Transcript St. John's UCC, Columbus, Ohio

Becoming the vital
congregations and disciples
that tomorrow requires
David Schoen
Congregational Vitality & Discipleship
Local Church Ministries
United Church of Christ
Including material used with permission from Rick
Morse, V.P. New Church Ministry,
Christian Church (DOC) Church Extension © 2007
And Matt Carlisle, Founder, Big Heart Design
All rights reserved


Exodus 3:13 - 15
Then Moses said to God, "If I
come to the people of Israel and
say to them, `The God of your
fathers has sent me to you,' and
they ask me, `What is his name?'
what shall I say to them?"
God said to Moses,
"I AM WHO I AM."
YAHWEH
I Will Be
What Tomorrow
Requires
The Future Question

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God will be what the future
demands,
but,…….
Will we be the churches and
disciples that tomorrow
requires?
Vital churches in the 21st Century
Missional, Relational & Conversational

Missional in purpose

Relational in outreach

Conversational in witness
Becoming the vital
congregations and disciples
that tomorrow requires
David Schoen
Congregational Vitality & Discipleship
Local Church Ministries
United Church of Christ
Including material used with permission from Rick
Morse, V.P. New Church Ministry,
Christian Church (DOC) Church Extension © 2007
And Matt Carlisle, Founder, Big Heart Design
All rights reserved
IT‘S A WHOLE NEW
WORLD
Taxes
done in India
McDonalds
order taken 2 states
away
Hundreds
of marketing choices
in any area
Instant
communication
44% of
Christians change
traditions/denominations
60-80% Unchurched
So how much have things changed?
Result of Karl Fisch’s, Colorado high school teacher, study on this
rapid change
What does it all
mean to the Church?
Churches are stressed today:
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Generational
Challenges
Birth rates
Cultural factors
Church changes
More generations today than ever…
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Gen Z (11-0)
Millennials (28-12)
Survivors (29-49)
Boomers (50-67)
Silents (68-85)
Builders (86+)
Each generation has
unique events that
formed it, and a
different view of life.
Dominant values and behaviors of
older boomers and older groups
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Whatever is right for the group is right for me
Appreciate sameness (i.e. Traditional liturgy)
Committee structures that are tried and true
Deferred pleasure until you have what you need
to make the purchase
Spirituality of place
Organize as a group to form a block (tenacious
about position)
Circle the wagons; get people on your team to
protect what’s important
35% of the US
Get it done!
Population
Dominant behaviors of young
boomers and younger groups:
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Ask first, what is good for the individual
Individualized style and differentiation
Appreciate Difference/multiple choices
Trained to look for segments of population so
that one size never fits all
See themselves as the correctors of the previous
generations
Spirituality of journey…find spiritual insight
wherever they are and in relationship, not
primarily place
65% of the US
Population
Tribal
Churches didn’t use to worry
about generations…
A few
transplants
Founders
Their
children
Grandchildren &
families
Stephen Compton
Many Churches have Lost a
generation or 2:
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Churches do not anticipate
loosing youth…(even though that
has been the pattern for 40
years)
Young adults report:
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Relocation after college or school
Difficulty in assimilation because
church style
IF they visit—little generational
affinity
Most mainline youth become
unchurched
Roof and McKinney
Another part of the issue is
“membership orientation”
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Pay dues…sign line
EXPECT care, access, privilege,
control, service by staff…etc.
Loses vision for a mission that
can be characterized by God’s
love in Christ for the world.
It is Exclusive
The post-modern world has little
interest in membership
organizations
POWER SURGE,
Michael Foss
The result is aging
congregations

While the
younger cohort
equals 65% of
the population,
they are only on
average about
30% of existing
congregations
Growing Gaps in
understanding
Age of Protestant Populations
Total Population
Total Protestants
Nondenom Charismatic Churches
Nondenom Evangelical Churches
Church of God in Christ
Assemblies of God
American Baptist Churches
Southern Baptist Convention
African Methodist Episcopal
United Methodist Church
Ev. Lutheran Church of America
Disciples of Christ
Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod
Presbyterian Church in America
Episcopal Church in the USA
Presbyterian Church USA
United Church of Christ
Anglican Church
18-29
20
17
18
19
29
14
18
13
14
11
8
10
11
12
11
8
11
7
30–49
39
38
54
51
33
41
36
37
31
34
36
33
32
29
29
31
27
26
50-64
25
26
22
22
28
33
23
27
30
29
29
21
31
32
34
30
34
33
65+
16
20
6
8
10
12
23
22
25
26
27
35
26
27
25
32
28
35
Birth Rates:

