In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:

Chapter 1 ‘‘Here Is the Church, Here Is the Steeple’’: Defining and Measuring Religious Congregations Religious congregations have generated great interest among scholars and policy makers for their civic value. Since the passage in 1996 of Charitable Choice, interest in congregations and their contribution to our social capital and civic society has grown exponentially.1 But a lack of clarity persists. The number of congregations in the United States is unknown, and even the term ‘‘congregation’’ lacks a precise definition. Congregations have been defined as religious entities with a name, a constitution, a building, and a shifting collection of people engaged in complex actions and rhetoric (Ammerman 1997b). This is an acceptable starting point, but to study congregations effectively requires a more precise operational definition. There is little previous work to draw on, since the new wave of academic interest in faith-based organizations follows decades of ignoring them. Jeavons (2000: 18) reminds us that faith-based organizations are characterized by ‘‘a remarkable diversity in character and mission, operating in very different industries; so much so that they really do not represent a ‘coherent net’ of organizations in any way.’’ They vary in size and, unlike congregations, easily fold when they face financial or other difficulties . Furthermore, even the meaning they ascribe to the terms ‘‘faith’’ or ‘‘religion’’ is not the same. He further notes that congregations are organizations whose core mission and function is worship and whose essential nature is sacerdotal. This may be followed by religious education and, to some extent, organizational maintenance. Being a worshipping community based on a common theology and practice of prayers is the ultimate purpose of virtually all congregations worldwide. People come to congregations for a variety of reasons, but they ultimately expect to find a worshipping community of people sharing their praying practices. As late as 1983, David Horton Smith lamented that churches are ignored by social scientists and called on us to focus on them. The 4 Chapter 1 importance of his call was recognized by two separate journals, both of which published his views on the issue. Interestingly, the distinction between faith-based and secular organizations has garnered more academic interest since 1996 (see Ebaugh et al. 2003; Jeavons 1998; Monsma and Mounts 2002; Unruh and Sider 2005; Smith and Sosin 2001). Meanwhile, congregations have been taken for granted as something we know about, and no corresponding conceptual development has occurred regarding local religious congregations. Hence we still lack good working definitions of congregations. An operational definition of a concept is one that allows us to decide whether any item is included or excluded from being listed as part of the concept. Our challenge is how to define local religious congregations in a manner that will enable us to distinguish them clearly from other forms of religious expression. It is our aim to define congregations in a manner that will, for example, exclude monasteries but include houses of worship that are not monotheistic. Such a definition is critical if we are to estimate accurately the total number, sizes, types, and locations of congregations in the United States today. In order to draw valid conclusions from congregational studies, we first need to know what they are, and then how many of them exist in our ecological landscape. This chapter examines the difficulties involved in defining and measuring congregations, while seeking to provide a conceptual as well as empirical definition of them. Defining a Congregation ‘‘Here is the church, here is the steeple. Open the door, see all the people .’’ Like this well-known children’s rhyme, the term congregation evokes images of beautiful buildings with a steeple, a cross, a Star of David, or a minaret, as well as groups of people frequently praying and worshipping together in such a place. While some definitions emphasize religious buildings, such as cathedrals, mosques, and temples, others identify a congregation as a fellowship of people who may come together not only for religious rituals and services on weekends, but also for religious or secular activities during the week. Congregations vary by political orientation , governance, faith tradition, theology, doctrines, and worship or other spiritual practices. They range in size from ‘‘megachurches’’ with thousands of members to groups with as few as five members. In our census of congregations in Philadelphia, we encountered congregations ranging from seven to 13,000 members. Clearly they differ in all organizational characteristics, yet they are...

Share