1. EPISTEMELOGICAL SHIFTSCongregational mission thrives within a changing epistemological framework in how we think of the church and how we think about location. Seminal work which describes this shift in postmodern culture was done by Paul Hiebert (1994, 1999) who described epistemological shifts in terms of bounded and centered sets. Hiebert describes a bounded set, as a grouping with well defined bounds. A centered set groups things on the basis of how they relate to other things. For the sake of this study, a congregation that is defined by location could be defined in terms of a bounded set. Missions defined by structure or agency could also be thought of as a bounded set. A bounded set framework would be a focus on church membership, or affiliation with a mission organization or a denomination which has location and structure. The societal shift, however, that is defined, not according to identity with a singular organization, but rather a common purpose, could be defined in terms of what Hiebert calls a centered set since the church would be defined by its center, the Triune God of Scripture. The trouble with the former, writes Hiebert, is that this may become too exacting and exclusive, while an advantage of the latter is that Jesus Christ becomes the focus of all that the Church is and does.
Although the popularity of congregational mission has come into focus primarily in the past ten years, the social and global shifts which foster an environment conducive to such a pervasive phenomenon have been in formation for much longer. Robert Wuthnow gives a sociological interpretation out of extensive research related to the changing epistemology in his book After Heaven: Spirituality in America since the 1950s. (1998). Wuthnow’s finding is that since the 1950s, Americans have shifted in their expression of spirituality from a focus on dwelling to a focus on seeking. According to Wuthnow, in the past, people primarily identified their faith by membership in a church that had a specific location. Because of social economic shifts, however, this general perception has changed somewhat. An example of this shift is that people produce less durable goods, and to a larger degree they produce a network of communication, or serve as brokers of goods or information. This shift from a focus on dwelling to a focus on seeking or networking is seen in how people perceive institutions. The older pattern, according to Wuthnow (8), was tightly bounded and hierarchical. Institutions were literally the building blocks of society. The newer pattern, however, emphasizes looser connections, diversity, and negotiation; practical activity takes precedence over organizational positions. Sociologist Robert Putnam makes a similar observation in his seminal book Bowling Alone (2000). Putnam describes the social shift in the United States away from membership in social organizations and away from what he describes as physical capital.
There is little doubt that many U.S. churches are making an epistemological shift away from the bounded sets of church as building and structure and toward a centered set which is relational and networking oriented. Although congregational mission is tied to the local church, it is the networking and relational aspects of the church and not the structure or theological identity that motivates them to volunteer and engage in mission. This ecclesiology driven by a desire for a common mission and/or relationship is crucial for understanding why there is such a large scale movement of congregations interested in mission that is relation and network based rather than mission that is top-down organization or structure based. A common thread found in research of the past 2-3 years is the strong emphasis on relationship networking which is a vital aspect of congregational mission as well as short-term mission (Bakker 2010, K.Priest 2009, Mickler 2010, Putnam 2010, Offutt 2009). The research in these studies also demonstrate a relational aspect through their ethnographic methodology.
Stephen W. Offutt’s 2009 PhD Dissertation focuses on El Salvador and South Africa networking. This ethnographic study, similar to C.M.Brown’s earlier dissertation (2007), included interviews of individuals on both sides of partnerships through 119 interviews with national pastors, and which also has a strong emphasis on the changing trends in evangelical congregations which are becoming more engaged in religious networks and what Offutt calls “the practice of moral entrepreneurship”. Offutt’s dissertation, unlike others focused primarily on two non-U.S. locations and explores the central role that symbols and networks have in the expanding and changing nature of “Southern evangelical communities”.
Steve Mickler’s 2010 PhD dissertation is primarily a qualitative ethnographic study of the affects that financial support from a Baptist Congregation in San Angelo, Texas has on three strategic partnerships in South Africa, Mozambique and Guatemala. Mickler conducted ninety-three ethnographic interviews and also includes considerable historical study of the giving trends of the congretation. Mickler’s dissertation maintains an ongoing tension between the assertions of Robertson McQuilken and others who propose that U.S. giving such as that in the congregational systems followed by Mickler will create paternalism and unhealthy dependencies on one side of the tension. On the other side of the tension, is the thesis of Robert Wuthnow, who argues for interdependent and relation based missions in contrast to the arguments of Philip Jenkins and others who propose an independent Christianity. Following both sides of this tension, Mickler points out that there are some very positive aspects of this partnership for both the U.S. congregation as well as the non-U.S. partners. He also points out that there are some signs of dependency and unhealthy relationships. In the balance of all of this, however, Mickler states “it seems clear from this research that the communities being server are indeed being helped far more than they are being hurt” (188) and in quoting Wuthnow (2010: 244), Mickler states that the local church partners also seem to be finding answers to Wuthnow’s question of “how to appropriately structure relationships between parties that differs in resources and power”.
