What is in Kelvin's Head?

  • 75 questions for people who want to help churches to grow

    Helping churches to grow is hard work but there are some things that need to be addressed to help congregations to grow which seem to be fairly consistent across churches which are otherwise very different in style. Some time ago I published two lots of 25 questions for people who want to help churches to grow.

    I thought it was time for 25 more. The new ones are the first 25 below and then come the ones that I’ve published before.

     

    1. If someone were to hear about the congregation from a non-congregational member, what is the most likely thing they would be told?
    2. What is the smallest number of words you could use to accurately explain the ethos of the congregation?
    3. What are those words?
    4. What strategies do you have to get good quality photographs of life of the congregation to use online?
    5. Which of the arts does the congregation use in its worship and regular life?
    6. How do the church education programmes relate to contemporary culture?
    7. Do things start on time?
    8. What steps have you implemented to ensure you don’t have the same meetings over and over again?
    9. Do you have a set length of time for meetings and does someone stop them after they have gone on enough?
    10. How do you stop people making decisions in the car park before or after the meetings?
    11. Who chooses the hymns?
    12. Why do they choose the hymns they do?
    13. When was the last time the congregation learned a new hymn it sang more than once?
    14. How many different styles of singing the psalms do you use and is that enough?
    15. How many opportunities are there for weekly non-eucharistic worship?
    16. Which would attract more people, a course in meditation or a course on prayer?
    17. Is anyone working for the local congregation underpaid?
    18. Does your bishop/presbytery/judicatory body or person help enable growth or are they a distraction from it?
    19. Is there are three year budget?
    20. Is the congregation moving into or out of debt?
    21. What percentage of people in the congregation would have a basic understanding about the congregation’s finances?
    22. Does anyone ever break copyright law whilst acting for the congregation?
    23. How do you share good news about the denomination that you belong to?
    24. When did you last issue a call to prayer for the congregation and what was it for?
    25. If someone wants to make a confession is it clear who they should approach and how they should get in touch?
    26. If you didn’t have to go to your church on Sunday would you still go?
    27. Are the clergy happy?
    28. Are the musicians happy?
    29. Does the congregation have a stronger ethos than that of its denomination?
    30. What one thing could you change this week to make the worship better?
    31. Why didn’t you make that change last week?
    32. What steps are you taking to make the phrase “All are Welcome” come true?
    33. Do you do church business on a Sunday after church or is there a better time for that?
    34. In the next month are you more likely to spend time on ecumenical activities or church growth activities?
    35. Do people who leave become ex-members who have disappeared or do they still contribute to the life and ministry of the place?
    36. What is the noticeboard like?
    37. What is the first thing you see when you come through the door?
    38. Did you implement the recommendations of the last “mystery worshipper” you asked to give you a candid assessment?
    39. Which church events in the next six months will be newsworthy locally?
    40. Which church events in the next six months will be reported in the local media?
    41. Do you have enough staff and who decides this?
    42. What would your clergy really like to do that they can’t because of the laity?
    43. What would your laity really like to do that they can’t because of the clergy?
    44. Which would attract young families more – a bible-based week long summer activity for children or letting it be known that gay people are welcome in your church?
    45. Can you email those members of your congregation who want to receive regular updates?
    46. Do you email those members of your congregation who want to receive regular updates?
    47. Has someone done the work required to make sure emails sent to large numbers of people don’t end up in spam boxes?
    48. Who in the congregation has gifts that could be better used doing a different job in the congregation than what they are currently doing?
    49. Who is your volunteer co-ordinator and is it obvious how to contact them?
    50. Can you volunteer without being a member of the church?
    51. Do you have a decent church website?
    52. Is it up to date?
    53. Is it responsive – ie does it work on mobile phones?
    54. Does your own online profile feature your ideas and hopes and dreams other than a desire for people to turn up to church?
    55. Do you know what you are doing with twitter and facebook?
    56. Who could you learn more about social media from?
    57. Do you have a compelling reason why people should come to your church other than where it is or what denomination it belongs to?
    58. Can everyone in the church tell you in one sentence what that compelling reason is?
    59. What is your beginners’ course like?
    60. What comes after the beginners’ course?
    61. Do people like the preaching?
    62. Do people enjoy the music?
    63. Have you dealt with conflicts from the past?
    64. Are the people friendly?
    65. Do you have any new groups starting soon?
    66. Do you talk about making the world a better place?
    67. How will people experience joy if they come to your congregation?
    68. If someone from your past turned up unexpectedly at worship how would it make you feel?
    69. How do you identify newcomers and what do you offer them?
    70. What problems will arise if you do grow and how will you deal with them?
    71. Do claims that you welcome everyone stop you working at welcoming those who traditionally find it hard to find a home in church?
    72. Do you use language that is inclusive of everyone?
    73. How do you know?
    74. Is there any identifiable group of people that you can’t explicitly say are welcome because of how an individual or group in the congregation will react?
    75. Do you want to grow or not?
    , ,

