Being and becoming: demographic, religiosity, and attitudinal survey of New England Churches of Christ

Paul D Clark

Etd

Being and becoming: demographic, religiosity, and attitudinal survey of New England Churches of Christ

Public Deposited

MLA citation style (9th ed.)

Paul D Clark. Being and Becoming: Demographic, Religiosity, and Attitudinal Survey of New England Churches of Christ. Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. rim.ir.atla.com/concern/etds/f776e5c8-6107-4ae7-9434-7869419bf261.

APA citation style (7th ed.)

P. D. Clark. Being and becoming: demographic, religiosity, and attitudinal survey of New England Churches of Christ. https://rim.ir.atla.com/concern/etds/f776e5c8-6107-4ae7-9434-7869419bf261

Chicago citation style (CMOS 17, author-date)

Paul D Clark. Being and Becoming: Demographic, Religiosity, and Attitudinal Survey of New England Churches of Christ. Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. https://rim.ir.atla.com/concern/etds/f776e5c8-6107-4ae7-9434-7869419bf261.

Note: These citations are programmatically generated and may be incomplete.

Creator

Paul D Clark

Keyword

Religious surveys

Rights Statement

In Copyright

Abstract

This work is a study focused on one religious tradition in New England. The American Restoration Movement, and its particular branch known as Churches of Christ (a cappell), has a rich and varied history in New England. Currently there are approximately 104 congregations totaling about 5749 members. Yet, due to the autonomy of these churches, accurate accounting is somewhat inhibited. What do these churches look like? Past research has focused solely on attendance figures and did not address other research possibilities such as demographic, religiosity and attitudinal aspects of the tradition. The thesis-project seeks to answer the question by gleaning data from a particular survey instrument that uses demographic, religiosity and attitudinal options. The thesis begins with an explanation of the genesis of the survey and the methodology used to collect the data. Two chapters, then, are devoted to analyzing demographic, religiosity and attitudinal data. With the assistance of the survey's data, a picture of what New England Churches of Christ look like at the start of this new millennium is developed. Demographic and religiosity data is shared in order to get behind the attendance figures and gain a more complete picture of this movement. Attitudinal data, which is based on certain characteristics, or indicators, of church 'health' is used to assess the vitality of the group. A third chapter, related to the survey, offers some perspective on various opportunities and challenges the tradition will face in the coming years. A final chapter puts flesh on this thesis. It is a presentation and summary of one church's recent strategic attempt, through the use of an instrument called a vision notebook, to assess their current situation and then seek to implement the ten health indicators into their local church in an intentional, healthy, and effective way. The goal of the thesis-project is to paint a picture of the tradition, offer some insights into her current state, and tender a few challenges. The premise of the work is that Churches of Christ must know who they are if they are to develop a fuller identity and be useful to their communities in the new millennium.

Publisher