1. Linda Bobbitt ELCA Presented at RRA/SSSR Oct. 2018 Las Vegas, NV
The surprising disconnects between Congregational Vitality, Growth, Faith Practices & Sustainability
Linda Bobbitt
ELCA
Presented at
RRA/SSSR Oct. 2018
Las Vegas, NV

2. Vitality is the goal of ELCA congregations
A vital congregation has strong connections between its people and God, one another and the world around them.
Our hopes & assumptions:
When congregations have such connections, they will be fulfilling God’s mission.
This should impact people’s lives!
So, if congregations are vital, they should also be:
growing people in faith,
have people serving the world in word and deed,
growing in membership,
financially sustainable
Vitality is the goal of ELCA congregations

3. Transformed perspective leading to action
In the World
In the Congregation
Lesson learned from FACT study: In vital congregations, people go deep both inside and outside the congregation.
Caring and Doing
Low vitality
Minimal engagement
Coping
Witness/ Evangelism
Advocacy & Justice
Community
Spirituality
Mercy
DEEP engagement
High vitality
Transformed perspective leading to action
This theory of how vitality works is explained in a brief paper at:

4. Vitality Surveys
Every member survey – long form
Asks how they experience the congregation:
Connecting with God, each other, world
Leadership & Sustainability
God’s active presence in congregation and the world
Asks about their practices:
Congregation, personal lives, in the world
Vitality Scale of 15 items is valid and reliable (RRR: 3/2016)
This sample:
Sample:
31,793 individuals from 490 congregations in 36 of 65 synods (across the country)
Mostly congregations working intentionally with their synods. (not random)
Data for this study comes from the Congregational Vitality Survey (

5. Distribution of ELCA congregations
Vitality and Sustainability are related, but not strongly.
Correlation sustainability x Vitality r2= .388
This is statistically significant but not strong.
Questions raised:
What distinguishes congregations from one another?
Why are some more or less vital and sustainable?
Why isn’t this correlation stronger? – what else impacts vitality & sustainability
Distribution of ELCA congregations

7. Monthly +
Regularly
2-3x/yr.
Worship attendance and donations to the congregation do not relate spiritual growth. People who practice prayer, volunteering and having meaningful spiritual conversations within the congregation at least monthly are more likely to be growing rapidly in their faith.
Never

8. Once/yr
People growing rapidly in their faith were more likely to be donating money outside the church, having meaningful spiritual conversations, volunteering and inviting others to church at least monthly.

9. Percentage of respondents x How deeply they engage their faith.
In the World
In the Congregation
Caring and Doing
Low vitality
Coping
12% advocacy monthly +
About ¾ of people engage only minimally.
Witness/ Evangelism
Advocacy & Justice
Community
Spirituality
16% meaningful spiritual conversations monthly+
29% prayer monthly+
16% meaningful spiritual conversations outside cong. monthly+
Mercy
18% volunteer 28% donate
monthly +
High vitality
Transformed perspective leading to action

10. How peoples’ perception of God relates to their spiritual growth?
What kind of god do we have?
How peoples’ perception of God relates to their spiritual growth?

11. Only about 1/3 of people strongly agree that God is directly involved in their daily life.

12. People growing rapidly in faith are more likely to strongly agree that God is directly involved in their daily life.

13. People growing rapidly in faith are more likely to strongly agree that God is directly involved in their congregation’s daily life.

14. People’s perception of God is related to their spiritual growth.
What kind of god do we have?
People’s perception of God is related to their spiritual growth.
Those growing rapidly in faith are significantly more likely to strongly agree that they experience God as active & present in their life.

15. Description of our more and less vital congregations via cluster analysis: based on spiritual growth, social climate, faith in action
Social club: friendly but not living out faith in action
Vital: High spiritual growth, social, willing to change, average Faith in Action
Vital but fragile: Growing spiritually, active faith, not sustainable
Struggling: not willing to change, often not sustainable, not growing in faith
Conflicted: High tension, low willingness to change, still sustainable
Stuck: not willing to change, lack of leadership, internal focus
Dying & fighting: Resisting change, fighting, not growing spiritually and running out of resources
Every congregation that took the long survey between 10/2016-6/ congregations who took the long form

16. Only groups 2 and 3 represent “vital” congregations – those connected to God, each other and the world”. Most congregations are not vital.
Most of congregations aren’t helping most people
develop their faith
engage in practicing their faith
Most of our congregants
Minimally engage in spiritual activities
Do not see God as powerfully active or present
Aren’t living lives in service to their neighbor
Aren’t sharing the gospel with others as God commands
So, how are we doing? (See video from this point on in the presentation.)

17. See: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JcE5tnw5j8w&feature=youtu.be
For an explanation of this model.
What is happening? Adaptive Change Curve – Allan Roxborough – are clusters in different stages?

19. Secularization Theory: Voas 2009
How secularization works:
Cohort replacement
Cohorts slowly become majority moderately religious (“fuzzy”) before a large secular body builds up
Cohorts become majority secular only after society has transitioned to majority fuzzy
The Surprisingly Predictable Decline of Religion in the United States by Simon G. Brauer Duke University SSSR 2016 Annual meeting

21. What shall we do? REPENT! Confess!
Acknowledge that denominations are following other gods. Submit to God, go into a time of discernment.
Study Jeremiah, Hosea, other books from before and during exile
Expect to wander the wilderness for a while but trust God to bring us back
“Because they have not listened to him, my God will reject them; they shall become wanderers among the nations.” (Hosea 9:17)
“I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.. (Jer. 29:13)
Encourage experimentation and let it change you!
What shall we do?