Revision #12181
Church Café
Localized for English-speaking readers (msgbatch_01GvFKF6zaroxwZ2RCatyoPp)
Status: approved
Changes from the previous English revision
= ## Definition
- A church café is a café space that a church sets up inside its church building or in one of its auxiliary buildings. It serves coffee, tea, and light snacks. It functions both as a place of fellowship where members gather before and after worship and as a point of contact where visitors can drop in without feeling pressured. Some church cafés are free of charge, while others charge at cost or set prices. Proceeds are commonly used for relief of the needy or missions.
+ A church café is a café space that a church sets up inside its sanctuary building or in one of its auxiliary buildings. It serves coffee, tea, and light snacks. It functions both as a place of fellowship where members gather before and after worship and as a point of contact where visitors to the church can drop in without feeling pressured. Some church cafés operate free of charge, while others charge at cost or set fixed prices. Proceeds are commonly used for relief of the needy or missions.
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= ## Biblical and Historical Background
- No passage of Scripture deals directly with church cafés. Churches that operate them, however, cite Romans 12:13 and Hebrews 13:2, which commend hospitality, as well as Acts 2:46, which describes the early believers sharing meals and fellowship in their homes. Conversely, those wary of buying and selling on church premises sometimes point to John 2:13-16, where Jesus drove out those who sold in the temple. In response, proponents argue that the church building of the post–New Testament era cannot be regarded as equivalent to the Old Testament temple.
+ No passage of Scripture deals directly with church cafés. Churches that operate them, however, cite Romans 12:13 and Hebrews 13:2, which commend hospitality, as well as Acts 2:46, which describes the early believers breaking bread from house to house and sharing fellowship. Conversely, those wary of buying and selling on church premises sometimes point to John 2:13-16, where Jesus drove out those who sold in the temple. In response, proponents argue that the church building of the post–New Testament era cannot be regarded as equivalent to the Old Testament temple.
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- In Korea, church cafés are reported to have multiplied since the 2000s, as coffee culture became widespread. A common arrangement is to convert a church lobby or part of an education building into a café or book café.
+ In South Korea, church cafés are reported to have multiplied since the 2000s, as coffee culture became widespread. A common arrangement there is to convert a church lobby or part of an education building into a café or book café.
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= ## Practice in Korean Churches
- Church cafés are run in different ways from church to church.
+ Among Korean churches, the way church cafés are run varies from congregation to congregation.
=
= - **Staffing**: They are often staffed by member volunteers on a rotating basis. Some churches offer barista training to prepare volunteers.
= - **Purposes**: They serve as meeting places for small groups after worship, as spaces for welcoming newcomers, and as places of rest open to local residents. Some churches open them to the community on weekdays as a channel for evangelism.
= - **Use of proceeds**: Some churches are known to use fair-trade coffee beans or to devote proceeds to helping neighbors in need and supporting missionaries.
- - **Decision-making**: Establishment and operation are generally decided by bodies within the individual church, such as the session or the board of officers. No official denominational regulations governing church cafés are known, nor are there any notable differences in position among denominations.
+ - **Decision-making**: Establishment and operation are generally decided within the individual church by bodies such as the session or the board of officers. No official denominational regulations on church cafés, or notable differences in position among denominations, are known.
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- Church cafés have also drawn controversy. Some observers point out that charging the general public and operating as a business may be treated as a profit-making activity under tax law, raising issues of business registration and taxation. It has also been noted that space used as a café may be excluded from the tax exemptions granted to religious property. In addition, criticism that church cafés compete with nearby small businesses has led some churches to reduce service to outsiders or to serve only their own members.
+ Church cafés have also drawn controversy. Some observers point out that charging the general public and operating as a business may be treated as a profit-making activity under South Korean tax law, raising issues of business registration and taxation. It has also been noted that space used as a café may be excluded from the tax exemptions granted to religious property. In addition, criticism that church cafés compete with nearby small businesses has led some churches to reduce service to outsiders or to operate primarily for their own members.
A church café is a coffee shop that a church sets up and runs inside its church building or in an auxiliary building. Its main purposes are to foster fellowship among members and to create opportunities for contact with local residents.
A church café is a coffee shop that a church operates inside its sanctuary building or an auxiliary building. Its main purposes are to foster fellowship among members and to provide a place of contact with local residents.
Full revision
A church café is a coffee shop that a church operates inside its sanctuary building or an auxiliary building. Its main purposes are to foster fellowship among members and to provide a place of contact with local residents.
Definition
A church café is a café space that a church sets up inside its sanctuary building or in one of its auxiliary buildings. It serves coffee, tea, and light snacks. It functions both as a place of fellowship where members gather before and after worship and as a point of contact where visitors to the church can drop in without feeling pressured. Some church cafés operate free of charge, while others charge at cost or set fixed prices. Proceeds are commonly used for relief of the needy or missions.
Biblical and Historical Background
No passage of Scripture deals directly with church cafés. Churches that operate them, however, cite Romans 12:13 and Hebrews 13:2, which commend hospitality, as well as Acts 2:46, which describes the early believers breaking bread from house to house and sharing fellowship. Conversely, those wary of buying and selling on church premises sometimes point to John 2:13-16, where Jesus drove out those who sold in the temple. In response, proponents argue that the church building of the post–New Testament era cannot be regarded as equivalent to the Old Testament temple.
In South Korea, church cafés are reported to have multiplied since the 2000s, as coffee culture became widespread. A common arrangement there is to convert a church lobby or part of an education building into a café or book café.
Practice in Korean Churches
Among Korean churches, the way church cafés are run varies from congregation to congregation.
- Staffing: They are often staffed by member volunteers on a rotating basis. Some churches offer barista training to prepare volunteers.
- Purposes: They serve as meeting places for small groups after worship, as spaces for welcoming newcomers, and as places of rest open to local residents. Some churches open them to the community on weekdays as a channel for evangelism.
- Use of proceeds: Some churches are known to use fair-trade coffee beans or to devote proceeds to helping neighbors in need and supporting missionaries.
- Decision-making: Establishment and operation are generally decided within the individual church by bodies such as the session or the board of officers. No official denominational regulations on church cafés, or notable differences in position among denominations, are known.
Church cafés have also drawn controversy. Some observers point out that charging the general public and operating as a business may be treated as a profit-making activity under South Korean tax law, raising issues of business registration and taxation. It has also been noted that space used as a café may be excluded from the tax exemptions granted to religious property. In addition, criticism that church cafés compete with nearby small businesses has led some churches to reduce service to outsiders or to operate primarily for their own members.