To learn a congregation s culture is to honor the people whose lives it expresses. When the people know they are honored and appreciated, they are much better prepared for a critical and constructive engagement with their own culture. They are more able to see it in new ways and imagine fresh perspectives on church. Used by permission. An Interview with Tom Frank, Author The Soul of the Congregation 1.
Nothing sounds simpler or proves more difficult than paying attention to the life of a congregation.
Little in our commercial culture dominated by television helps us cultivate the skills of actively attending to the world. Even in ministry we spend our days in mental SUVs racing through a landscape on the other side of a window. Writers in Christian spirituality practice the same discipline as they seek an incarnate God. Put yourself in a receptive frame of mind, so that you can listen well and receive what you hear without making judgments. Then I find the most interesting and fun place to begin is with stories.