Howard Hanchey's Church Growth and the Power of Evangelism

Most of the discussion points below follow directly from Hanchey's book, copyright 1990 by Howard Hanchey, published by Cowley Publications. Regrettably, the book is out of print, but second-hand copies are often available. Direct quotations of Hanchey are indicated, but of course most of the ideas and terminology are drawn from the book as well. The purpose of these discussion points is to facilitate discussion within a group that has prepared ahead of time by reading the indicated chapter. They represent a faithful attempt to follow Hanchey's presentation. Most editorial remarks are enclosed within square brackets or parentheses. Some of the discussion points speak to attitudes and conceptions encountered at Saint Philip's Episcopal Church (Easthampton, Massachusetts) during the actual discussions.

Chapter 1

1. Are some denominations growing, while others are shrinking?
   Yes, ...
2. Can we discern what accounts for these differences?
   Yes, ...
3. Are some Episcopal congregations growing, while others are shrinking? Why?
   Yes. Some are astute as to what kind of nourishment people seek. The church's mission is clearly oriented toward providing this nourishment.
4. What characterizes a mission-oriented congregation (focus)?
   Congregation celebrates God's presence in the here and now. They celebrate through a large variety of ministries, and have enthusiasm for these ministries. They celebrate newcomers as gifts from God, as potential family members. They celebrate in worship, in Christian education. God is close by, and they enjoy talking about it freely and comfortably. They welcome visitors in worship, demonstrably. Visitors are looking for friendships; the number of friendships formed during the first six months is critical. They want sermons that are relevant to today. They want music that is written for today. They have a passion for excellence. God's kingdom is at hand, and they recognize it and discuss it. They thank God, and each other, with praise. Sunday School is well done. There are many small active groups, offering many opportunities for participation. Worship is comfortable and easy (e.g. bulletin not an index to multiple books). Bringing a friend to church is a tiny step of a larger focus, not enough by itself. (Good buzz is a better attractor.)
5. What characterizes a maintenance-oriented congregation (focus)?
   The main concerns are upkeep of buildings, equipment, programs, institutions. People are more interested in solutions to these problems than in God (judging by content of conversations, energy expended). There is much discussion of "do"s and "don't"s, procedures, and opinions. There is considerable worry. There is relatively little talk of God. There is concern for self-preservation, at the expense of God. People are content with their existing friendships. Visitors receive a cordial welcome.
6. What does a church-goer seek?
   People want to know that God is in their lives. They want to be able to hear God, to see God acting in their lives, and to experience his presence. They want to become better at this, good at it. They are drawn to those who are good at it, and want to learn from any and all such persons. They want this for their children too.
7. What other themes emerge?
   Ministry, ...
8. Which ministries do we wish to embrace? How so?
   ...

Chapter 2

1. What can we add to our understanding of a mission-oriented focus?
   The mission mind-set marks all growing congregations. People enjoy their relationship with God, and they have the capacity to speak of God comfortably, in plain language. Worship appears in everyday life, as thanks. There is a desire to celebrate God's presence and ministry. Clergy must lead the mission orientation. There is ability to listen to God. God is present, and he stirs us. Signs of God's ministry abound. People speak of God's ministry without embarrassment, in ways that generate intense interest. Ministries within the church are supported by grateful church members who want to reward these ministries. There is great importance in doing things well; there is high regard for excellence. Parishioners are eager to participate. It is okay to be small in numbers; take care of mission, and the numbers will take care of themselves. Clergy support all of the church's programs. Financial debt is acceptable, temporarily, to strengthen mission.
2. What can we add to our understanding of a maintenance-oriented focus?
   Discussions are task-centered. Leadership talks of conserving what we have, holding on. People are tired of requests for money. People like the status quo. People tend to cling, passing up opportunities provided by God. `Static triumphalism' carries the day. Sermons offer insights on living, but do not typically identify and celebrate God at work in the here and now. There is weak welcome of newcomers and visitors. There is lack of ease in worship, e.g. too many books. There is an association with the need to grow in numbers with the need for more income (in contrast to seeing growth in numbers as an indicator of success of mission and ministries). Coffee hour is a time for old friends to chat (in contrast to a reception for visitors). Financial debt, temporarily, is disturbing.
3. What is a ministry? Which examples of ministries were discussed?
   A ministry is deliberate activity that satisfies a need. A greeters ministry identifies visitors at the door at worship service, and takes responsibility for ensuring that each visitor is made to feel welcome. This can include additional introductions, sitting with the visitor during service, following up (by lay, not clergy) within 36 hours, expressing joy, answering questions, addressing concerns, and more. A Sunday School ministry provides a form of education and worship for younger minds. The children's activities are celebrated and embraced by the adults. (Our youth coordinator's sharing of the children's banner on Feb 25th was exemplary.) Parents take in every detail of what their children experience at church, including how children are welcomed and incorporated. Providing name tags is a ministry (say why). Coffee hour is a ministry. Others, ...
4. In which aspects of church life do we welcome camaraderie?
   We welcome it most everywhere. Do we welcome it even during a worship service? When we celebrate God's love for us, how can we do this as a group, as comrades? (Is it enough to celebrate one's private relationship with God?)
5. If we are products of our upbringing and experience, how can we change for the better?
   One must exert effort to broaden one's view, and one must accept some risk in trying new ideas. (If this is necessary for mission, then God calls on us to do so.)
6. What is worship?
   ...
7. What is our mission?
   ...

