Study: Welcoming Congregation – Week 8

Sep 28, 2016

WEEK 8 – October 4, 2016

PART 2: The Fruits of Hospitality

CHAPTER 8: Perceptions

STUDY NOTES

Best Practices: Inclusiveness

Don’t judge. Just don’t.

Remember the Bible’s gradual unfolding of God’s “chosen people” to include first some Israelites, then all Israelites, and them (under Jesus) all people, including those on the margins.

Be sensitive as you  balance the tension of exclusivity vs. diversity, staying true to the Christian witness while also opening your congregation to all people.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Where do you see a focus on purity in congregation? What evidence can you find for acceptance of diversity?

  2. “From beginning to end, the Bible is an account of an ever-changing relationship with God, containing new perceptions of God’s will for human life.” True or false? Discuss.

  3. How would you define appropriate barriers to inclusion in your congregation? What are the standards for acceptable behavior? Do you see them changing?

  4. Where does your church strike a balance between new understandings and traditional truths? Give examples.

  5. What is the specific challenge of inclusiveness in your congregation? Where do you see opportunities for listening, learning, and growing in purity of love?

Action Plan:

Develop a partnership with a church of a different denomination, racial makeup, political leaning, or view on sexual orientation. Begin with a “pulpit exchange”, in which your pastor preaches to their congregation and their pastor preaches to yours.

Have a team of church members participate in worship at the other congregation and encourage then to send a team to you. Then invite the members of the other church to join you for a fellowship meal, with time for conversation around tables.

Encourage participants to share a brief story of what brought them to their church and what keeps them there.

Identify an outreach project that the two congregations can embark on together, with opportunities for members of both churches to work side-by-side so that strangers will become friends.

 

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