C. Ellis Nelson, Editor, Congregations: Their Power to Form and Transform. Westminster John Knox Press, 1988.
Referenced in: Congregational Culture, Church Identity
LifeandLeadership.com Summary
For many years, this has been the standard resources for understanding the role of identity in congregational life. It is the result of a project by a team of practical theologians who worked with focus groups of church members to create a tool for congregational renewal. While not its express purpose, it functions as a kind of primer on church identity. The authors believe that helping church leaders unpack the meaning of the images they use can be an important tool to “create, sustain, critique, and transform the unique characteristics of congregations.” (2) This book can help a congregation increase self-awareness on their images, and know the strengths and weaknesses of those images for healthy mission.
Essays cover the role of identity in understanding congregational life, the importance of memory and history in shaping a healthy vision for the future, and the tendency of congregations to unwittingly conform to their social contexts yet also miss opportunities for faithful ministry that are unique to that context. One essay discusses the value of clarifying images to help congregations understand their reasons for congregating and engaging mission.
One of the most helpful chapters is Carl Dudley, “Using Church Images for Commitment, Conflict, and Renewal.” Dudley conveys the power of identity by saying, “every motivation toward church activity, from its public appeals for participation and support to its emotional conflicts and intimate satisfactions, is grounded in images of what the members believe the church both is and ought to be.” (89) He surveys various church images as drawn from scripture, church size, social location, and relationship with culture (e.g. Niebuhr, Christ and Culture).
After this survey, Dudley synthesizes these into “Eight Images that Teach Faith in Community” which he and the team of authors believe are basic to the commitments, conflicts, and energies for renewal in most congregational settings. These eight images assume members are committed to the Lordship of Jesus Christ, but that people understand and express their commitments differently. The images imply priorities of faithful Christian behavior and belief, which are not better or holier in themselves but may be more or less relevant in a particular situation. Each of them is legitimate, and each can be corrupted or carried to an extreme. Individuals and congregations may hold two or more of these images, and usually do, even though they might appear to be in theological contradiction. In some settings there is a kind of balance among the images, each needing the others to generate a larger and more holistic expression of the Christian faith. (97)
These images are focused on one of four different questions:
- What relationships hold us together? e.g. Christian Family Church and Christian Nurture Church
- How do we carry the faith? Old First (Denominational) Church and Christian Sanctuary Church
- How do we serve the community? Christian Citizen Church and Christian Servant Church
- How do we seek change in others? Social Prophet Church and Faith Evangelist Church
Dudley provides a complete description of each of these images, including their strengths and weaknesses, and the implications each has for the way congregations are led.
This is followed by a fascinating discussion by Donald Miller on congregations as “living stories,” which looks at the importance of congregational ethos, commitment, and context as factors that help or hinder the conception of vision and the energy to fulfill that vision. The remaining chapters address how these church images affect congregational worship, belonging, communication, and teaching.
Anyone wishing to understand the role of identity in congregational life should start with this text.
From the Publisher
C. Ellis Nelson – noted author, Christian educator, and church leader – collaborated with and collected the works of ten leaders experienced in congregational affairs to design a resource that helps ministers and lay leaders understand the dynamics of congregations so they may use that spiritual energy to invigorate their own congregations.
About the Author
C. Ellis Nelson has more than forty years of experience in Christian education, preaching, and teaching. Among his many books are How Faith Matures and Where Faith Begins.
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