Chapter 3

1. Give a dominant trait of a shrinking congregation?
   The members have lost, or do not have, the capacity to speak personally of God in their lives.
2. What is the fundamental task of the church?
   The fundamental task is to identify and celebrate signs of God's presence and active ministry in the world, so that the world may see, and, by seeing, may believe. (Compare this to mission statement from Book of Common Prayer.) Many churches do good works in the world, including support of programs inside and outside the church. These may be important worthwhile endeavors, but participation in these programs does not itself fulfill the main purpose of the church.
3. Give an important element of what people seek at church, fundamentally?
   People want to build and improve their skills in talking of God (in the here and now). In the days of Jesus on earth, people were fascinated and drawn to Jesus' ability to talk freely of God. The mission-minded invest interest and energy in learning to speak conversationally about God. They know that developing the capacity to speak of God takes work.
4. What is evangelism?
   Evangelism is delivery of the good news of God's presence in the world. God is with us, `richly present,' not hard to find. Evangelists point out these signs. Evangelism as a ministry uses signs of God's presence and ministry to bear witness to those less skilled in recognizing these signs. Evangelism is about observation, not about persuasion. Take people just as they are.
5. What is God's ministry? What was Jesus' ministry?
   ...
6. How do we know what God thinks?
   The Bible provides ample evidence of how Jesus thought. What we see in Jesus, we see in God. As we know Jesus, we know God. "Jesus is God's best revelation." Also, "We are joined with the mind of God."
7. What is a turning point? What is divine intervention?
   ...

Chapter 4

1. What do people most want to know?
   People want to know who God is, how God acts in our world, and they want practical insights into God's effects.
2. Does God love us?
   Yes, God's positive actions in our world tell us that God loves us. Jesus attested to God's interest in our lives. The Bible attests too. (God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son ...)
3. How may we become comfortable speaking of God?
   Mission-minded congregations admire the capacity to speak of God. Speaking of God is Christian worship at its best. We must know the shape of God's work in the world, if we are to be able to discuss it comfortably. The Bible describes God's work. We must know God's actions when we see them, not only in our own lives, but also in the lives of others. We must be able to answer the questions of others. Preparation, education, and practice are key. We're not talking about shyness; we're talking about knowledge and experience. Clergy leadership paves the way; it gives life to the mission-minded congregation. To be able to speak of God takes work. (This skill is acquired as any other, through perseverance, diligence, and application.)
4. How should we welcome those shopping for a church, even temporarily?
   A couple searching for a church in which to be married is reaching out to God, whatever they may say. Much is revealed in this act. What do these two seek? A church that turns away those who comes to its door misses the point. (The spiritually weak, naive, unpracticed, unskilled, are simply at a particular starting point. Meet them where they are, just as they are. Welcome these gifts from God.)
5. Does God speak literally, with voice and words?
   God speaks through the power of thought. God can touch us at deep levels of the unconscious. (This does not mean that every thought or suggestion is a communication.)
6. Are there limits to God's power?
   "God is powerless to ..." (Is there biblical authority for this assertion?) Force is not God's way. We are neither pawns nor puppets. (Are great forces such as time, life & death, the laws of physics, and others not of God's realm?)
7. When souls connect, was God at hand?
   ...
8. Are the paths that we follow due to chance alone, or does God help to guide us?
   ...

