Sometimes praying just doesn’t cut it.
Two of the Christian houses of worship that help make Brooklyn the Borough of Churches are struggling to keep their buildings from falling apart and, faced with dwindling flocks and rising rents, they are turning to their fellow man to make sure repairs get made.
Brown Memorial Baptist Church on Gates Avenue at Washington Avenue in Clinton Hill is the latest in a long line of churches to look for new ways to keep god’s house from crumbling. One of the church’s 12 stained-glass windows, called “The Pilgrims,” is buckling because of water damage and pulling away from the window frame. The church could not come up with the funds to fix it, so enterprising congregants applied for and won a $200,000 grant from Partners in Preservation. Still, they say they need to raise another $150,000, and for that they are returning to the old standby: passing the hat.
“We’re asking the community to help restore a living, breathing part of history,” said Beverly Jacobs, the chair of the church’s window restoration committee.
So far, church boosters have raised about $15,000, mostly from churchgoers and neighbors. The church hopes to come up with the rest by March 2014.
Some 20 blocks away on Carroll Street at Seventh Avenue, Park Slope’s Old First Reformed Church has been struggling to keep its roof from falling on praying heads for nearly two years. The 120-year-old church closed its 1,100-seat sanctuary for Christmas in 2011 when the ceiling showed signs of disrepair, leading to fear that congregants might get pelted with plummeting plaster. The closure prompted an outpouring of support, netting the church $200,000 in donations from approximately 200 people.
“If you take care of other people it seems like the community will help take care of you,” Pastor Daniel Meeter said.
The church’s six-story ceiling is made up of plaster ribs that stretch the length of 10 football fields, making the room look taller than it is and throwing the voices of the choir.
Church leaders have tapped several architects for a prescription on how to repair the huge roof, but each is recommending a different fix. Once they finalize a plan of attack they will still have to choose a construction agency to complete the job. They hope to have the whole thing done by April 2015, in time for Easter.
“It’s a unique ceiling,” said Meeter. “It’s very difficult to know exactly how to fix it.”
An exodus of the faithful is a big factor in the two churches’ woes. Half of Brown Baptist’s members have left, leaving 750 churchgoers, while the flock at Old First Reformed is down to 160 from a peak of 400. A slew of other Brooklyn churches faced with similar circumstances have called it quits and cashed in, selling their buildings to developers eager to turn them into luxury apartments, schools, and even temporary film studios.
Meeter is not flustered by the numbers, though. He takes the long view.
“The congregation is 359 years old, so we’re patient,” said Meeter.
