In the middle of a pandemic when none of us have all of our cylinders firing consistently, when all of us are experiencing extra pressure, confusion, and fear, as well as illness, loss, and grief, we need to be clear.

Learning to understand human communities (and in our case, congregations) as systems has been an ongoing learning process for the past several decades for family therapists, organizational development consultants and social scientists....

An overview of the nine principles of Emergent Strategy from adrienne maree brown.

Friends, we are in the heart of an overwhelming storm. None of us are operating at full capacity. Most all of us are exhausted. Here is some advice.

No one fact says more about a group of human beings than its size. Dan Hotchkiss shares some of the differences in dynamics.

Every congregation I go to has a list of things they have to do or want to do that they just can’t do because they don’t have the resources – money, volunteers, energy, space, whatever it is. Maybe it’s time to change your framing so that you can create abundance.

When thinking about needed or wanted change, congregations can sometimes feel stymied. And, let’s face it, human systems like religious communities don’t tend to like to change. In a way, we need to trick the system in order to allow in energy and creativity.

Bylaws changes require approval by the congregation in a meeting of the whole. Like any significant change, changes to bylaws should be communicated as clearly as possible with lots of opportunity for questions and comments.

The interdependence of our faith communities is integral to our polity (as is our independence). This is what makes us an Association of congregations. What can this interrelationship look like when it comes to congregational staff? Here are a few examples: Newly hired staff are welcomed and...

Not all conflict is alike. Different kinds of conflict require different kinds of responses. This is an overview of a model of conflict by Alban Institute consultant Speed Leas.