On July 16, the Memorial United Church of Modena celebrated one year of their monthly Waffle Church meetings. It’s a time of prayer, songs stories and fellowship along with maple syrup and occasional strawberries. Bring your appetite and your love for Jesus.

As a Seventh-Day Adventist, the idea of conversing with my peers during a sermon was foreign to me. However, despite my initial confusion, they warmly welcomed me with chocolate chip waffles and tea. From an outsider’s perspective, there is some truth to the notion that sharing a meal together fosters camaraderie.

The Modena church has a unique approach, preferring fewer traditional sermons and more interactive conversations during their church services.

Regular church services are held every Sunday at 11:15 a.m., while the Waffle Church service is held on the third Sunday of each month. (The next Waffle Church is scheduled for Sunday, August 20.

Pastor Limina Grace Harmon was born in New York City but grew up in Lancaster, PA. When she first joined the Modena church, she acknowledged that her sermon was perceived as unusual. She referred to the church as “a little formality and informality put together.”

The church currently has 50 members, with 15 attending regularly. Despite having a strong community, the church has experienced a decline in membership over the past year, and like most churches, the COVID pandemic dealt another blow to its numbers.

Harmon describes the loss of church members in two categories: breakaway and fade-away members, with the latter consisting mostly of older churchgoers. When churches were forced to shut down due to the pandemic, and many lacked the facilities for livestream services, these members stopped attending. The breakaway members were mostly younger people who began questioning their faith. With both groups leaving around the same time, the church experienced a significant decline in membership.

Currently, the Methodist church in Modena is working on creating events geared towards people in their 40s and younger to encourage participation.

Pastor Harmon had only been three weeks into her role as the pastor of the Modena church when she held her first Waffle Church sermon.

The concept of Waffle Church arose from the realization that traditional church pews and face-forward seating might not be necessary. The church community believes that sharing food fosters a sense of responsibility towards each other. Recognizing that many individuals have had negative experiences with churches and have been hurt by them, the Methodist Church of Modena decided to incorporate waffles into their food and church service.

Pastor Harmon affectionately refers to waffles as “as unscary as a thing can possibly be.” Attendees are invited to share a delicious meal, sing, pray, listen to scripture, celebrate Holy Communion and “share thoughts around God’s word.”

The idea of communal dining within religious circles dates back to ancient times, when people would break bread together, much like the Waffle Church does now. This approach aims to restore the tradition of eating together as a community.

When asked if there’s a favorite waffle recipe, the pastor says: “How can one choose between waffles? But chocolate chip with strawberries are always a winner.”

Memorial United Methodist Church is located at 1948 Highway 44-55, Modena. Call 845-883-7142 for more information.