Chapter 5

1. Why do we feel a need to evangelize?
   We can observe God's presence and ministry, which enables us to help others to see, observe, and believe. It is natural to speak of beauty and wonder, including God's everyday presence and ministry.
2. Can preaching be at odds with evangelism?
   It is natural for a minister to preach of God and Godly things. However, in a less mission-oriented church, a lack of lay persons also sharing their observations can lead to an imbalanced view, in which to evangelize is to preach. (What does this say about our notion of `preach'?)
3. Characterize evangelism by five distinctive qualities of a conversation?
   There is an emphasis on listening, putting aside one's own stories. There is close attention to life events and turning points. There is neither coercion nor persuasion. There is great patience, taking people as they are. There is a combined adoration and thanksgiving that celebrates God's presence and ministry.
4. Is an improbable sequence of fortuitous turning points simply a matter of good fortune?
   Hanchey says, "no random event ever takes shape apart from God's interest and conversational presence." (God may not control events directly, but he speaks to us, influencing events indirectly.)
5. What is a turning point?
   A turning point is a moment in which a decision is made that affects subsequent outcomes.
6. What is grace, an act of grace?
   Grace describes God's affection for us, his hoping for the very best for us. God stirs our hearts and enlightens our minds.
7. Does our knowledge of Jesus (on earth) give us knowledge of God?
   Yes, get into the sandals of Jesus, as presented in the Gospels, to understand what God would do, say, or think.
8. Why does God speak to us at the sub-conscious level (not the conscious)?
   ...
9. Share a story in which you can identify turning points that suggest God's action?
   ...

Chapter 6

1. Why do bad things happen in God's world?
   Sentences like "It must have been God's will." are nonsense. God gives us the freedom to make our own decisions, good or bad, the freedom to sin. Catastrophic events should not be called "acts of God;" this is misleading. Natural laws are operating; we are not puppets. God places limits on divine power (On the first day, he created the heavens and the earth ...).
2. Why do many adults drop out of church?
   Knowledge of God falls behind, unable to account for their own reality. An early age view of God is as a superparent, but this is not adequate. (Does the Book of Common Prayer portray this image?)
3. What does the Book of Common Prayer say about faith?
   We have freedom. We use it poorly. We rebel against God.
4. What is sin?
   Sin is an attitude, in which we place our regard for freedom above listening to God. Sin is part of our nature, to be overcome.
5. What is redemption?
   It is the act of God that frees us from the power of evil, sin, and death. (This is immense divine power.)
6. How do sin and God's respect for our freedom relate?
   Freedom includes the freedom not to listen to God, i.e. the freedom to sin. God respects our freedom not to listen, to sin (but this does no mean that it is good or to be preferred).
7. Are we responsible for our own actions?
   Yes, sentences like "The devil made me do it." are nonsense. Nevertheless, we do renounce the devil during baptism.
8. Is there an evil entity speaking to us at the subconscious level
   ...
9. Is reality limited to what we perceive?
   No.
10. What is prayer?
    Prayer is many things, but listening to God is an important element. Prayer is not just about making requests; it is also about surrendering one's interests.
11. Share a story in which you can identify God at work?
    ...

Chapter 7

1. What is the ministry of introductions (review)?
   Introducing (signs of) God to (the inhabitants of) God's world. By observing God's actions, and pointing these out to others, we "introduce" God's actions to those who do not see them.
2. How can we practice evangelism most effectively?
   It is more effective to use the story that you are being told than it is to supply your own story (uninvited). One needs to develop the ability and skill to see God acting in the other person's life. Evangelism is about observation, bearing witness, which helps others to become more skilled at observation (and evangelism).
3. What is story listening?
   This phrase emphasizes the other side of story telling. As above, we will be most effective if we can listen, and identify God's actions in what we hear. Listening shows giving value to what the teller has to say, and it meets the teller where he/she is.
4. What is listener abuse?
   A person who works hard at persuasion abuses the listener. This may make the listener feel inadequate. Strong persuasion effort can be seen as arrogant.
5. Is there just one correct way to practice evangelism?
   No.
6. Will our observations (introductions) have immediate effect?
   Probably not. One should be content to introduce new ideas, to stimulate thought. For some, these seeds will grow, perhaps slowly.
7. (Ex #4) What do you fear most about personal evangelism?
   ...