Since “the pill” Anglo birth rates dropping

1960 24/1000

2000 13/1000

2002 11.7
Mainline Anglos
have a very low
birth-rate due to
aging populations
VERY Little Biological Growth!
There has been significant change
in our racial-ethnic population
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Racial ethnic
composition of most
neighborhoods has
changed since
1960
Many
congregations have
little or no affinity
with their neighbors
Racial ethnic growth must be
recognized

Ethnic growth:
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In the next 50 years the
US Pop. Will grow by
50%. 90% of that growth
will be people of color
In 2000, Hispanics
became the largest racial
ethnic minority
The US has the 3rd largest
Spanish speaking
population
By 2050 there will be no
majority racial group
By 2100 Hispanics will be
the largest group
Racial Ethnic Birth Rates:
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African Am.
Native Am.
Asian Pac. I.
Hispanic
(Anglo 11.7)
16.1
13.8
16.5
22.6
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
Per 1000
Most future growth will
be in Racial Ethnic
congregations
There is also a shifting attitude
towards “organized” religion
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65% of the US
population cannot
remember a time when
clergy were respected.
Denominational loyalty
means nothing to most
people.
The average person
believes that no
particular religion has
claim to truth.
Shifting attitudes towards faith
1990, 2000 & 2004 Percentage of the Population Attending
a Christian Church on Any Given Weekend
25.0%
20.4%
18.7%
17.7%
20.0%
15.0%
1990
10.0%
2000
2004
9.2% 9.1% 9.0%
7.2%
6.2%
3.9%
5.0%
5.5%
3.4% 3.1%
0.0%
Evangelical
Mainline
Catholic
Total
Unchurched USA
•Since 1991 adult population
in the US grew by 15%.
•During that same period the
unchurched population grew
by 92%! 75 million US
adults do not attend church
'Unchurched' Americans
say church is 'full of
hypocrites' consider
Christianity to be more about
organized religion than
about loving God and
people, …“unchristian”.
New Generations –
Outsiders to Christian Faith

Age

61+
42-60
18-41
16-29
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% Outsiders
to Christianity
Population
23%
27%
37%
40%
12 Million
21 Million
34 Million
24 Million
44 percent -- agreed that
"Christians get on my nerves.“
Vast majority of young non-Christians
view Christianity as anti-gay, judgmental
hypocritical, unwelcoming, too political,
out of touch.
But 78 percent said they would be willing
to listen to someone who wanted to tell
them about his or her Christian beliefs.
Almost three-quarters -- 72 percent -agreed that God "actually exists“ and an
even larger percentage -- 86 percent -said they believed they could have a
good relationship with God without
church involvement.
21st Century Culture and Church
Change from Modern to Postmodern World

“It’s a Whole New World” – Anthony Robinson

Reason
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Where moderns wanted their preachers to explain
mystery, post-moderns want to experience mystery.
Optimism & Objectivity

Post-moderns are not so sure that salvation is
around the corner or that ‘objective’ science and
technology are our saviors. What some call
‘objective truth,’ is the interest of the powerful and
privileged.”
21st Century Culture and Church
Change from Modern to Postmodern World

Universality & The Grand Story

Post-moderns revel in the local, indigenous and the
particular. Post-moderns tend to be skeptics about
this big story. Small stories, particular stories, and
different versions of reality appeal to the postmodern mind.
 For Post-moderns
 Make it spiritual and experiential.
 Make it personal, real and authentic
 Make it about mission & ministry not committees
 Make it fit and reflect their lives
21st Century Culture and Church
Change from Modern to Postmodern World

While modernity was liberating and
powerful in many ways, it was also and
especially for Christianity, reductive.

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highly moral, but not especially spiritual
modern Christianity explained miracle
and mystery (away) and proposed moral
values and lessons as universal truth.
What was missing was spiritual
connection and experience, the
experience of a sacred, numinous,
transcendent Other.
Postmodern Culture
and Church

Christianity in North America has moved (or been
moved) away from its position of dominance
 loss not only of numbers
 but of power and influence within society.

