Wedged between radio ads for good deals on cars and low interest rates, Trinity United Methodist Church of Denver will invite people on a journey of faith.
The downtown congregation’s advertising campaign, announced Monday, is part of a radio and TV blitz by the United Methodist Church, which is seeking to reverse membership declines and tap into a post-Sept. 11 interest in faith.
“What we’re trying to say is, if you’re searching for wholeness, a desire for spiritual growth and commitment to a larger purpose, try us,” said the Rev. Larry Hollon, chief executive of United Methodist Communications.
The church’s “Journey” campaign, which will run from Monday until Sept. 18, is part of a broader $25 million, four- year effort advertising the denomination’s marketing message: “Open hearts. Open minds. Open doors.”
The 8.3-million-member denomination, the nation’s third-largest, provided a matching $10,000 grant for the $20,000 Trinity radio campaign.
Borrowing a page from the evangelical Christian marketing book, mainline Protestant denominations – including the United Church of Christ and Episcopal Church – are spending millions to try to brand themselves as places for those seeking spirituality and community.
The UCC, a liberal Protestant denomination, is using the catchphrase “God Is Still Speaking” to distinguish itself as a denomination changing with the times.
The campaigns come as many of the nation’s major mainline denominations are embroiled in divisive debates about homosexuality. At the same time, mainline churches have lost 30 percent to 40 percent of their members since 1960.
Although church advertising is not new, mainline churches shied from marketing in part out of fear of being associated with more conservative Protestant movements that embrace the approach, said Nancy Ammerman, a professor of sociology of religion at Boston University who studies U.S. denominations.
“In the last five or 10 years, what we’ve seen is a recognition that (mainline churches) can use the same techniques but infuse those with their identity and messages,” she said.
Staff writer Eric Gorski can be reached at 303-820-1698 or egorski@denverpost.com.
