people who work on Christmas Eve. Catering to each of these groups might require special consideration like the time of the service, the location, or special components to include.

For instance, if you’re trying to reach people who work on Christmas Eve, you may want to have a service on the morning of Christmas Eve or even the day before. If you’re trying to reach people who live in a specific part of town, move your service to that location. Read on to learn more.

 

#2 What is the size of your congregation?  

Large congregations will need more than one service to accommodate everyone. Small congregations can probably do with just one service. But there are factors beyond size to consider.

 

#3 What is the age demographic of your congregation?  

If your congregation is mainly made up of young families with small children, plan a service that is specifically geared toward them. Late afternoon or early evening may work best. Incorporate child-friendly components by having an outdoor Nativity scene, a children’s choir, or a special message just for kids. As an added bonus, earlier services with kid-friendly components may feel less intimidating and require less commitment for visitors.

On the other hand, if your congregation is made up mostly of older adults, consider the classic  7 pm Christmas Eve service. Or even midnight services if that is traditional in your setting. Even if you think an earlier service might solve problems for older adults—like driving at night or getting around in the dark—don’t be surprised when older adults choose tradition over convenience.

A good rule of thumb is to ask your congregation members which service(s) they would prefer and would invite others to.

 

#4 How many staff and volunteers do you have?

If you have limited staff and volunteers, you may need to limit the number of services you hold. Alternatively, if you have plenty of staff and volunteers, you can accommodate more services. However, remember that Christmas is a busy time for everyone, so your staff and volunteers may already have commitments outside the church with family and friends. Ask them if you need to figure out how many people you can count on to help. But don’t wait until the last minute!

Don’t count out volunteers from the community to help with things like parking, greeting, and ushering. This can be a great way to reach out beyond the church. Often people will attend if they have a role to play. Having a specific task decreases social awkwardness and gives people a purpose. Sometimes people with little to no connection to Sunday morning church will jump at the chance to help during the holiday season. Last week, a pastor in my clergy leadership program, Creating a Culture of Renewal, shared that they received an email from someone they had never met asking if their daughter could join the choir for their upcoming Christmas season.

 

Are there any other factors to consider?

The bottom line is that there is no right or wrong answer regarding how many Christmas Eve services your church should have. It depends on various factors. What is best for your church may not be what is best for another church. The important thing is to prayerfully consider all of the factors involved and make the best decision for your church.

However, there are three bonus reasons to consider hosting more than one Christmas Eve service.

  1. Christmas Eve is a built-in outreach opportunity, so even if your community is small, you consider having more than one service to reach people who don’t usually attend your church. People love choices.
  2. Christmas Eve is when many people search for meaning and hope, so don’t miss the opportunity to reach out to them.
  3. This year, even more than last, feels like a return to normal after the pandemic. As such, some people who haven’t been attending throughout the pandemic will be returning to in-person worship services.

 

Most of all, have fun!

Remember that Christmas is a fantastic opportunity to reach new and unchurched people. Don’t be afraid to stretch for a new goal this year. Just be clear about your mission and purpose and be sensitive to the needs of your congregation and community. Be creative and encourage the church and your leadership to think about what could work, rather than what could fail. And most importantly, have fun! Christmas is a joyous time of year, and your services should reflect that.

What factors do you consider when deciding how many Christmas Eve services to have? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below!

 

Copyright © 2022 rebekahsimonpeter.com. All Rights Reserved.

Jesus Before Christmas

Jesus Before Christmas

Christmas wasn’t always part of the Christian experience.  There’s no record that Jesus or his disciples or the early church celebrated Christmas at all, as they did all the Jewish holy days and holidays. In fact, the first Christmas or Christ Mass wasn’t celebrated until the 4th century.  It’s likely Jesus wasn’t even born in the winter. Rather, it’s thought that December 25 was chosen as a day to celebrate his birth because it coincided with a pre-existing pagan festival. That would make it easy for non-Christians to add a new layer of meaning to their old celebrations. That happens in the history of religion.

The interesting thing though is that December 25 wasn’t just the date of a pagan festival. It also coincides, in a way, with a festival that Jesus did actually celebrate.