Rather than occupying a central and influential place,
North American Christian churches are increasingly
marginalized,
 in our urban areas they represent a minority
movement
 It is now a truism to speak of North America as a
mission field.

Missional Church: A Vision for the Sending of the Church in North America, Edited
by Darrell Guder, the Gospel and Our Culture Network
Becoming the vital
congregations and disciples
that tomorrow requires
We are all at a threshold,
a ‘kairos’ moment
It means CHANGE!
Congregational life has
changed:
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Mimeograph
Yellow pages
Volunteers
Hospital visits
Organ
Stairs
Committees
Budgets
It means CHANGE!
PHYLLIS TICKLE’S basis thesis is that
every 500 years, the Church goes
through a rummage sale, and cleans out
the old forms of spirituality and replaces
it with new ones.
Play Video
Change = Opportunity
In these new times….
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There is a future for the church
The stillspeaking God calls us to be
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Churches that the tomorrow requires
Churches that new times demand
 Missional in purpose
 Relational in outreach
 Conversationl in witness
Missio Dei – “Mission of God”
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The real problem is much more deeply rooted than
programmatic and methodological solutions.

It has to do with who we are and what we are for.

The real issues of the church are spiritual and
theological.
In The Other Side of 1984: Questions for the Churches
Bishop Leslie Newbigin analyzed the challenge
presented by the changing context of Western society.

What had once been a Christendom society was
now clearly post-Christian and in many ways antiChristian.
The missiological consensus that Newbigin focused on
may be summarized with the term ‘missio Dei’,
mission of God.
Missional Church
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“The Church exists to serve God’s Mission”
Mission as Missio Dei, UCC Committee on Structure, 1992
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The church of Jesus Christ is the instrument
and sign of God’s mission and realm.
God’s mission is calling and sending us, the
church of Jesus Christ, to be a missionary
church in our own societies, in the cultures
in which we find ourselves.
Vital Churches in 21st Century
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Local Churches are
Missional Communities,
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moving from membership based social
organizations to
discipleship forming missional
communities.
Our mission focus is transforming
lives, by transforming both individuals
and wider social culture.
Difference between church with
mission and missional church

Mission in 20th Century became program
of church
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Mission boards emerged
Mission workers became professional
Mission ‘work’ become financial support
Mission arena was someplace else
Our challenge today is to move from
church with mission to missional church.
Vital congregations discern
God’s call and mission

The greatest characteristic of a vital
congregation is the ability to
articulate and live God’s purpose.

What is God calling this church to
be and do at this time, in this place,
with the gifts we have on this corner
of God’s realm that we are placed?
Identity and Mission


Reverend Otis Moss III from Trinity
United Church of Christ in Chicago
speaks on Church Vitality and
Discipleship
www.ucc.org/vitality/ready-setgrow/video/otis-moss.html
Missional Purpose
Cathedral of Hope UCC

The Mission of the Cathedral of Hope
is to reclaim Christianity as a faith
of extravagant grace, radical
inclusion and relentless compassion.
We are a people of compassion
We are a people of inclusion
We are a people of liberation
We are a people of hope
We are a people of Jesus
Missional Church outreach to
community and neighborhood
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God is still speaking to us in culture and
community.
God’s purpose is that our communities are
not forsaken or the land desolate.
Church no longer center of community, but
it can be good neighbor.
Church can accompany community to be
all that God’s realm would want the
community to be.
Vital churches are vital in
community where they are located
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No congregation can afford to ignore its context
or those in the surrounding community.
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“Congregations that live only for themselves are
‘starting a trip toward extinction’.”
Herb Miller, How to Build a Magnetic Church
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“Vital congregations are vital on the corner of
God’s realm where they are planted.”
Gil Rendle
Theology makes a difference
in missional focus
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Mainline Protestant and historically
black denomination churches engage
with their communities by caring for
others and advocating on behalf of
those in need.
Conservative Protestants typically
involve worshipers talking about their
faith and inviting people to participate in
community of faith.
Vital congregations balance their
attention between both.
Community Involvement = Growth?
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Involvement or focus on the community does not
necessarily lead to growth
Congregations scoring high on focusing on the
community place considerable emphasis on serving
the needs of those outside the congregation.
They may de-emphasize or overlook the
importance of inviting people to become part of the
congregation and welcoming them warmly when
they visit.
Focusing on the community must be one of the
other aspects of vitality, including spirituality and
faith formation, welcoming new people, meaningful
worship, caring for children and youth, engagement
in the congregation and a sense of belonging.
Places of Promise
Location, Location, Location?

