Anyone reading this knows that congregations are unique organizations. On our best days, the work we do as congregational leaders has eternal significance. The way we organize to do this work is influenced in part by denominational history and polity, federal and state laws, organizational size and complexity and our understanding of Scripture. Some denominations have standards that apply to all congregations, which are helpful — until they aren’t. For example, one model for governance might work well in a church with fewer than 250 members. The same model might not work as well in a church with more than 2,500 members.
On PracticingOurFaith.org, Dorothy Bass points out that faith communities are shaped by the roles we inhabit, along with the rituals, laws and agreements that order our common life together. Throughout the various stages of a congregation’s existence, members need to discern how they will share with one another, how they will gather, how they will thrive and how they will organize to do the work God has called them to do.
In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, churches are rethinking their assumptions. We once took in-person assemblies for granted. Today, we know that virtual-only participants are with us for the foreseeable future, which presents new opportunities and challenges. How do the markers of a flourishing communal life take into account both in-person and virtual participation?
In her discussion of how leaders shape community, Bass reminds us that the church is an alternative community shaped by a vision of Christian discipleship. Therefore, how might Jesus’ view of power influence the way we make decisions as a church? How does a well-ordered community create space for people to use their gifts and talents? The way we structure our communal life together may be one of the church’s most significant testimonies about who we are. What are you noticing about the shape of your community?
