2004
William Forrest Lee, III
Changing Times- Timing Change
The Rural and Small Town Church: Family Chaplaincy or Missional Community?
Developing a Missional Church Ethos in the Family Church Context- A Case for Long-Term Pastorates
Small churches are unique. Growth threatens any small church because its ministry, its very existence, is predicated on relationships made over time. Growth in numbers is not the answer to the success of the small church. A change of ethos is. The small church tends toward insularity, the antithesis of mission, requiring a church to look outside of itself. A small church can be moved into this ethos, but only by caring leadership which has taken the time to develop a trusting relationship with the congregation. The standard practice of placing seminarians or retired clergy in small congregations for a few years at a time does no good for the long-term mission of the small church. A concerted effort must be made by seminaries and denominational authorities to prepare clergy called to small congregations for a career-long commitment to a single congregation or cluster. Calling processes must be geared to seek out a long-term commitment from both sides and to do much more work in finding a good match between clergy and congregation.