The Night of Churches: Tool for Creative Mission or Just a Cultural Event? A Case Study from Latvia

Abstract

Since 2014, The Night of Churches (Baznīcu nakts) has been celebrated annually across Latvia, inviting visitors to experience churches through art, music, and creative expression. By engaging multiple senses rather than relying solely on verbal proclamation, the event offers a distinctive form of Christian witness in the public sphere.

In 2025, 197 churches participated, making it one of Latvia’s most visible church initiatives. While many participants describe the event as inspiring and spiritually meaningful, others question whether it continues to serve a missional purpose or has become a cultural event primarily.

This paper examines The Night of Churches as a case study of creative mission in a post-secular Central and Eastern European context. Using a qualitative and interdisciplinary methodology, it combines document analysis, theological reflection, and interpretive analysis of participant experience. Founding documents, promotional materials, and public reflections are analyzed through missiological perspectives, including holistic mission, public theology, and the theology of creativity rooted in the imago Dei and Trinitarian relationality.

The paper argues that The Night of Churches demonstrates both the potential and the ambiguity of creativity in mission. While it creates meaningful encounters between church and society, it also risks being perceived primarily as cultural entertainment rather than Christian witness.