Could ‘hybrid shared ministry’ help struggling congregations survive?
A pastor shares his experience with a new model in which a larger congregation helps a smaller one by digitally sharing resources, sermons and other assets.
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Is church membership a privilege to enjoy or a responsibility to fulfill?
Church membership should not reflect the exclusivity that often comes with membership in our culture. Instead, it should embody the generous hospitality of God’s love.
Link to author Chris Aho
By
Chris Aho
Director, Cooperative Baptist Fellowship Thriving Congregations Initiative
The church isn’t dying. It’s being remade
As the 1950s model declines, new ways of being the church are popping up all over, and gospel truths are now being found in new containers, writes a social entrepreneur.
Link to author Shannon Hopkins
By
Shannon Hopkins
Co-founder & lead cultivator, RootedGood
As more pastors age and retire, churches appear to be facing a succession crisis, a study says
According to recent research, the average age of pastors is rising and the number of younger — and aspiring — clergy appears to be in decline.
Link to author Shari Finnell
By
Shari Finnell
Journalist
Larger churches have had an easier, more successful transition to using technology after the pandemic
New research reveals uncertainty about technology use among smaller churches, while for larger churches it has become “second nature.”
Link to author Shari Finnell
By
Shari Finnell
Journalist
Bearing fruit beyond having children
Some churches may prioritize families with young children, but they should also remember to value all members, an Episcopal priest writes.
Link to author Elizabeth Felicetti
By
Elizabeth Felicetti
Priest and author
The brain, the heart and the soul: How three Catholic churches are merging to create a new type of parish
Three congregations have avoided some of the disruption of a reorganization in Chicago by leaning into their individual identities while forming a new whole.
Link to author Claire Zulkey
By
Claire Zulkey
Journalist
Church attendance is still evolving in a post-pandemic world
The latest findings from a five-year study reveal church attendance is recovering but without a discernible pattern.
Link to author Shari Finnell
By
Shari Finnell
Journalist
What happens when an ‘Old First Church’ needs to change?
Eight years ago, First United Methodist Church of Miami faced the fact that its history and prestige weren’t going to keep it alive forever. It has found a way to honor its past and grow into the future.
Audrey Warren
Kenneth H. Carter Jr.
An underserved neighborhood needed a community center, not another church
After a satellite campus of a large church struggled, a pastor decided to reformat his church into a community center to address needs in his hometown of Blue Island, Illinois.
Link to author Laura Rodríguez
By
Laura Rodríguez
Research-based guidelines for leading the church in a new era of ministry
How can Christian leaders adapt to the changes the pandemic has brought? A scholar who has studied pastors and volunteers during the past three years offers suggestions for adjusting to a new reality.
Link to author Eileen R. Campbell-Reed
By
Eileen R. Campbell-Reed
Visiting associate professor, Union Theological Seminary
