BCNE pastor publishes “Churching: Rediscovering the Centrality of the Church in the Christian Life” to push against the cultural tide of dechurching

Photo: Lierte Soares Jr. (left) and Rick Harrington in front of the Old South Presbyterian Church in Newburyport, MA, where George Whitefield, the noteworthy 18th century revivalist preacher, is buried.

Over forty million people have left the church in the past twenty-five years in the United States—not merely the people who have walked away from Christian faith, but many Christians who have “dechurched.” They see their local church as an optional club and think gathering with other Christians is a sort of side issue in the real business of following Jesus. 

A new book, “Churching”, addresses the cultural reality that “forty million people have left the church in the last twenty-five years” and they view the church as just “an optional club.” 

Churching: Rediscovering the Centrality of the Church in the Christian Life (published in February 2025 and available from Amazon) is a short book that seeks to push against the cultural tide. It musters together an argument—biblically, historically, and practically—on behalf of the church. 

The author, Rick Harrington, who is senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Haverhill, MA, and provost of the Baptist Churches of New England’s Multiplication Center, challenges his readers to understand that “the church does not sit on the periphery of the Christian life; it belongs smack dab in the center. The church is our means of grace [and it leads] to corporate worship, Christian fellowship, and the Great Commission.”

Lierte Soares Jr., a Brazilian “reverse missionary,” is president of the Baptist Churches of New England, and a pastor of churches in Georgetown and Framingham, Massachusetts. He recently interviewed Harrington about his new book. 

Soares: What is “churching”?

Harrington: I was surprised to learn that the word “churching” was pretty much an unused verb. There is an historical use referring to “the churching of women,” meaning the reintroduction of women to the church after childbirth, but that is sort of niche. 

The way I am using the word is as the opposite of “dechurching.” Instead of leaving the church, it is describing commitment and service to a church.

Soares: What really inspired you to write your new book, Churching?

Harrington: I was given the advice before writing a book to just write articles until I write about a subject that I realize needs to be addressed in a full-length book. Then, if I am the right person, write that book. It was good advice. I have been publishing articles on the church for a while now, including for the BCNE, but also some with The Baptist Paper and Baptist Press. 

What I came to realize was not enough is being published on the dechurching that has happened in the United States. We need to be making the clear case for commitment and service to a local church in the Christian life.

Soares: Brother Rick, after Covid-19 and culture shifts, are we in a season for church planting or church revitalization? 

Harrington: Both-and. The Kingdom will always need both, I think. I am excited to see new churches planted and centuries-old churches revitalized. There are, of course, parts of the world that do not have a church, and the focus there will be on church planting.

Other parts of the world, including North America and Europe, have amazing opportunities for coming into an established church and working towards renewal. My own church is 260 years old and I am so grateful for its long witness in our community.

Soares: How do you see the role of the pastor in Churching?

Harrington: While I hope that pastors and church leaders read and enjoy this book, it is written primarily with non-clergy in mind. If anything, I would hope a pastor might read it, and if it is helpful, pass it along to a member or attender who might benefit from it. 

That said, the role of pastor or shepherd is important for the whole church. In an anti-authoritarian culture, the need for shepherds is both controversial and all the more important. In a chapter entitled, “Authority Helps,” I address the counter-cultural blessing to be under spiritual direction. We need pastors.

Soares: We had a lot of statistics and studies on church life after Covid-19. Do we have any evidence that churching has a future in America? 

Harrington: First let me help us face the facts about where we are at. When you think about how forty million people have left the church in the last twenty-five years and that average church attendance for those who do attend has dropped from once a week to merely twice a month, you start to see how dire the situation is. 

All of us can see churches closing around us and friends leaving the church. This is a trend that started well before Covid, and Covid only helped speed the process. However, I am optimistic! I think we have, in a sense, bottomed out. 

New England is a great example of this. Here in New England, dechurching is the most advanced region in the United States and, yet, there are signs of a return to church commitment. It’s too early to tell if it will continue, but there is a great deal of hope. Of course, with Jesus, there is always hope!

Soares: How do you relate churching with migration and reverse missions in post-Christian New England? 

Harrington: One of the distinctives of the book is that it is not limited to one specific ethnicity, race, or location. I try to make it a point to talk about churches of various cultures from around the world. Immigration has actually been a catalyst towards regaining a commitment and service to church. 

I was very grateful to have the endorsements of our friends Carlito Paes in São Paulo, Brazil, and Paul Kim in Cambridge, Massachusetts. I wanted to be intentionally diverse. As the world becomes smaller through globalization, world missions have come to us. 

Let me take the missions question separately. A chapter is devoted to it, “The Church is the Mission.” In it, I talk about the role of the church in supporting missions, but also how the goal of missions is to establish Indigenous churches globally. I mention my Brazilian brothers and sisters and their passion to bring back the gospel to the United States. I even talk about the need for missions in Europe, something I know that is on both of our hearts. 

Soares: What’s the difference between churching in New England and elsewhere?

Harrington: You know me. I am a New Englander through and through. I can’t help but use lots of illustrations from the Northeast but I tried to make sure the book is not limited to any one location or denomination. Similarly, I make no excuses about being a Baptist, but I hope its reach surpasses that of our own tribe. 

I am so encouraged by what is happening in the Baptist Churches of New England (BCNE.net) and I make a point to say so. I hope folks in the BCNE will think it represents well the faithful work that goes on here in New England day after day.

Soares: Where can I get the book?

Harrington: The easiest place to buy it is on Amazon, but it is also available at Wipf & Stock Publishers and pretty much anywhere books are sold online. Wipf & Stock publishes a lot of academic works and I hope my book has a well-researched feel even though it is written for the church and meant to be very readable. I hope readers will find it practically helpful—with even some humor in it!

Rick Harrington is senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Haverhill, MA. Lierte Soares Jr. is president of the Baptist Churches of New England. Both pastors lead the BCNE’s Multiplication Center.