Small groups, tribalism, and meeting your neighbors
There is a fantastic article/column in an Australian paper by Hugh Mackay about community. Backyard Missionary wrote about it over on his blog. The word community has made a comeback in some church circles in the past 10 years, and our church actively seeks to develop biblical community in our small group ministry. We also seek as a church to impact our overall community through involvement, prayer, service, and ministry.
Mackay says this in his article:
Doing something with your friends is great. Singing in a choir with people like you is therapeutic. Turning up for events at your child’s school can give you a wonderful sense of being part of a community.
But “community” is a tricky word; it can be used to make us feel good about the herds and tribes we belong to, while blinding us to the needs of the neighbors who surround us.
I think too often churches today tend toward isolationism, creating tight-knit “communities” that actually become somewhat exclusive religious organizations. They do not create or send a Welcome! message to the people of their town or city. Rather, it seems that most folks on the “outside” view churches as closed, or “planned” communities. If you didn’t get in on things early, it’s too hard to jump through hoops to fit in now.
How can any given church affirm a message of not only “you are welcome here” but “you are wanted here?”
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Notes from the Trail
The Personal Blog of Jeff Noble
Info: From the misty hills of Virginia, "Notes from the Trail" seeks to encourage you on your journey. Written by a graphic designer-pastor, this blog is a blend of humor, insight, and faith discovery.
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wow. you read my mind. exactly my question as mike and i are searching God for the particular church to worship and fellowship with. i’m not sure how to not become a social Christian club, other than members making it a purposeful point to include new people constantly. not just in planned formal settings like churchy classes, etc. but in real relationships.
mike and i were discussing the newness of relationships here in AK and i was whining a bit about missing the closeness we had with freinds back home. i think God can use what we had there to help us help others here…it makes us want to reach out even more because we know what true fellowship can be like!
one more thought, maybe new church plants are at an advantage because everyone is new (at least here at the one we’ve visited with) so that no one is walking in on 10 year relationships. mike ever so gently reminded me of this as i was whining…i said, “oh yeah, your’e right.” he said,”wow, that was easy!”
just munching on my food for thought!
I agree with this. So often new Christians or those seeking to find answers feel secluded when it comes to finding a church. We have all gotten the stares when you walk in a church and you feel like they are wondering why you are here. It has taken us years to find a church that we felt welcome. One where members know that you are visitor without you putting on the visitor sticker (by the way I refused to do) or sign the book saying you are a visitor (don’t do that either). I just want people to notice that I am a visitor without just coming out and saying it.
Journey was our first experience where we felt actually welcome. How do we keep Journey this way as the years go by? Our church could end up the same way. It is very hard to let someone new into a group that you have been with for years.
lou…
that is a very real concern, and one that i believe needs to be addressed by the constant splitting and forming of new small groups as the church grows. i’ve been in waaay too many churches that refused to split sunday school classes as they’ve grown in numbers to the point of the class becoming larger than some entire church bodies that i’ve known. very few newcomers feel comfortable in such a gigantic “small” group setting, and its been a proven fact that small groups (or classes) grow only when they split and downsize.
thats also why i believe it is far more practical and successful for a church to grow through introduction of new folks through the small group rather than trying to attract folks through the larger worship service.