by the Rev. Ryan Jones as told to Andrea Bailey Willits
In a nutshell
“On Easter, we held our first preview service. We had about 45 people join us and we were really excited about that—it’s a much larger group than the 15-20 we typically have. We did a traditional Easter service with the assistance of a guest worship leader, who worked together with some of our own musicians. It was a really wonderful moment, generated some momentum for us, and gave us a glimpse of where God is taking us. Christ was glorified.”
Memorable moment
“We had commissioned a chalice to be made by a coppersmith for our church. It was delivered a few days before Easter, and we got to use it for the first time at the service. I talked in my sermon about how the chalice is a living metaphor for our church. When we commissioned the chalice, the coppersmith promised to send us pictures along the way as it was being made. At first, it was hard to imagine how it could become a chalice; it just looked like a big lumpy piece of copper. Little by little it evolved as the coppersmith pounded it into shape on an anvil with his hammer. It went through a stage where it looked like a lampshade. But eventually, we began to see it take shape and realized, ‘It’s going to be beautiful.’ It turned out to be stunning. When we look at our church right now, like the chalice, sometimes it’s hard to imagine it becoming what we hope it could be. But we have to trust that God is the master coppersmith forming us to be a container to hold his presence.”
Where we are in the launch process
“We are in a longterm launch process rather than one grand opening moment, as it takes a bit more preparation to open up shop here in San Francisco. According to Barna’s latest research, it’s the most post-Christian city in America. Since last fall, we have been gathering a core group—a team as well as a worshiping congregation—and beginning to forge an identity together. Our core group is about 20 people right now, meeting on Sunday mornings doing a modified morning prayer with communion. We’re also experimenting with, and beginning to build, a catechumanate to go alongside our worship service.”
Where we meet
“We have partnered with another church—they have office space with a fellowship hall that is a really great space. They don’t use it on Sunday morning so we meet there. It has a beautiful kitchen and a children’s area, and can hold about 150 if you really pack it out.”
Current challenges
“In addition to being named the most post-Christian city in America, San Francisco is the most expensive place to live in North America. That leads to a lot of turnover of people here, and that makes it challenging. It’s also tough place for Christians to withstand the cultural currents tugging on them all the time.”
What’s next for us
“We’ll have another preview service on Pentecost, May 15. Once again, we’ll have a full ensemble of music, full liturgy and a sermon. This will give people a chance to invite their friends and neighbors to get a taste of where we’re going. We are also developing midweek small groups and planning some follow-up events so people can find multiple avenues into our community. All of this is happening as we work to put together a staff and leadership team (a work currently in progress). Our main priority overall right now is cultivating a distinctive culture focused on structuring all of life in reference to Christ (our motto).”
How you can pray for us
Pray that God would lead a whole bunch of committed, mature Christian folks to join our core group as we seek to be formed into a healthy, faith-filled church capable of the patience it takes to reach people in post-Christian San Francisco. Pray Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 3:14-21 over us—that we might know all the dimensions of Christ’s love. Pray that God would deepen our faith and provide what we need in terms of financial support to really lean into mission for the long-term.
Learn more at EucharistSF.org.