What If. . . is where you will find feature articles on the future direction of faith formation with practical strategies and ideas.
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July 2021
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Building Capacity for Faith FormationOne of the essential roles of all pastoral leaders today is to develop the mindset, the processes, and the skills for becoming capacity builders. Capacity building is designed to improve and enhance the church’s ability to achieve its mission and sustain itself over time. Among the essential capacities needed in churches today are leadership (professional and volunteer), financial sustainability, facilities, communication, technology, collaborations with other churches and community organizations, and programmatic resources in all forms—print, audio, video, digital, and online. This article explores how to develop a capacity-building mindset and two essential skills for building capacity for faith formation: curating resources and developing leaders.
Read the Article Online Download the Article in PDF. Use the Word file for adapting the worksheets.
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May 2021
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How Shall We Live Now? – Part Five
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April 2021
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How Shall We Live Now? – Part Four
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| 4-26 What If - How Shall We live - Part 4.pdf |
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How Shall We Live Now? - Part Three
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| 4-19 What If - How Shall We Live - Part 3.pdf |
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How Shall We Live Now? - Part Two
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| 4-11 What If - How Shall We Live - Part 2.pdf |
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How Shall We Live Now? - Part OneI believe that faith formation (and the whole church) in the emerging post-pandemic world will need to help people of all ages answer the question “How shall we live now?” The pandemic has disrupted our lives in ways that we have only begun to name. We are searching anew for meaning and purpose – now in a post-pandemic world. We are trying to process our losses and the grief that brings. We are struggling to build a world of justice, peace, care for creation, and respect for the dignity of all people. We are starting to rebuild our network of relationships and our resiliency as families and communities. We are all looking to answer the question, “How shall we live now?” in a post-pandemic world. What are the approaches, resources, people, and wisdom we need to address this question?
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March 2021
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Becoming “Anticipators of the Future”We need to develop the mindset and skill of anticipating. We need to become “anticipators of the future”—embracing a role as keen observers of what is happening in our communities and churches—imagining in advance what shape life will take as the pandemic winds down and a new way of life emerges, and planning to take action. I am practicing being an “anticipator” by listening to the pandemic experiences and questions of a wide spectrum of people, including colleagues, pastors, faith formation leaders. I’ve been watching and reading some of the best thinking on post-pandemic life and what this new life will mean for individuals, families, and communities. I’ve started my own list of “anticipations” for the future of church and faith formation to guide my thinking. Here are my five anticipations (in no particular order):
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March 15, 2021
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Learning from Faith Formation during the Pandemic: Reflection and EvaluationThere’s much to be learned from your pandemic creativity and innovations. Many of the new approaches you launched—at home faith formation, digital methods and media, online learning, to name a few—can become permanent features of faith formation in your church for years to come.
Now is a good time to reflect and evaluate while everyone’s experience is still fresh. This is the time to capture your personal learning and engage all those participating in faith formation in sharing their stories and experiences. This article presents three types of evaluation: Personal, Team, and Participant. I have created worksheets for each of the three types of evaluation that can be easily adapted for your church and setting. Read the Article Online Download the Article
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March 1, 2021
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A Vision for Maturing in FaithThis article proposes ten goals for maturing in faith that can guide the development of faith formation at each stage of life so that we can (re)direct our attention to people growing in faith and discipleship. Guided by the ten goals we can ask what we need to be doing to help faith and discipleship flourish in the lives of our people from childhood through older adulthood.
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February 2021
February 1, 2021
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New Approaches to Faith Formation in the Midst of the PandemicWhat are we discovering and learning about faith formation, about our community, and about ourselves during these long months of the pandemic?
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Photo by You X Ventures on Unsplash
February 8, 2021
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Planning Faith Formation in a Post-Pandemic World
How do we plan a new future for faith formation that addresses the adaptive challenge of recognizing the changing conditions caused by the pandemic and then designing creative and innovative initiatives to respond to people's lives today.
Read the Article Online Download the Article and the Research Guide
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February 15, 2021
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Creating Innovation in Faith Formation
This article explores how to create innovation in faith formation by presenting two types of innovation, strategies for continuing to innovate, and five suggestions for moving forward with innovation into the future.
Read the Article Online Download the Article and the "Switch Workbook"
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Photo by Brooke Cagle on Unsplash
February 22, 2021
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A Hybrid Future for Faith FormationI believe the future of faith formation is hybrid. Hybrid models hold together two important values in faith formation: the importance of in-person relationships and faith forming experiences, and the importance of being responsive to the complexity of people’s lives and their religious-spiritual needs. Hybrid models expand faith formation opportunities for everyone.
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