As far as furniture goes, I think the best of both venues is the “pew stacker,” a chair that locks tightly together to create a pew like effect.

The advantages are

1) they function like pews when linked

2) they function like chairs when unlinked and create flexible space for churches where space is limited

3) they’re easier on the church budget, and

4) they are less threatening to the unchurched who may have the tendency to associate pews negatively with established religion and not with the kind of community you describe in point 3.

The sense of community in point 3 really is the goal that churches need to strive for no matter how they furnish their facility.