An interesting approach to the question of power ,relationships and networking in short-term mission is the 2009 dissertation of Kersten Bayt Priest which works to “locate gender within STM…(109)” by following the ethnographic methodology described by George Marcus (1995) by first “following the people”, which in this thesis were women who engaged in short-term mission. This is a methodology of “following the people” is a methodology used in all of the ethnographic based dissertations that I encountered (Bakker 2010,Brown 2007, Mickler 2010, Priest 2010). Although Priest’s dissertation didn’t explicitly focus on the issue of congregation to congregation partnerships, her work has a contribution to make to this specific area of study since it is in dialog with much of the same literature of pilgrimage, tourism, short-term mission and congregational which contribute to congregation to congregation partnership studies. A consistent theme which is repeated in the interviews of Priest is that of relationships which are both bonding relationships within the women in the short-term mission groups, relationships with individuals in the location to where they travel, as well as relationships that the women utilize through their brokering for resources. In her analysis of the relationship between sacred pilgrimage and STM travel, Priest makes the interesting observation that unlike sacred pilgrimage, STM’s goal is not the geographical location, or even the journey, but rather the “perception that distant needy people are their destination. And within the span of a short-trip, those needy people are connected with and considered to be ‘family’” (185). This is a crucial component of relationship is included in other studies done on congregation to congregation partnerships (Brown 2007, Mickler 2010, Bakker 2010), and the common factor in these studies is that the desire for an authentic partnership is desired although difficult to achieve due to the complexities of financial and social distances between the congregations or groups. I noted earlier that Steve Mickler states that local church partnerships seem to be finding answers to Wuthnow’s question of “how to appropriately structure relationships between parties that differs in resources and power”. Janel Bakker’s dissertation research (Bakker 2010) is also optimistic that these type of “sister”partnerships break down many of these barriers. Kerten Bayt Priest’s research reflects this breaking down of barriers through women being the protagonists of STM endeavors. Priest describes how women who went on the trips find freedom to assume leadership roles that were not possible in their U.S. congregations. She also describes how this opened doors for women in the locations to where they traveled which would not have been possible with a gender mixed group. This finding is further supported by Robert Wuthnow (2010) who describes his findings that the social networks, such as women’s groups, or other networking formed within a congregation, resulted in greater relational networking through volunteerism beyond the congregation.
A recent dissertation which approaches a unique aspect of partnerships and which also reflects optimistic findings is Janel Kragt Bakker’s 2010 PhD (Bakker 2010) dissertation which is an ethnographic case study of twelve congregations involved in sister church relationships. Bakker focuses her study on the leaders and congregants who represent the North American partners and does not study the “Global Southerners”. The congregations which Bakker studied were chosen to cover a spectrum of theological and polity traditions. The study includes three Roman Catholic, three Presbyterian, three Anglican and three Baptist. Bakker states that “beyond the common quest for kinship with another community of faith in a distant locale, the stories of these twelve churches involved in sister church relationships vary greatly.”(153) Bakker makes the thesis that the current changing global dynamics give way to a changing paradigm in mission that is relationship based more than program based and instead of the northern and southern Christianity becoming more and more separated, she proposes that “companion congregation”, “twinning”, or “sister church” relationships present the potential for blurring the lines between donor and recipient which has often been a stumbling block to mission relationships between Christians from differing socio economic systems. Bakker’s dissertation also gives an extensive historical framework of mission practices and the theological as well as social influences which facilitated various movements including the more recent tensions between what has been referred to as “managerial mission” or the church growth movement, missional church, short-term mission and sister congregations.
Similar to the dissertation of Steve Mickler (Mickler 2010), Janel Kragt Bakker explores the challenges of patronage and exploitation evident in these types of relationships which need to be addressed. Her final analysis, however, is the same as Mickler’s (as well as Priest and Brown) that the potential and positive aspect found in these relationships far outweigh the challenges. Each of these ethnographic studies gives examples of relationships which were mutually beneficial through the partnerships formed. In one example of Bakker from an ethnographic case study of Trinity, an Anglican congregation partnering with Saint James in Haiti: “Respondents from Trinity unanimously argued that Saint James has made the greater contribution to the relationship, even though money flows in the opposite direction. Saint James’ intercessory prayer team—fifty persons strong—has been praying for Trinity daily for the past five years” (131).
Bakker answers some of the same issues raised in the research of Mickler related to possible challenges in partnerships. She makes the point that this new mission paradigm actually presents resolution to many of these challenges which are evident in colonialistic and program driven models instead of relational models.
The twelve ethnographic studies draw from congregational literature, and especially the methodology of Nancy Ammerman which “focuses on the accounts, artifacts, and activities that collectively build the culture of mission in participating congregations and parishes” (Ammerman,1998).
Bakker’s findings are consistent with the centered set theory of Hiebert (1999) as well as the findings of Wuthnow (1998) that congregations, for some time have been moving away from church and mission organizations as a locality (bounded set) and toward church as a common interest in relationship or mission (centered set). Bakker found a common strand in the twelve congregations she researched which circumvent denominational or larger regional bodies in the formation or continuation of their partnership relationships. In its place was the finding that “these partnerships were formed primarily on the basis of grassroots networking rather than denominational oversight. Sister church relationships function bottom up rather than top down through the chain of religious organization.” (156).
Epistemological shifts toward networking and relationship are closely related to social theory literature. Networking between people of a common congregation has been cited as the greatest factor leading to people within a congregation networking with people in other countries, as well as people outside of the congregation to procure support for mission efforts.