Chapter 8

1. Which is a better motivator, appealing to a sense of duty, or offering a role in a successful ministry with thanks and praise?
   The latter, by far. Feelings of obligation or guilt are not generally pleasant, and not typically tolerated for any period of time. A person may help once and then withdraw out of self protection. Feelings of contribution and fulfillment are very pleasant, and will be sought indefinitely. Consider a recent example at Saint Philip's; a congregation member witnessed a spiritual minute that connected with a number of worshipers, and volunteered to facilitate more of this kind of witness. How likely would it be for someone, anyone, to have enthusiasm had this prospect been offered as a chore? (Of course, our member will still have work to do, but it is not a matter of whether there is work, but rather a matter of whether one can approach a task as a promising opportunity for fulfillment.)
2. Is it better to educate than to avoid risk of intrusion or pedantry?
   Education is better. To educate is to help, to care, to invite effective participation. To educate is to eliminate frustration and intimidation. (Indeed, most response has an element of education. For example, to praise is to educate about what is praiseworthy, and to praise is to educate by positively reinforcing participation.)
3. How many of our worshipers attend service out of duty? How many come to experience enrichment, particularly expecting to learn better how to recognize God speaking and acting in their own lives?
   While it might be instructive to seek these quanitative answers, this isn't the intended emphasis. For example, consider the scripture lessons. If these are boring to the reader, just sentences to be rendered accurately, then what does this project? (The reader has to animate these, generating enthusiasm and emphasis. A key word is "lesson", and perhaps we should switch to calling these lessons instead of readings. Do the lessons help us to understand how God speaks and acts, not just then, but now? The answer needs to be "yes", and this needs to be our orientation, and not just for the lessons used as the example here.)
4. Why do we include hymns (and other music)? Why embrace these?
   Music provides a direct path to one's spirit (the heart). A sung prayer communicates in two ways, by its words and by its musical connection to the heart. The meaning of the words helps us to understand the musical spirit, and the musical spirit we feel helps us to understand the meaning of the words. "Hymns are theological education at its best." Singing "lifts us out of ourselves," bringing us into a communal presence. (There is no real reason that spoken prayers should have any less emotional expression, but music seems to help, and to give license.)
5. Should we teach worshipers to enjoy hymns? Should we teach hymns to our children?
   Should we teach our worshipers and children to pray? (Yes) This is part of education; see #2 above.
6. (To what extent does our present worship service provide the spiritual nourishment that
   worshipers seek?) To what extent is "God's action today" made abundantly clear to the worshipers? Christians coming to service may "leave hungry." How clear is it that "God's kingdom is at hand?" How vivid is this picture each time?
7. What is the difference between a "there-and-then" view and a "here-and-now" view?
   ...
8. What is a "Faith Alive" conference?
   This is not clear, but the title seems in line with the central notion of God in the here and now.
9. How important is excellence in the execution of the worship service?
   It is essential. If "it" wasn't done well, "it" wasn't worth doing well, meaning that "it" was not important. (Poor execution produces awkwardness, discomfort, potentially spoiling the mood through undue distraction. Will there be mistakes? Yes, but they should be minor, barely noticeable.)
10. Does excellence require hard work?
    Yes, but do we have any choice? No, not if we are to fulfill our mission. (Will we be exhausted from our effort? Only as long as it takes for us to make the immense fulfillment from the fruits of our labors evident to others, who will then become attracted to our successful ministries and want to help. We will need to communicate, educate, praise. We can be a very large team, all vocal.)
11. List avenues for excellence.
    
    1. Provide the spiritual nourishment worshipers seek.
    2. Render all service elements with conviction, enthusiasm, understanding.
    3. Practice all aspects of all deliveries ahead of time.
    4. Choose relevant, word appropriate, spirit appropriate, singable hymns and ordinaries. Maintain a good mix of the old and the new.
    5. Make the order of service bulletin welcoming, informative (as in education, see #2), easy to follow, and error free. Present all service content in sequential order, without page number references to BCP or hymnal(s). See page 112, also bottom of 117 & top of 118.
    6. Project welcome, inclusion, caring, at all times. Note, to "project" is to communicate clearly a genuine attitude or sentiment.
12. How important is ease of participation in the worship service?
    Visitors who are not immediately comfortable in worship will not likely return (with us having squandered a gift from God, and having realized less of our mission).
13. Do we want worshipers who can't figure out our customs and practices?
    We need to recognize a bad question before deciding whether to answer it. Our mission is to restore the people to unity with God and each other in Christ.
14. Is what feels most comfortable best?
    Not necessarily, or perhaps not yet We can't serve just ourselves. We need to serve now those who are yet to arrive. We need to pursue our ideas as leaders. Faith is key. We can be responsive, but we can't expect or wait for others to produce the ideas and take the risks for us.
15. Has God been answering our prayers for growth and vision?
    If you would answer "yes", then we would do well to bear witness, to educate. How would you do that?
16. How can we encourage passive worshipers to adopt a more active approach?
    Educate, praise, invite into simpler forms of participation.
17. Note the specific advice on pages 115-118.
    This is a useful list.

