Measuring mission

Christian Century, July 17, 2002 by A. Wayne Schwab

DAVID ROOZEN continues the obsession with growing congregations as the primary purpose of the church ("Worship and Renewal," June 5-12). Renewal for Roozen means growing in congregational size. He presents contemporary worship as the latest way to "membership growth."

Where is growth in mission in the world? Where is growth in conforming the world around us to God's reign of love and justice? When will researchers begin to measure how many members see issues in their daily workplaces as potential mission fields? When will Roozen and his colleagues work at finding ways to see that members are agents of change for love and justice in their homes, their neighborhoods and the wider world?

They would probably be intrigued to learn how many are carrying on missions. And they would be depressed by the greater number who, apparently, have never been helped by their congregations to see issues in their daily living as occasions for mission. Maybe they would face just how many see no connection between Sunday and the pension policies of their employer or their conversations about public assistance for the poor. Maybe, just maybe, they would want to find ways to measure growth in mission rather than growth in congregational size.

A. Wayne Schwab
Essex, N. Y.