Valuing the Small Church for What It Is
Small churches are the Church’s secret weapon.
They just don’t know it!
Here’s the paradox of church work.
The mission is to reach all the world, right?
Only a small percentage of the world can afford to support “church” the way it is understood in the West. Even we in the West are having a tough time of it! Do we really welcome the ill and indigent to be part of the economic burden of Church?
The Church has set itself up for perpetual failure. It blames the few people who are supporting it for that failure. Result: morale is in the pits. Visitors sense gloom!
The people who still support neighborhood congregations are very good people. Passionate. Self-sacrificing. Dedicated beyond measure!
The Church, blinded by economics, saps as much from them as possible before exercising hierarchical powers — constitutional or not — throwing its strongest supporters to the curb (literally in Redeemer’s case!).
Forced church closings, where hierarchy self-righteously grabs assets is bad enough. When this is done by design it is downright sinful.
Church regional bodies have been taught to ignore struggling churches and wait them out. It’s right in the book used to train regional managers of various denominations (co-authored by SEPA’s own Bishop Claire Burkat).
“You do not have the luxury of giving everyone who asks for help whatever time you have available. Some tough decisions need to be made as to where your Regional Body is going to invest time, energy, and resources. Thinking in terms of TRIAGE is a most responsible thing to do at the present time. Congregations that will die within the next ten years should receive the least amount of time and attention. They should receive time that assists them to die with celebration and dignity. Offer these congregations a ‘caretaker’ pastor who would give them quality palliative care until they decide to close their doors. It is the kind of tough-minded leadership that will be needed at the helm if your organization is to become a Transformational Regional Body.”
There it is in black and white. Don’t waste time and resources on congregations that will close in ten years (if you do nothing).
A decade is long enough to fight two world wars!
And so the premise for mission changes. This part is not written down in congregational mission statements.
Churches want people who can support the way things are. Even better if they could support the way things were. Property and the staff come first. Programming and mission a distant last.
What would happen if the Church concentrated — really concentrated — on small church ministry? What if they found a way to help congregations be small, proud and strong — as opposed to dictating ministry solutions that work only in larger settings.
Small churches still have one big thing going for them. People still tend to prefer smaller churches!
It’s up to the smaller churches to insist on a change in attitude. This may not be as hard as it seems. Together, small churches outnumber large churches.
Find your voice! While you still have one!