Chapter 9

1. Will a mission-minded congregation form without a mission-minded clergy?
   No, it is highly unlikely. "Where there is no vision, the people perish."
2. How important a factor is past experience in present thinking?
   Clergy, as with all human beings, will tend to repeat their past unless a large effort is made to seek new ways. If something wasn't considered to be important in one's past, then it likely will not be considered to be important in one's present.
3. List several traits of mission-minded clergy?
   They have a celebrative attitude because they know that God is nearby. They have cultivated the ability to identify God at work in the here-and-now, and this is reflected in their conversations, sermons, teaching, and even their announcements. They regularly praise the parish (members) for its life and work. They are good at identifying opportunities afforded by life's turn of events.
4. Should a budget deficit be avoided at all times?
   No, a budget represents dreams and aspirations. If they are realistic, then one can work hard to live up to them. One should not plan on providence, but one can plan to accomplish goals that will inspire financial support.
5. Are new clergy taught to be mission-minded, to create a mission-minded congregation?
   No, not typically. Seminary faculty can teach what they know. They tend to have little experience with parish leadership. Many of them grew up in maintenance-minded congregations, so this is what they know. Parishioners are less interested in critical bible scholarship than they are in knowing what the bible says about God and how God acts in their lives.
6. Give a list of questions that mission-minded clergy should be prepared to answer regarding
   parish leadership. The list contained on pages 133-134 is excellent. As a list, it is review for us. The main point is that these questions do not receive much attention in the education of clergy, even though they are central to the mission-minded orientation. There will be growth in the seminary's mission to the extent that there is growth in the mission of its graduates. Seminarians need to be skilled in recognizing God acting in the here and now, and they need to be comfortable and joyful in bearing witness. More succinctly, they need to be skilled evangelists.
7. How does one go about calling a mission-oriented pastor?
   Churches often spend most of their effort in self examination and in trying to agree or articulate characteristics that they seek. It would be far better to spend more time in interviewing candidates at length. People run out of energy just when they need it most. Leave no stone unturned in the interview. Listen to the candidate preach, mindful of how skilled the candidate is at evangelism. There is a good list of questions on pages 139-141. Consider the leadership questions on pages 133- 134 as well. One has to understand and practice the mission-oriented mind set to be able evaluate candidates with respect to it.

Chapter 10

1. Design a ministry of welcome for visitors and newcomers?
   Hospitality needs to reflect our love and joy in accepting God's gift of a visitor. This is our chance to help that visitor become closer to God, which is our mission. Someone coming closer to God is good cause for celebration.
   1. Minister greets people at the door before or after worship.
   2. Greeters table is placed in front of entry, indoors, but in the path of anyone entering. Note that greeters have a different role from ushers. Greeters are for visitors.
      1. Register visitor's name, address, phone number.
      2. Have visitor sign the guest book.
      3. Immediately make a name tag with red border for the visitor. Note that everyone wears a name tag, regulars with a blue border, kept in a rack or cabinet near the entry.
      4. Give the visitor our brochure, which answers basic questions and says what we are about. Brochure should be light and inviting, not ponderous.
      5. Introduce visitor to one or a few people nearby.
      6. Sit with the visitor during worship.
      7. Give the name of the visitor to the minister so that the visitor can be welcomed by name during announcements.
   3. Make worship easy - no bulletin of page numbers in multiple unfamiliar books.
   4. Everyone needs to celebrate the visitor, to be outgoing, showing that we value him or her.
   5. Welcome each child too, including a name tag. Route the child to nursery care or Sunday school. Invite parent to accompany before returning to the worship service. Children's rooms and surroundings need to be painted brightly and be clean. Adults must be in charge.
   6. Accompany the visitor to refreshments hour. Walk with visitor from church to parish hall, not `meet you there.' Include a posted sign in the church showing how to get to the parish hall.
   7. Include events at refreshments hour, e.g. presentations of various kinds.
   8. Sunday afternoon, or Monday at the very latest, a lay person needs to visit the visitor's home. This should be brief, and not arranged ahead of time. Stay 2-3 minutes at the most. The act of visiting sends the message, not what is said. Deliver a fresh loaf of bread, or a pie, or the leftover altar flowers, or something similar that lasts a little while but not forever. "Be bright, be brief, be gone." If a visit is impossible, then use the telephone instead, which is not as good, but which is effective.
   9. Do everything to help the visitor return the second time. Effort indicates the high value we place on the visitor finding a home with us. Effort communicates its own message. Do not be shy, or go half way. Someone who does not return may not return to any church whatsoever, which is tragic.
   10. Welcome all visitors, even if a visitor seems to come for the wrong reason.
2. Any other general advice
   