Congregational Life Survey points to the relative
unimportance of location in predicting either
congregational strength or numerical growth.
 Congregational location plays a minimal role in
the numerical growth that congregations
experience.
 Few measures of location had an impact on
strength or growth.
 Vital growing congregations, as well as non-vital
declining congregations can be found in any
location.
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Places of Promise: Finding Strength in Your Congregation’s Location: US
Congregation Survey 2008
The One important factor

The one location factor that does play a role
in congregational vitality is the match
between a congregation’s worshipers and
the people in the community who are
between 18 and 44 years of age. This
critical age group must be recruited and
openly welcomed in our congregations and
we need to ensure our worship and
activities meet their needs.
Places of Promise
Finding Strength in Your Congregation’s Location
www.uscongregations.org
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Traditionally we think about context as
location. In this view:
Community context determines who we were,
what we are, and what our future holds.
Congregations are passive—location has the
upper hand!
Leaders use contractual language about
location—our location is a piece of real estate
with a specific land value, appraised as a retail
outlet might appraise a location. It’s a
commodity.
Places of Promise
Finding Strength in Your Congregation’s Location
www.uscongregations.org
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Instead—Think about context as place.
Location is God’s gift to us. The congregation
is in this place at this time for a reason—God’s
reason.
Congregations can achieve strength and
effectiveness in their present location.
God claimed this place for us; the place claims
us as people of faith. We have inherited this
place from those who first worshiped here, and
we have an obligation to use it wisely and care
for it.
Places of Promise
Finding Strength in Your Congregation’s Location
www.uscongregations.org
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Questions to be asked:
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How did our congregation come to be in this
location? What is our birth story?
Why has God planted us here?
What significant things have happened in this
location that continue to shape our ministry?
What do we believe are the strengths of our location?
What steps can we take to build on the strengths of
our location? Who is in our community that we can
reach out to?
Missional Congregations
Places of Promise
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Sister Act (really!)
St. John’s UCC, Columbus OH
Cathedral of Hope UCC, Dallas TX
Plymouth Congregational UCC
Lawrence, KS
Asylum Hill Congregational UCC,
Hartford CT
Emmaus Road Church, Seattle WA
Missional in Purpose
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Vital congregations
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Vital congregations
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are sent churches
Vital congregations
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clear sense of purpose
reach out beyond themselves
Vital congregations
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reproduce new congregations and
new ministries
Missional in Purpose
Relational in Outreach

Ministry in 21st Century is Relational

Build community with those outside the
church

Get to know the unchurched people
and culture
Relational in Outreach

Bridge the gap by building relationships

The days of waiting for people to come
to church to welcome them are over.

Instead of waiting inside, we go outside
Relational in Outreach

What do you think when you hear the
word….

EVANGELISM ?
Celtic Evangelism
In The Celtic Way of Evangelism:
How Christianity Can Reach the
West . . . Again, George Hunter
writes about the difference between
what he describes as the evangelism
approach in Roman and Celtic
Christianity.
Celtic Evangelism
Roman Model
Presentation
Decision
Fellowship
Celtic Model
Fellowship
Ministry and
Conversation
Belief, Invitation
to Commitment
Belonging and Believing
Christianity is more caught than taught!
As Professor Robin Gill observes,
belonging comes before believing. For
this reason, evangelism is now about
helping people to belong so that they
can believe.
Missional Outreach

