|
From PRAXIS - a quarterly magazine of Hartford Seminary
June
1998, Vol. X No. 1
Painting a Portrait of
American Religion Congregational Studies as a Vehicle for Interfaith Cooperation
- Imagine, if you will, a
large hotel conference table encircled by high ranking representatives
of a more broadly interfaith coalition of religious bodies than you have ever experienced before: Assemblies
of God, Baha'i, Muslim, Southern Baptist, Jewish, Mormon, the nine major historic black
denominations, Christian Orthodox, independent mega churches, Mennonite, Roman Catholic,
Unitarian Universalist, Wisconsin Synod Lutheran, Church of Christ, Church of the Nazarene
and 15 or so old line Protestant denominations.
- And imagine that the
conference room walls are lined with newsprint, each piece the attempt of a particular
religious body to map out its image of a faithful and effective congregation.
- And imagine the
conversation as participants both affirm and puzzle over their commonality and their
difference.
- And imagine that you are
Hartford Seminary's Carl Dudley and David Roozen trying to keep the diverse group civilly
engaged and constructively on task.
Such are the reality,
the wonder and the challenge of the Cooperative Congregational Studies Project (CCSP) a
merging of congregational studies and interfaith for cooperation that few institutions
other than Hartford Seminary ever would have imagined.
This April, after two years
of planning meetings large and small versions of that described above and literally
hundreds of phone calls, letters, memos, faxes and e mail messages, the Seminary's Center
for Social and Research Religious Research received a $760,000 grant from the Lilly
Endowment, to be matched by more than $800,000 in in kind contributions from participating
denominations and religious groups.
According to Dudley and
Roozen, the Center's co directors, the project grant will coordinate this interfaith
coalition's realization of two primary goals: To complete a genuinely cooperative
interfaith research project unparalleled in the breadth of participating religious groups
and the number of participating congregations specifically, a cooperative national survey
of congregations in the year 2000; and To develop and implement plans for utilizing the
survey research results in ways that will be appropriate within each participating group
to strengthen congregations and the structures that support them.
The estimated 350,000
congregations in the United States represent a unique set of voluntary organizations that
have had and continue to have a pervasive influence on their members and the life of the
communities of which they are a part. Despite available research technology and an
increasing interest in congregational life, existing studies of congregations are
extremely limited in their "denominational" orientation and substantive focus.
To fill in the gaps of
information and appreciation, the widely inclusive, national, multi faith study of
congregations envisioned by the CCSP will provide the first comprehensive portrait of
congregations in the United States. Additionally, for several participating groups the
effort will provide the first ever statistical profile of their congregations and their
first, disciplined use of congregational studies. In uniquely American voluntary style, the
CCSP has assembled an interfaith coalition of research and educational leaders who are
committed to developing common procedures, shared data gathering and analysis, and
cooperative utilization of information.
Although individually
limited in experience and resources, the cooperative approach permits the broadening of
the base of ownership, expertise and financial support, thus reducing the overhead costs
while expanding exponentially both the impact and the scope of the interfaith sharing.
The research component of
the CCSP, coordinated by Roozen, will consist of a key informant, national survey of
congregations. Each participating denomination or group will survey a random sample of
approximately 500 of its own congregations, resulting in a total aggregated database of
between 15,000 and 20,000 congregations. The surveys will use a commonly developed core
set of closed ended questions, supplemented by additional questions at a denomination or
group's discretion.
The core questionnaire
focuses on seven aspects of congregational life. Using the common language developed by
participants, these include:
- The spiritual, organizational
and statistical vitality of congregations;
- The variety and style of
worship the foundational act of religious gathering;
- The variety of congregational
activities and programs which nurture faith and provide opportunities for the expression
of faith;
- Levels of participation and
the characteristics of participants;
- Strategies congregations use
to reach new members and raise financial resources;
- Characteristics of clergy and
lay leadership;
- How congregations relate to
other congregations, to denominational structures and to other institutions in their
communities such as schools, homes and hospitals; and
- The widely different ways
that congregations support and strengthen the social and material well being of their
communities.
To most effectively utilize
the survey results, the CCSP is developing an integrated dissemination strategy,
coordinated by Dudley, to reach three broad target groups:
1. the congregational and denominational leaders of participating religious bodies;
2. the news media and the general public it serves; and
3. academic and research communities interested in religious research.
To reach the first and
primary target denomination/group will identify a key teacher who will develop and
implement a plan, in consultation with key teachers from other participating groups, to
help congregations and their supporting religious structures to use the research in way
appropriate to that religious group.
To reach the other target
audiences, Dudley and Roozen will personally write or supervise the preparation of a
variety of project related publications.
Currently, seven kinds of
"publications" are envisioned:
- A Project Report a user
friendly, 50 page report on congregations as religious institutions for the secular and
religious press, and for wide distribution throughout the public and participating groups;
- Workbooks on Congregational
Issues: teaching, consulting and self study materials, grounded in the survey data, for use
in congregations and among the leaders of participating denominations/groups to
better understand and strengthen particular areas of congregational life, such as fund
raising, leadership development, member recruitment, volunteer training, and ministry
development.
- Press releases in 2001 2002:
A two year, monthly series of press releases, coordinated with the release of U.S. census
data and with the holy days and special events of the various CCSP faith traditions,
designed to maintain public consciousness following the initial information release in the
fall of 2000.
- Articles for academic
meetings and journals in a variety of disciplines, prepared as a conscious strategy to show
the relevance of congregational research in such areas as sociology of religion, social
work, organizational theory, nonprofit organizations, philanthropy, urban or rural
studies, theology, history of religious institutions, "church"
administration/leadership, theological education, etc.
- A basic book for popular and
academic audiences on the Characteristics of Religious Congregations in the U.S.
- A more applied book on U.S.
Congregational Programs and Practices, written primarily for congregations and religious
leaders, and geared to the above noted workbooks on congregational issues.
- Electronic access to all
published information, including this project web site locating the congregational survey
data set in a major and publicly accessible data archive.
|
