It sounds like heresy to Baptists. Growth is one of the primary goals of our churches. Evangelistic efforts are designed to lead persons to a saving faith in Jesus Christ and then enlist them in the life of a New Testament church. Outreach programs are focused on finding and cultivating individuals who may be a part of local church life.
To hear someone say that church growth is often a source of conflict for a congregation is a strange sound to Baptist ears. The lack of growth often results in conflict. Numerous are the pastors who have been encouraged to work harder or even leave because the church was not growing.
That church growth can cause problems is a new thought for many people. But it can.
Numerous students of church life point to different types of churches. Not city churches and rural churches but different types of churches based on average attendance. It seems the style of leadership and the expectations of the church may be determined more by size than by location.
A family-size church usually runs about 50 people or fewer on Sunday morning. About one-third of Alabama Baptist churches — 1,049 — fall into this category. A family-size church is a homogenous group where everyone knows everyone else. Often the membership reflects a large, extended family. If the church is not family-based, it is community-based. Those living in a particular community attend. Most of the time there is one dominant leader. That person may be the family patriarch or matriarch. It may be the leading resident of the community. Usually, it is not the pastor.
When making decisions, the past is important to the family-size church. What worked in the past can be reused. If it did not work in the past, it will not work now is the most common reasoning.
Churches averaging between 50 and 150 are identified as pastoral-size churches. The title is used because the pastor is the key to the effectiveness of this size congregation. The church may have several family groups within its membership. Most of the time, these groups relate to each other through the pastor.
The pastor becomes the bridge over which new families walk to become acquainted with members of the church. It is the pastor’s role to orient new members to church life and help them find places of service. This responsibility together with the size of the church dilutes the power of the familysize church patriarch or matriarch and emphasizes the role of the pastor.
Pastoral-size churches comprise the largest group of Alabama Baptist churches, nearly 40 percent, with 1,238 according to the last record.
Program-size churches is the title used for churches averaging between 150 and 350 on Sunday morning. Among Alabama Baptist churches, this group makes up about 13 percent of churches with 414. As the name implies, the role of the pastor changes in program-size churches. Because the demands of the church exceed the capabilities of a single pastor, other ministerial staff members are employed. Some responsibilities are delegated to committees.
No longer can the pastor visit all the newcomers or all the shut-ins or all the sick or meet with all the committees. Some see this as a real loss. The pastor must trust others for effective ministry. He must rely on others for appropriate committee work. No longer can his personal involvement assure that everything holds together.
Organization — that is how some members may think of such a church. No longer do all members work with the pastor. Some work with the minister of music; some with the minister of education or the minister of youth. Conflicts may arise when the youth plan a retreat on the same weekend as a churchwide event.
Even worship can be impacted. What does the pastor want to accomplish in the service? What is the minister of music trying to do? Are there other program needs which should be highlighted? Demands build. It is a far different atmosphere than that of the “family” church.
Congregations averaging more than 350 on Sunday morning are often referred to as corporate churches. Fewer than 200 of Alabama’s 3,167 Baptist churches fall in this category — 198 to be exact. The name corporate church is a reference to the hierarchical organization that usually emerges in such congregations. The pastor focuses more on the role of preacher. He provides the vision for the church. He relates primarily to ministerial staff members, not to everyone who works at the church. In turn, the ministerial staff members take care of the programs and administration.
The pastor becomes the public identity of the church, a symbol, if you will. There is less involvement of the pastor with the members. Several small groups may emerge within the congregation. Sometimes a staff member will fill the role of a pastor-size church for some members. This is often seen with the minister of music and the choirs or the minister of youth with youth families.
Planning becomes complex, much like a corporation. Numerous programs and needs must be considered. Contingencies are considered and the focus of the church is most often forward rather than looking to the past. The question for such churches is “where are we going,” not “where have we been.”
The pitfalls in moving from a family-size church to a pastor-size church are obvious. Expectations of members change. So does the role of lay leadership and pastoral leadership. Decision making changes. It is a different culture. Similar pitfalls exist at the transition points between each type of church.
Imagine the church that grows from a pastor-size church to a program-size church. Suddenly the attention members formerly enjoyed from the pastor is gone. Other staff members may be there but the pastor is not. That is a major change, one some members cannot accept.
Or what about the family that joins a program-size church after being reared in a pastor-size church? Often they are disappointed by the differences between their new church and their old.
Yes, church growth does have its pitfalls and problems. More than one church has said it wanted to grow only to rebel at the changes the growth caused. But pitfalls are not sufficient reason to shun church growth. Knowing where pitfalls and problems lurk helps one be prepared for them because church growth can be a source of conflict.
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