Go to where the unchurched are:
Coffee shops, Book stores
Parks, Gyms

“I stopped wondering about how to draw
younger folks into my church and started
focusing on how to draw my congregation out
of its building and into relationship with the
world outside its doors.”
Go Forth….
Into the Virtual World.
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In Asia, Europe and North America—an
entire generation has experienced the
Internet as a means for maintaining
relationships with family and friends.
The Internet is a lifeline for users whose
mobility is limited by disability, chronic
illness or advanced age.
The Internet is where we can find and
engage seekers.
The Socialization of the Web
You Now Control the
Message!
The socialization of the web…..is now forcing a
renaissance that is transforming information
distribution, human interaction and everything…..
Brian Solis, “Unveiling New Influencers” 6/29/2009
Modern day example
Costs are nominal or FREE!
Relational in Outreach
Conversational in Witness

Conversational ministry is central to
the future of the church in 21st Century

Count conversations, not conversions

Brian McLaren, More Ready than You
Think
Conversational Ministry

The postmodern world calls for disciples
who reach out to a world that is
hungering for good conversation about
faith, values, hope, meaning, purpose,
goodness, beauty, truth, life after death,
life before death and God. Engaging in
everyday faith conversations will not only
help others become Christians, it will
help us become better Christians, who
know and love the still speaking God
more than ever.
Conversational in Witness

Spiritual Seekers want to talk.

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We are the ones not talking.

Reverence for God – silence and service.

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Holy Conversations – Richard Peace
Tell it Like it is: Reclaiming the Practice of
Testimony - Lillian Daniel
An unchurched world doesn’t know
why we do what we do.
Conversational in Witness

Buzz Marketing

Evangelism
One beggar telling another where there is
food

Come and See!
Witness and Invitation
UCC-Style
“Tricking” the church into Evangelism – Taking it back!
What do you say when
someone asks you about
your comma?
“For us it means God’s not stuck.
God still has more light and truth for
us today.”
“My church believes that God is still
speaking to us today.”
“It means that no matter how bad
things are in my life or in the world,
God is in the midst of it.”
Are you still speaking?
Are You Ready to Talk?
Why do you love your church?
What impact has believing in God
and following Jesus made in your
life?
How is God still speaking in your
life?
God is still speaking,
Through you
and me!
Eight Challenges
Richard Peace

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
We need to learn how to talk about Jesus
We need to create spaces within which both
seekers and committed Christians can
explore together their spiritual journeys.
We need to learn how to invite others
We need to move beyond our stereotypes,
fears and negative experiences of
evangelism for new creative and wholistic
ways of outreach.
Eight Challenges
Richard Peace

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
We need to heal the split evangelism and
justice issues so it is a both/and and not an
either /or.
We need to find the energy to engage in and
to sustain an outreach ministry.
We need to stay open to transformation, our
own transformation even as we invite others
to be transformed.
We need to learn how to discuss all of this in
non-theological terms.
Where will we be in 2020….?

The still speaking God


calls us to become
Churches that the Future Requires
 Missional in purpose

Relational in outreach

Conversational in witness
And in Conclusion……
Seven Missional Lessons

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

God is calling the Church to be a missional
community in an unchurched world.
Missional congregation is to be a sign and
instrument of God’s realm in its community.
Missional congregation listens for and seeks
out the still speaking God in culture and its
community.
Missional congregation finds transformation
and vitality in its location.
And in Conclusion……
Seven Missional Lessons



Missional congregation is driven to discern,
articulate and live God’s calling and purpose
for church and community.
Missional congregation is relational and
conversational in outreach.
Missional congregation engages culture’s
tools, especially the web to reach out to
world of seekers.
Resources for Missional Congregations

Vitality Resources on www.ucc.org/vitality
 “It’s a Whole New World” Anthony Robertson
 Vitality Interviews
 Vitality Powerpoint - Retreat Resources
www.ucc.org/vitality/retreat-resources/
 Web ministry resources


www.ucc.org/vitality/web-university/freeresources-for-internet-ministry.html
MissionInsite demographics

www.missioninsite.com
Two questions


Where are signs of vitality in St.
John’s UCC today?
What one thing stood out for you
from this presentation and what
might it mean for your
congregation and ministry?
In these challenging new
times….


There is a future for the church
The stillspeaking God calls us to be


Churches that the tomorrow requires
Churches that new times demand
 Missional in purpose
 Relational in outreach
 Conversational in witness
Thank You!

Thank you for your Vital Leadership

Thank you for Your Support of

Changing Lives: That’s Our Churches’ Wider Mission