Understanding a congregation’s context is complicated these days – but never more important. The communities where congregations reside are a complex mix of changing demographics, shifting economies – and politics. Understanding ourselves and our neighbors is a critical first step toward finding new ways to talk to each other and work together. The challenges were…
The Congregational Library and Archives in Boston has the exciting task of preserving – and helping others to preserve – the history of some of the earliest communities of faith in America. They rescue documents from attics and basements, digitize them, and make them accessible. While their work is unique, it offers clues to how…
Why belong? That’s what lots of people are asking themselves these days. And it’s what people interested in the wellbeing of religious communities should be asking, as well. Why do people find this place compelling? What makes it worth investing time and energy? As Easter and Passover approach, newspapers are doing their annual nod in…
Question: Why are all the young adults leaving the churches that their families have been part of for generations? If we change our worship style to be more like the churches they are now attending, will they come back? There are lots of issues behind this question, and many of them involve understanding the culture…
As disasters strike – all too often, it seems – we often see churches, synagogues and mosques in the news. They may be shelters or food distribution centers or coordinators of volunteers or places to comfort and grieve. As the most ubiquitous form of voluntary organization in the U.S., congregations are present in every community,…