   1. Do not worry about bringing a friend to church. This is not very effective, by itself.
   2. Put out the welcome mat in late Summer and early Fall, because moving season draws to a close as the new school year begins.
   3. Schedule newcomer classes, 4-week cycle, starting at the beginning of each month.
   4. Some people first come to church because they have an experience that they do not understand. Listen (recall chapter 5, page 62).
   5. Offer newcomers involvement in church life, but do not promote the `leftovers' that need members. This is `abusive.'
   6. Consider canvassing, by phone or by mail, especially near Christmas or Easter.
   7. Vestry members should be running these ministries, be the greeters, return visits, and the like.

Chapter 11

1. Why do people drop out of church?
   
   1. Some cluster of pain-provoking events becomes upsetting enough to make not coming to church less painful, the preferred choice. For example, newcomers may feel ignored, or that the congregation is not friendly enough to make them feel connected and at home. (People sense a connection when they feel that they would be missed. Indifferent behavior indicates indifferent heart.) Mission-minded congregations care, follow up, reach out repeatedly.
   2. Some people come to feel detached when they feel unheard in church dialogues.
   3. Some dropouts become unhappy outside of the church, and feel unsociable or unworthy. Dropping out of church in these circumstances may be a cry for help. Unanswered cries become rejection.
2. Will reaching out to a lapsed member bring a joyful response?
   Probably not immediately, due to the upset or anger associated with the cause for lapsing. A dropout is likely to be hurt and angry.
3. How should one talk to a dropout?
   One should focus on the person and the relationship, not necessarily the issue at hand. One does not want to bring the problem into the person's home, where he or she had refuge. Beware of offering advice. Listen. There is a story. Listening communicates `I care.' Maybe mention friends at church missing the dropout. Letting the dropout put feelings into words that are heard does much for healing.
4. What is chronic anger?
   Anger that is ever-present becomes part of one's life, coloring and otherwise tainting events for the worse. Anger can take root, becoming difficult or impossible to remove. Left alone, chronic anger develops into bitterness (blasphemy, pg 170). Bitterness represents an extreme of the inability to forgive, which creates barriers, including between the bitter person and God. One may come to feel righteous in the bitterness, and become destroyed by it.
5. Design a ministry of response for dropouts
   
   1. Develop a small group of lay persons who are able and trained to respond. These could be the same people who are trained as greeters.
   2. Develop a means of recognizing dropouts, e.g. participation in church worship and other meetings, e.g. communicating with one another about who may be upset and why.
   3. Keep all that is good going with those who have not dropped out. Continue the celebration of God's love for us.
   4. Be open about this ministry, invite participation. This is part of life, not to be hidden.

Chapter 12

1. What is a work-for-pay ministry?
   God's world exists around us, all the time. What we do in our jobs contributes to God's world. That we may be paid for our work does not diminish it in any way. Through our work, we help to take care of God's world. Think of all those who are involved with food creation, delivery, preparation, and consumption. Surely God wants us to have our daily bread. Who builds the farm machinery? Who builds the trucks, highways, rail cars, and railroads? Who studies biology, genetics, and chemistry to boost yields? It doesn't take much extrapolation to see that most of human effort is of benefit to human kind. If we are being paid for our work, presumably that work fulfills a need, thereby constituting a ministry.
2. What is "A Form of Commitment to Christian Service"?
   This is a short rite, described in the Book of Common Prayer on pages 420-421, which may be included just before the Peace. One's vocation or calling provides a service in the living kingdom of Christ. It is helpful to everyone to witness a person's awareness of how his or her service contributes to God's world.
3. Are we all saints of God?
   Yes, recall Hymn 293 "I sing a song of the saints of God" Verse three includes "É the world is bright with the joyous saints who love to do Jesus' will. You can meet them in school, or in lanes, or at sea, in church, or in trains, or in shops, or at tea, for the saints of God are just folk like me, and I mean to be one too."