Like Jews of his time, Jesus celebrated the Feast of Dedication which occurs on the 25th of Kislev, a month in the Jewish calendar that most closely approximates December.  “At that time,” the Gospel according to John relates, “the Feast of Dedication took place in Jerusalem; it was winter. Jesus was walking in the Temple in the portico of Solomon. Tell us,” the Jews said, “if you are the Messiah.”  Their comments were fitting, for the Feast of Dedication marked the last time a deliverer had arisen to save them from oppression.   It was past time for another; the Roman experience was a cruel one indeed.

The Feast of Dedication commemorates the re-dedication of the Temple in Jerusalem after its utter desecration at the brutal hands of Antiochus Epiphanes about 170 years BC. Today, that feast is known by its Hebrew name, Chanukah. Although Chanukah only gets a line or two in the New Testament, it actually plays a huge role in the birth of Jesus.

A Peek into History

To explain, we have to go back in history over three hundred years before the birth of Christ.  Alexander the Great ruled the ancient world around the Eastern Mediterranean. After conquering the Persian Empire, Greek culture, or Hellenism, spread like wildfire. The Jews living in Israel quickly found themselves surrounded by it and then almost swallowed up by it. Hellenism was to the ancient world what Western culture is to the modern world. Just as you can find a McDonald’s in just about every corner of the world, not to mention American pop music, blue jeans, TV re-runs, Western style Christianity, and the English language, so in that day, you could find Greek culture, religion, and language permeating every other culture of the world. Needless to say, it wasn’t all good, especially for those in the minority, like the Jews.  It put their whole distinctive way of life at risk.

After Alexander died, his empire eventually fell into the hands of one Antiochus IV Epiphanes.

Epiphanes means “face of God,” but a more apt description was the moniker the Jews gave him: “Epimanes” or “crazy man.”  He was the Hitler of the intertestamental period.  Like Hitler, he was obsessed with wiping out the Jewish people.  He began with the slaughter of the citizens of Jerusalem and the desecration of the Temple.  Alfred Edersheim explains what happened in his book, The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah:

“All sacrifices, the service of the Temple, and the observance of the Sabbath and of feast days were prohibited; the Temple at Jerusalem was dedicated to Jupiter Olympus (a Greek god); the Torah was searched for and destroyed; the Jews forced to take part in heathen rites; in short, every insult was heaped on the religion of the Jews, and its every trace was to be swept away.”

Bottom line:  Antiochus was bent on genocide. The final straw was the slaughter of a pig on the sacrificial altar in the Temple. Definitely not kosher. This occurred on the 25th of Kislev, the month that generally corresponds to our December.

A Jewish deliverer rose up whose name was Mattathias. Even though they were outnumbered and overpowered, under his leadership the Jewish people began a campaign of guerilla warfare against Antiochus and his Syrian armies to reclaim the Temple.  Mattathias died fighting, but his five sons carried on, including one whose name you might know: Judah Maccabee. He led the fighting till the Temple could be purified and its services restored.

Christmas without Chanukah

Exactly three years after its desecration, the Temple was rededicated.  This took place on the 25th of Kislev, about 165 years before the nativity of Christ.  If Antiochus had carried out his plan, there would have been no Mary, no Joseph, and no Jesus.  There would have been no Messiah of Israel, no Savior of the World.  Bottom line:  without Chanukah, there would be no Christmas. Jesus owed his life to Chanukah. In a sense, we owe our faith to it.

As you prepare for Advent, let us remember the minor Jewish holiday that celebrates freedom of religion and which makes possible the major Christian one.  Let’s do like Jesus did and re-dedicate ourselves to freedom of religious expression, to the freedom to dedicate ourselves to God, and to truly love one another. 

That being said, I’m hosting a fun and interactive workshop that will help you do just that.  “Platinum Rule Leadership in Changing Times” promotes forgiveness, compassion, understanding, and self-awareness.  I hope you can join me.

 

Adapted from Christmas through Jewish Eyes, by Rebekah Simon-Peter.

Copyright © 2021 rebekahsimonpeter.com, All Rights Reserved.