The Rev. Ben Morris knows his coffee beans.
The associate pastor of youth, culture and mission at Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Livonia, worked in a coffee house while attending Central Michigan University and spent hours in them during his days in the seminary.
“I lived in Germany and there’s a big coffee house culture there. Every day at 4 p.m. was coffee and cake time. I loved that. Everyone would get together and eat a good piece of German torte and talk. I like places where people congregate.
“Livonia has a lot going for it. I’ve spent a lot of time at the rec center and I love it there, but there aren’t a lot of places to just hang out. Why not offer a place you don’t have to pay to participate in it?”
When members and visitors last year began to walk the newly-installed brick labyrinth, a meditative centerpiece of the church’s front lawn, Morris sought a way to make the indoors and outdoor space contiguous. An old library room that looked out onto the church’s patio, gardens and labyrinth, seemed to be the perfect spot for a gathering space for conversation, quiet contemplation, study and a good cup of coffee.
The Abbey Coffee House, a gathering for the community and church members, opened last December, approximately a year after the labyrinth was installed. Both projects were built by volunteers, with church member Jeff Dudek leading the work. Both will be featured in an open house on May 4 and will be dedicated on May 5, as a part of the church’s 50th anniversary celebration weekend that also will include a dinner and worship service.
Including the community
Jeff Schuman, church council member, said the labyrinth and coffee house are meant to “make people feel comfortable and welcome.”
“It’s almost like a public space, as opposed to walking into a closed, holy place, where if you don’t know the rules you will feel out of place,” said Schuman, describing the coffee house. “You want people who aren’t accustomed to being in church to come in and use the space. You want to be open.”
Schuman said the labyrinth, coffee house and associate pastor position are the first “real public” results of a transition that started when the congregation said goodbye to its former pastor and brought in a new pastor, the Rev. Dana Runestad.
He stressed that church members were committed to maintaining the integrity of the worship service — “We didn’t want to be an entertainment venue” — but also wanted to reach out to the community, attract young members, families and those who don’t attend church regularly.
“As we went through the transformation process with the new pastor, we started talking about how to reach out to the community. You can’t just expect people to walk in on Sunday morning and say, hey, we’re looking for a church,” Schuman explained. “What we were looking to do was to create an environment that is accessible and usable by the community that would invite someone to come into a haven or shelter or attractive area to experience the quiet.“
The labyrinth, a winding brick path set inside a circle, serves that purpose.
Schuman said church council members walked a labyrinth at the Inn at St. John in Plymouth a few years ago. When they began to brainstorm ideas for Holy Cross, they remembered the experience. It took approximately a year to complete what the congregation calls the church’s “front porch.” It includes the labyrinth, a fire pit, fountain, landscaping, brick pathways and a patio.
Schuman noted that last June several teenagers posed for photographs on the “front porch” on prom night. He said the church may offer refreshments in the garden to prom-goers this year.
Coffee and conversation
The Abbey, open during church office hours and some evenings, regularly attracts both members and non-members. Morris said college students often stop by to study together. Saturday night is game night.
“When we were building it someone said, ‘we can put in a big flat screen,’ and we said nope,” said Morris, explaining that the space is meant for conversation, face-to-face relationships, or quiet contemplation.
“There are a lot of neighborhoods around here. My hope is that eventually the neighbors here will start to feel like this is a place they can come on a Saturday morning and read the paper. I’m sure people will engage with the spiritual life of the community, and that’s one of the hopes. But if they don’t, that’s okay.”
The room includes both new, locally-bought items and repurposed furnishings.
A portion of the communion rail, which was removed from the sanctuary because of accessibility issues, was turned into a stand for brewing and filling coffee cups. The base of the coffee bar is from an old choir loft and The Abbey Coffee House sign that hangs on one wall in the room came from an old pallet.
A wall at the back of the space sports photographs from a local artist.
Volunteers who tend to the coffee bar brew each cup individually using a method called “pour over.” They grind the beans from Great Lakes Coffee Roasting Company for each cup, then place them in a coffee filter inside a ceramic funnel, with the coffee mug stationed below, ready to catch the liquid.
Several different kinds of beans are available, along with tea and other beverages. Suggested donation is $1.
For more information visit www.holycrosslivonia.org.
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