Chapter 13

1. How important is Christian education of our youth in Sunday School?
   It couldn't be more important. It is central to our mission to share the good news of God's love for us. We want to teach our children to recognize God acting in our present day world and in our lives. The degree of welcome that the children experience is a major factor in the degree of welcome that the parents of these children experience.
2. How much "school" should there be in "Sunday School"?
   If one associates school with intensive study and drill, then the answer would be "very little." We should celebrate every story, from the Bible or the present, that illustrates God's love for us or God in action. This is the essential lesson. The facts of the story support the lesson. Celebration and the communal planning of the Sunday School teachers is central to keeping the interest and involvement of the Sunday School teachers themselves. Clergy contact and support is vital.
3. How separate should Christian education of our youth be from our Worship service?
   Division of groups should occur only to the extent that it helps everyone. Sunday School is not a device to occupy the children while the adults worship. Rather, it is the children's worship. A simple reading of a bible story may not be enough to understand it. The sentences need discussion, and the reasons for the actions and statements of the people and others (God, angels) in the stories need more careful and deliberate elucidation. Turning the story into a play or into drawings on a banner can help the thought processes. Crafts related to the story can facilitate concentration. The adults need to celebrate these forms of budding worship in the children. Indeed, everyone in the congregation should celebrate how the children learn the good news. There should be sharing of plays, drawings, and all the creations of the children. This should occur regularly as part of the adult worship service. There should be weekly communication in the bulletin of what is going on in Sunday school that day. Parents are attracted to congregations that are demonstrably proud of their children's accomplishments in Sunday School. Children need to feel that the adults value these accomplishments, which happens when the adults show this through their actions.
4. For which portions of the adult worship service should the children be present?
   The children should be present for all of the adult service that is meaningful to them. (In my youth, children were present for the bible lessons, and not for the sermon nor eucharist.) Separation of the children from adult worship has been identified as a factor in the decline of congregations.
5. How important is a sense of the liturgical year?
   It is useful for children to learn the basic "seasons," to be able to make sense of what they see and hear. Christmas and Easter are central, followed in importance by the periods that come before and after. Each of these periods can form a focus of a 6 week unit in Sunday School.
6. How important are intergenerational happenings?
   These are important, children and adults (not just Sunday School teachers) need to have at least some common activities or events. All need to be involved, which is different from one group observing and appreciating the other. For example, parents could participate in Sunday School activities from time to time.

Chapter 14

1. What is evangelism (review from Chapter 3)?
   Evangelism is delivery of the good news of God's presence in the world. God is with us, not hard to find. Evangelists point out these signs, and are able to speak of them comfortably in plain language. Evangelism uses signs of God's presence and ministry to bear witness to those less skilled in recognizing these signs. Evangelism is about observation, not about persuasion.
2. Why do Episcopalians fear evangelism?
   Many Episcopalians associate the term `evangelism' with unattractive behaviors or traits, such as emotional fervor, intellectual bankruptcy, partisan politics, naivete, renewal movements, obsession with increasing membership, and intrusive visitation of members or visitors. Episcopalians, as a group, have avoided evangelism, missing out on its good aspects and effects.
3. Give three kinds of evangelism
   
   1. The term preevangelism refers to world ministries typified by outreach activities that demonstrate God's care by giving care in his name.
   2. The term primary evangelism indicates the kind of evangelism in #1 above. This kind of evangelism does not typically come easily to Episcopalians due to its not being part of its traditional culture. Christianity is not about good works, nor philosophy, nor curious minds. It is about God's active love for us.
   3. The term secondary evangelism encompasses the more typical Episcopalian focus on the life, death, and resurrection of Christ, bible study, and exploration of topics such as creation, sin, redemption, and salvation. The ministry of passing along this understanding is important, but Episcopalians typically think that this is enough, that these are the central concerns. (Hanchey is suggesting that these are part of a larger picture.) These discussions can seem academic and sometimes controversial to the uninitiated.
4. Are Episcopalians equipped for primary evangelism?
   Yes, but these kinds of conversations will remain somewhat foreign without effort and practice to develop facility and tradition. This shift is underway. Episcopalians are becoming comfortable, especially those in mission-minded congregations (by definition). Our books (Bible, BCP, Hymnal 1982) value stories that bear witness. (Do we let our books do our bearing witness for us?) We need to bear witness ourselves, in our conversations. On page 204, "The use of personal experience makes evangelism sound less like an argument and more like a song."
5. How does one teach evangelism (primary)?
   One can shift the focus of conversations even within mechanisms that we already have in place, such as sermons, Bible study, and prayer groups. One can go much further, for example by forming a study group whose objective is to learn primary evangelism. Pages 205-208 suggest an ordering and emphasis for the topics and concepts that we have already seen ourselves.
6. Give five characteristics of Episcopal Church evangelism
   
   1. Newcomers seek a congregation in which the members talk comfortably of God.
   2. Knowledge of Jesus is knowledge of God. What did Jesus do, what would he have done?
   3. Listen, do not coerce. Tease the mind with images and coincidences.
   4. Seek to nurture newborn and growing faith.
   5. Individuals can recognize and speak of God's love and action comfortably in plain language.

