2003
Mark Gatza
Overachieving Congregations: Demographic Pressures and Congregational Development
Current church size theory suggests that the average Sunday attendance of a congregation can be predictive of many of its organizational and structural characteristics. Some argue that there are as few as four basic size groups, while others posit eight or more. Within or between these groupings there are apparently unstable size ranges, where congregations cannot exist for long without growing out of them or shrinking back to a stable point, according to many leading thinkers. This study examines four “overachieving congregations” which have lived for several years in one of these unstable zones, analyzing the characteristics which they share, contrasting them to neighboring congregations, and describing the decisive role of demographic pressures in the designated growth area within which they are located.