The Demographic Shift in the Diocese of Toronto
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Christian Boomers
The situation will be made worse by the replacement of supportive "Elders" in leadership positions in society with secular "Baby Boomers." These new executives in municipal, provincial and national governments are unlikely to be as sympathetic towards the churches as their Elder predecessors. They will undoubtedly tax churches as well as rectory properties. They will legislate the requirement for church elevators, modern kitchens and upgraded washroom facilities. If the property taxes in 2007 on a $230,000 house is $3,000 a year, the tax on a church building assessed at $2,300,000 is likely to be $30,000 a year.
This will cripple most church budgets especially when other income is shrinking. Unsympathetic governments will remove tax advantages like housing allowances for clergy and breaks on realty taxes on church buildings. The writing is already on the wall with clergy paying taxes on parish house utilities. Basically, our charitable status will be watered down until we are treated just like businesses. The combination of spiraling property tax and maintenance costs together with falling income, and the effects of the demographic shift will be the death-knell to many neighborhood Anglican congregations.
Weddings, Baptisms and Funerals
There will be a continued decreasing demand, I believe, for some "rites of passage" in the church like church funerals. On the other hand, there will be an increased desire for weddings and baptisms in gardens, restaurants, boats and under favorite trees as these reflect the need for a quirky kind of spirituality in both the Boomers and Generation X'ers. We could react by designating a few redundant churches as "Marriage Chapels" with a cleric trained in marriage counseling. This would be an alternative to the banquet hall business. We will need to compete commercially with other wedding facilities to win back the notion of the Christian Marriage. The Boomers will come for church weddings if we can be flexible and make a sound financial case for them. We need to offer people what they want, but within certain Christian parameters. Our institution will need to become more flexible and loosen our rules to meet these new challenges.
Fear of Death
Boomers and Generation X'ers will continue to be afraid of death, shun funerals and funeral parlors. Eternal life will have little relevance with their emphasis on living life "to the max" now. Our primary opportunity for evangelism in 2018 A.D. will likely be in teaching Christian meditation and spirituality through house, table and other small groups.
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