10 responses to “So, let me get this right…”

  1. Andrew Page Avatar
    Andrew Page

    I think you have understood if correctly (or at least as fully as it can be understood).

    This just shows how confused the church has become, or how keen it is to tie itself into the proverbial knots to appease both progressives and traditionalists.

    Either way, this position is both absurd and intellectually unsustainable.

    Reply
  2. Kirstin Avatar
    Kirstin

    Kelvin can I ask what submissions you are referring to, is there a new one?

    Reply
  3. Joan H Craig Avatar
    Joan H Craig

    I think that, once marriage law is passed, current civil partnerships can convert to marriage by filling form, etc. Don’t think they said what happens if the couple want a religious marriage – or did I miss that?
    If our churches persist in saying no to marriage, wouldn’t it be better to do the blessing after they’ve converted their civil status – as in some countries where every marriage is a civil ceremony, and any religious service is done afterwards
    I hope everyone has completed the most recent consultation paper

    Reply
  4. Rhea Avatar
    Rhea

    I think that the church wants to have its cake and eat it too. It wants everyone to be happy, and this is probably the best way that it knows to do this.

    Is it ridiculous? Of course.

    Reply
  5. Kelvin Holdsworth Avatar
    Kelvin Holdsworth

    There is to be a new one. I’ve not seen it. I understand that the position that the Faith and Order Board is holding to is that “church teaching” is what Canon 31 says – that and nothing else and therefore we are doctrinally against change.

    Is that not the case?

    Reply
    1. kelvin Avatar
      kelvin

      So far as I understand it, the SEC has not moved in its position since the first response at all.

      The first response included this:
      Question 10: Do you agree that the law in Scotland should be changed to allow same sex marriage?
      The Canons of the Scottish Episcopal Church (Canon 31) state that the doctrine of the Church is that marriage is ‘a physical, spiritual and mystical union of one man and one woman created by their mutual consent of heart, mind and will thereto, and as a holy and lifelong estate instituted of God’. In the light of that Canon, there is no current basis for agreeing that the law should be changed to view marriage as possible between two people of the same sex.

      Reply
    2. Kirstin Avatar
      Kirstin

      The SEC’s last response was in line with what the current law was, indeed still is, this consultation asks a very different question. To which the answer ‘well it isn’t legal, so we can’t say’, (I paraphrase) can’t be the answer this time, can it?
      Of course Canon 31 also states it is a “lifelong estate” but had clause 4 added at a later date to allow for divorce and remarriage.

      Reply
  6. Rev David Coleman Avatar
    Rev David Coleman

    I was watching the evidence to the Westminster parliamentary committees the other day. In all these things, even from churches which are prepared to be tentatively in favour, or declining to be opposed, what is missing from all the evidence is the human experience of joy and delight that actually characterises a true and good wedding, of any combination of partners. How can we get across the compelling and converting happiness when processes take the form they do?

    Reply
  7. Rosemary Hannah Avatar
    Rosemary Hannah

    Is there any way of getting hold of the board – of ordinary church members getting hold of it and making it listen?? I mean I know my approach tends to lack in subtlety what it makes up for in directness, but then, well, it is very direct.

    Reply
  8. Kimberly Avatar
    Kimberly

    Rosemary, of all the many beautiful sentences you have written, that is the very very best.

    Reply

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