A Statement: On the Future of This Church

In Short

Delivered as a pulpit address in 1918, this work records John Haynes Holmes’s decision to decline an invitation to Chicago’s All Souls Church and instead commit his future to transforming his New York congregation. Rather than retreating into comfortable ecclesiastical traditions, the minister urges his people to drop denominational labels, eliminate pew rentals, and remake the church into an open community center dedicated to social justice. The address has endured as a pivotal historical document charting the early-twentieth-century birth of the community church movement and applied Christianity.

The Story

The text opens with the minister recounting a significant professional crossroads. Having received a unanimous invitation to succeed the late Dr. Jenkin Lloyd Jones at Chicago’s All Souls Church, Abraham Lincoln Centre, and the journal Unity, he is forced to weigh personal comfort against professional duty. Though deeply rooted in New York after twelve years of service, he realizes that personal affection cannot govern his choice; his primary obligation is to advance his life's ideals where they can be most effectively served. Furthermore, the Great War has profoundly altered his parish, creating a necessity to look toward a shared future rather than remaining bound to the past.

To explain his ultimate choice, the speaker offers a retrospective of his ministry. He entered the Unitarian church in 1904 driven by a passion to preach theological truth, a desire for the spiritual atmosphere of an altar, and a reverence for Unitarian reform history. However, a severe intellectual and emotional upheaval occurred within two years when he encountered the social question through the writings of economists and theologians like Henry George and Walter Rauschenbusch. Transformed into a social radical, he came to view religion not merely as theological testimony but as a crusading force for social and economic democratization, heavily influenced by the emerging labor movement.

This ideological shift placed him in recurring conflict with traditional denominational bodies, revealing a deeper friction between dead sectarian fellowships and living community needs. The Great War accelerated this realization, shattering traditional divisions and pointing toward a new religious order centered on the community rather than the sect. Although initially tempted to leave the church entirely or accept the Chicago post, the speaker realized his own congregation at the Church of the Messiah offered fertile ground for this exact evolution.

Following a special meeting where he outlined his radical proposals to the congregation, he discovered a receptive working majority willing to embrace change without bitterness. Consequently, he declined the Chicago offer and laid out a multi-point transformation plan. He announces his intention to sever his formal ties with the Unitarian denomination entirely, transitioning from a sectarian label to a broader Christian and human fellowship. Within his own parish, he proposes concrete structural reforms: replacing paid pew rentals with voluntary subscriptions, renaming the church to reflect modern ideals rather than ancient Jewish hope, establishing non-covenanted membership based on simple brotherhood, and ultimately loosening formal denominational ties by evolutionary consent. The address closes with an impassioned call for his congregation and the wider public to unite in this difficult yet glorious pioneer journey toward a fully democratized, community-centered spiritual life.

How It Unfolds

• The Chicago invitation: The speaker announces that he has spent five weeks considering a prominent call to lead All Souls Church and Abraham Lincoln Centre in Chicago, forcing an immediate evaluation of his life and ministry.
• A retrospective of ministry: Tracing his path from his 1904 ordination, he describes how a traditional desire to preach theological truth was radically upended by the discovery of the social question and economic justice.
• The impact of war: He explains how the Great War shattered old ecclesiastical certainties, proving that traditional sectarian divisions are dead and that the future of religion belongs to community-focused service.
• The congregation's response: Recounting a recent special meeting with his board and parishioners, he shares how his bold proposals were met with open discussion rather than hostile schism, confirming that his people are ready for change.
• The final decision: Declining the Chicago post, he commits to staying in New York and outlines his progressive program, including free pews, a modern name, non-covenanted membership, and eventual release from denominational constraints.

The People

The text centers on a few key figures and groups who embody the shifting ideals of early-twentieth-century religion. John Haynes Holmes, the minister, stands at the core of the narrative; once motivated by traditional theology and denominational loyalty, he evolves into a passionate social radical who views institutional religion primarily as an instrument for economic democracy and community service. Dr. Jenkin Lloyd Jones, the late beloved Chicago pastor, serves as an inspiring predecessor whose vacant post initiates the book's central crisis. The members of the Church of the Messiah—the congregation—evolve from a traditional, loyal flock into an open-minded community partner willing to confront difficult institutional changes without bitterness. Alongside them, the traditional Unitarian denomination represents the rigid, outgrown past that the minister gradually leaves behind. Finally, the broader public, including returning soldiers and working-class reformers, represents the new frontier of human need that the modern church must embrace. Through this dynamic, individual static characters are replaced by institutional and ideological forces working out a reconciliation between traditional faith and modern social realities.

In Its Own Voice

I take seriously the fact of my ordination--that as a minister of religion I have been "set apart," as the traditional phrase has it, to the high purpose of propagating an idea, championing a cause, seeking the best and the highest that I know in terms of God and of his holy will.

Reflecting on his professional obligations, the speaker asserts that a minister's duty is to advance a vital cause rather than maintain personal comfort or pleasant friendships.

The social revolution long prophesied, long hoped for, long feared, is here; and this means in countries like our own, still untouched by change, such a "sturm and drang periode," as makes even the Great War pale into insignificance.

Describing the post-war global landscape, the author warns that profound economic and social restructuring is entirely inevitable.

For years, like "the chambered nautilus," we have been outgrowing our denominational shell, and seeking "more stately mansions."

Using a poetic metaphor, the author captures how his congregation has naturally outgrown narrow sectarian boundaries.

What It's Really About

The work explores the profound tension between traditional sectarian religion and the urgent demands of modern social democracy. At its core, it questions whether historical ecclesiastical institutions can survive without entirely reinventing their purpose around community needs rather than ancient theological controversies. The text argues that true Christianity is fundamentally social, requiring the complete democratization of society and the elimination of class oppression, pew rentals, and exclusive memberships. Ultimately, it investigates how spiritual leadership must adapt during times of immense global crisis, shifting its focus from otherworldly dogmas to the practical uplift of humanity.

Why Read It Today

Modern readers interested in the history of progressive religion, social reform, and institutional change will find this work deeply compelling. Reading it feels like sitting in a quiet, charged sanctuary listening to an honest intellectual wrestle publicly with his conscience and community. The prose is remarkably transparent, earnest, and free of artificial rhetoric, offering an authentic window into post-World War I idealism. While contemporary audiences might navigate period-specific language, references to early-twentieth-century church politics, and dated historical allusions, the core ethical challenge remains startlingly relevant. The book asks profound questions about why community institutions exist, whom they serve, and how organizations can remain relevant during times of massive social upheaval. Anyone pondering how groups can evolve past rigid tribalism to embrace broader human solidarity will find lasting inspiration in this thoughtful chronicle.