Ecumenical study shows why congregations grow

[angli_fan]

[from Episcopal News Service]
By Mary Frances Schjonberg

A plan to recruit and incorporate newcomers, clarity of mission and ministry, contemporary worship, involvement of children in worship, geographic location, a website and the absence of conflict are key factors in why some congregations in America are growing, according to the latest national survey of U.S. faith communities.
The survey, sponsored by the Cooperative Congregational Studies Partnership (CCSP), found that wanting to grow is not enough. Congregations that grow must plan for growth.

"Congregations that developed a plan to recruit members in the last year were much more likely to grow than congregations that had not," according to a report on the survey written by C. Kirk Hadaway, Director of Research at the Episcopal Church Center in New York.

The survey findings are available in "FACTs on Growth." The data was taken from the Faith Communities Today 2005 (FACT2005) survey of 884 randomly sampled congregations of all faith traditions in the United States. The survey updates results from a survey taken in 2000, and is the latest in CCSP's series of trend-tracking national surveys of U.S. congregations.

www.episcopalchurch.org/3577_80898_ENG_HTM.htm

[anglicansablaze]

Predominantly liberal and somewhat liberal congregations are somewhat more likely to have experienced growth during the last five years than more conservative congregations.

I just finished surveying four of the five surviving Episcopal churches in the Jackson Purchase region of western Kentucky. All could be described as predominantly liberal or somewhat liberal. All the clergy in the region definitely can be labelled liberal. My survey does not support this finding - at least not in this region. The Purchase Area is the most conservative region of Kentucky and the liberal Episcopal Church is retreating in this region. The region had six Episcopal churches but one was closed in 2005. A second church looks like it will be closed in the near future. Of the five remaining churches, four are missions. Only one is self-supporting. It provides the priest for two of the mission churches. A retired priest serves a third mission church. The last time the Episcopal Church planted a new church in the region was in 1970. At least two of the mission churches have been subsidized by the diocese in one way or another for the past 50 years.

I will agree with the finding that a church must be intentional in recruiting new members. It is an interesting study but what was the purpose of publishing it - to promote the idea that liberal congregations are viable and can grow? The two Purchase Area Episcopal churches that appear to be holding their own may be benefitting from their local demographics. One is located in the Purchase Area's chief town and only city. The other is located in a university town.