Chapter 15

1. Design a sequence of newcomer classes?
   A visitor has not yet made any commitment, but a newcomer has at least initially. Personally invite each newcomer to this class; a general invitation will likely receive no response. Have three classes total. Think about light-hearted bonding and question answering, not heavy-duty theological education. Include the sponsor of each newcomer. For the following, see pages 212-214 for more detail.
   1. Week #1: introductions, ask about first impressions, history of congregation, style of worship, how to begin participation in one or more ministries. Listen to questions and opinions. This is useful feedback, and it demonstrates the value of these questions and opinions.
   2. Week #2: how did you come to Saint Philip's? Introduce the book of common prayer, talk about God's acting in the here and now.
   3. Week #3: brief history of the Episcopal denomination, have lay persons describe their ministries emphasizing fulfillment and necessity, revisit participation opportunities.
   4. Week #4: (not a class) introduce `graduates' and their sponsors at worship service. A deliberate visible welcome, constituting a transition, is critical; do not set people adrift. Celebrate their interest and growing commitment to this point.
2. Design a sequence of new member classes?
   Classes should foster development of a mature sturdy Christian faith. Hanchey lists six points that indicate sturdy faith, echoing the main themes we have seen throughout the book. Pages 217-219 sketch 23 weeks of material. The main emphasis is on God's action and on ministries of the church. Page 220 captures it well, "[People] want far more than milk toast when thinking about who God is and who we are as children of God. They want to know what the church is, why we worship the way we do, what the Bible says about God, and what a difference a knowledge of God makes in the here and now of our lives today."

Chapter 16

1. Can we effect change, to become more mission-minded, by decree?
   No, even if people were ready and willing, they wouldn't necessarily understand, nor would they know what to do. Education, especially through clergy and lay leadership by example, are essential. Progress does not happen by itself. (Change may be slow, but every tiny step forward needs recognition and celebration.) Hanchey advocates a parish-wide discussion of the kind we have had in our church growth group. The congregation must understand the mission to be able to accomplish it.
2. How important is the notion of ministry?
   Tending to needs is a fundamental aspect of life on earth. It serves as an excellent organizing principle for why we do what we do, and for understanding God's will.
3. Do written plans and objectives send a negative message, that we're coming up short?
   Some accept vision for improvement as a gift from God. Some others equate the desire to change with rejection of what we have in hand. It is important to celebrate what we have been doing well already and what we have come to do better or well more recently. An appetite for improvement is healthy, because the end result should be that more people are brought closer to God.
4. What is the ministry of stewardship?
   All who contribute to the well-being of Saint Philip's perform stewardship. Contributions take many forms, in categories such as money, time, and skills. We need to celebrate all of these contributions regularly and prominently, for example weekly in the bulletin and out loud at worship service. A nod (or other acknowledgement) to the offertory plate is not enough.
5. How effective is our ministry of publicity in bringing people to our door?
   We have a newspaper advertisement, public signs, and the web. Do we have mailings, as in a "mail box ministry?" Do we have a "roadside movable sign ministry?" Others? (Recall that growth of mission depends mostly on what we do after people come to our door.)
6. Should we have a periodic, e.g. annual, evaluation of all of our ministries?
   Yes, the mission-minded congregation is `intentional' and deliberate about its mission, which can be made more effective by working on making it more effective. Maintenance-minded congregations dispense with hunting for improvements. Objectives help to focus precious effort. Meeting an objective improves our mission, and provides even more opportunities for celebration.
7. How important is an annual program calendar?
   Very important; see pages 237-239. It is important to plan, and it is important for the "mission- minded congregation to see the totality of the year's ministry." (It would be a good motivator for annual giving too.) A view of the year's events and meetings adds coherence to parish life. Avoid surprises. Leave nothing to chance.
8. Any final thoughts?
   The extent to which we fulfill our mission depends on the extent to which we design, communicate, and execute the best specific plans for our ministries that we can devise. Celebration, spiritual family, ministry, and evangelism are key themes.