People find themselves associated with a Christian congregation for a variety of reasons. For people who are new in the community, the church might be a way to begin involvement and new associations; for another person it may have been something that happened as people showed support at the time of a death; for another it is the experience of weekly worship; for someone else it is an interest in social mission; for yet another it is an urgent need to show children the importance of faith and Christian teaching. The expressions of Christian community are as varied as the lives and needs of those who comprise the congregation.
Questions of meaning, of value, of compassion, and of faith are fundamental questions that confront everyone at some level of existence. It is the response to these concerns that is the primary business of the Christian Church at every level.