Introduction to Church Dynamics

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Introduction to Church Dynamics

• Building Healthy Congregations

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Introduction Overview

• Today, we will
• View two short case studies that will help us
  think of our congregations as interactive,
  interconnected emotional systems.
• Discuss how change even small change can
  affect an interconnected system.
• Draw some learnings from the case study that can
  help us understand the dynamics in our
  congregations

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System Thinking

• Things do not exist independently, only in
  relationship to something else
• The whole cannot be understood by simply
  understanding each part
• Each part contributes to the whole , things
  function as they do because of the presence of
  one another
• Change is one part produces change in other parts
• Systems like equilibrium, status quo.
• Interactions between different people affect the
  whole
• Relationships are not merely interesting-thats
  all there is

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Discussion

• When change in one part of a relationship
  produces change in other parts of the
  relationship, you know you are dealing with a
  system.
• In the recent past, what change(s) has your
  congregation faced?
• How did this change result in changes in other
  parts of the congregation?
• What parts were affected most? Why?
• How did this change influence members and staff?
  How did people (including you!) react?

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Anxiety

• We live in the midst of anxiety. It is an
  automatic response to change or threats real or
  imagined.
• Healthy systems handle anxiety with resiliency.
• Unhealthy systems do not.
• Anxiety is contagious. Peer pressure, group
  think, and mob panic are examples.
• It acts like a virus and can become out of
  control.
• It does not have a simple, single cause.
• Usually focuses on people in two positions the
  most responsible - leaders - and the most
  vulnerable. People focus anxiety somewhere.

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Video

• The Anxious Congregation
• The Responsible Congregation

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Discussion small groups

• Have you faced any situation in your congregation
  similar to what happened in the video?
• What are some of the actions and reactions found
  in the Anxious Congregations (1) leadership?
• How do those actions and reactions differ from
  those of the Non-Anxious Congregation (2)?
•  Have you seen any of these actions and reactions
  (anxious or non-anxious) at play in your
  congregation?
• What was the situation and result?

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Healthy Congregations Workshops

• Fall Cleveland and Winter Columbus
• Starting Sept. 19, First Unitarian Church of
  Cleveland (Shaker Heights) will host a four
  session series of free workshops focused on
  strengthening congregational health and
  resiliency in the face of societal and
  congregational anxiety.  
• Congregational lay leaders, clergy, and other
  interested folk are invited to participate. The
  series will be facilitated by the Rev. Joan Van
  Becelaere, Ohio-Meadville District Executive.

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Healthy Congregations Workshops

• Sept. 19 Creating Healthy Congregations and
  Healthy Congregations Respond to Anxiety and
  Change. (congregational dynamics and systems
  theory, the nature of group anxiety and its
  effects on congregations)
•  Oct 3 Leadership in Healthy Congregations (how
  healthy leaders can learn to be
  self-differentiated and successfully work with
  group anxiety)

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Healthy Congregations Workshops

• Oct 17 Relationships in Healthy Congregations
  (how anxiety affects congregational
  relationships, forming healthy, supportive
  relationships in healthy communities)
•  Oct 31 - Healthy Congregations Nurture Generous
  People (the larger view of stewardship, nurturing
  healthy generosity of time, talent and treasure)

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Healthy Congregations Workshops

• Each Saturday, gather for coffee at 830 am. The
  workshop starts at 9 am and ends by 1230 pm.
• Winter The same series of workshops, (830 am
  1230 pm), will be offered by First UU Church of
  Columbus and North UU Congregation in Lewis
  Center on
• January 23, (Columbus)
• February 20, (Lewis Center)
• March 20, (Columbus)
• April 17 (Columbus)

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Healthy Congregations Workshops

• Registration is free, but advance registration is
  needed so we know how many chairs to set up,
  handouts to make and how much coffee to brew.
• Please register on the Ohio-Meadville website at
  www.ohiomeadville.org.

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Bibliography

• Congregational Leadership in Anxious Times by
  Peter Steinke, Alban Institute
• Leading Change in the Congregation Spiritual and
  Organizational Tools for Leaders by Gilbert R.
  Rendle. Alban Institute.
• Memories, Hope and Conversations Appreciative
  Inquiry and Congregational Change by Mark Lau
  Branson. Alban Institute.

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• Thank you for being here today!