CHURCHES THAT MAKE A DIFFERENCE | BOOK REVIEW

Reviewed by Thomas Scarborough

Churches That Make A Difference has clearly been a popular Christian book, now having reached its third printing. The subtitle, “Reaching Your Community with Good News and Good Works”, suggests the subject matter, namely – how to bring together Good News and Good Works in the Church. The book’s great strength is that the content is based on fifteen “in-depth case studies” of Churches in the greater Philadelphia area – a project which was sponsored by the Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary in the U.S.A. A further strength is that the book outlines a wide variety of successful approaches to “Good News and Good Works”.

The book’s greatest weakness, in my view, is its “makeshift” theology – not because the authors espouse any theology in particular, but because the theology does not seem to be well enough grounded (more of which in a moment). An obvious limitation of the book is that all its case studies hail from the greater Philadelphia area in the U.S.A., which seems remote from settings e.g. in Africa or Asia. It makes assumptions about context which are far from universal, and the book’s list of “crises in holistic ministry […] from external causes” seems a classic of insularity.

HOW ARE GOOD NEWS AND GOOD DEEDS RECONCILED?

The authors point out that “evangelism rarely happens by osmosis”. “Loving acts need the complement of the verbal presentation of Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. If people don’t ask, and Christians never tell, how will anyone ever know the gospel?” That is, the gospel should always be presented clearly. On the other hand, however, “proclamation alone may ring hollow”.

The authors refer a great deal to “holistic ministry”. This is ministry where “evangelism and social action are distinguishable but inseparable”. Holistic ministry is “based on the understanding that the physical, spiritual, moral, and relational dimensions of human nature are intertwined. Churches of this type encourage faith commitments in the context of social activism”.

A holistic ministry is not one which fails “to share the gospel with those outside the church”. Nor is it one where evangelism and social ministries “run on separate tracks”. It is not one where Churches “neglect that persons have bodies”. It is not one which neglects “systemic evils”. Rather, it is one which “seeks wholeness on every level of society”, including personal conversion and social renewal.

WHAT MODELS OF EVANGELICAL SOCIAL MINISTRY EXIST?

The book describes five classic models of social ministry in evangelical Churches today:

1. PASSIVE. This is social ministry which takes place without any Christian evangelism, in the hopes that Christian love will lead to faith among those who benefit from the ministry.

2. INVITATIONAL. This is social ministry with an optional invitation to join e.g. Sunday services.

3. RELATIONAL. This involves the building of relationships with the recipients of social ministry, and involves both social ministry and personal one-on-one witness.

4. INTEGRATED-OPTIONAL. In this case, no social ministry is done without evangelism being “woven into the delivery”. That is, if you want help, you must receive evangelism as well. And

5. INTEGRATED-MANDATORY. This presents a particularly interesting approach, for the reason that it would seem highly unusual, yet at the same time has been very successful. For example, people in recovery from substance abuse might be expected to take part in regular street outreach, prayer, fasting, Church attendance, and so on – although they are not Christians. In one example in the U.S.A., “nearly all the men who stay with the program make a faith commitment or rededicate themselves to Christ”. (The authors point out, however, that this approach is not widely appropriate).

There is also a sixth possibility, which is frequently referred to as PARTNERSHIPS, or COALITIONS. That is, if one’s own Church is too small to develop or to support a social ministry, one forms a partnership with Churches and organisations which do have such ministries, and supports them and works together with them in various ways.

IS THE BOOK’S APPROACH TO HOLISTIC MINISTRY ADEQUATE TO REALITY?

I sensed a void at the centre of the book, which has to do with the American “can do” attitude. In fact the concluding chapter of the book is titled: “We Can Do It”. The authors would seem to suggest that the solution to social ills is just a matter of “reaching your community with the whole gospel for the whole person”. However, it needs to be borne in mind that, in some parts of the world, it is a case of “NO can do”. In fact, in many parts of the world, the general situation is rapidly regressing, and there seems to be little hope of assistance from outside.

What sustains people in such situations? What should sustain people over five years – even a year – of grievous oppression? It may not be enough to offer that “God’s salvation includes […] material prosperity, justice,” and that He “promises to renew the earth”. Does such a view demonstrate a true understanding and compassion for those who presently live under oppression? Is the Church capable of BEING a solution where it cannot PROVIDE it?

Another issue, which the book raises yet seems to sidestep completely, is that the Bible shows us that God may, in his purposes, deliberately subject a people to oppression and want, if not complete destruction. Every Biblical scholar is familiar with this theme. Yet the authors suggest that “God intended” that everyone’s life should be complete. This perspective would not seem to be accompanied by adequate reflection.

IS THE BOOK’S THEOLOGY SUITABLY GROUNDED?

The book suffers from a lack of theological definition. While one cannot expect that it should contain a dictionary of theological terms, it stands to reason that a few basic clarifications would be helpful. No more than two or three theological terms are adequately defined in the book. For instance, “mission work”, “outreach”, “hope”, “shalom”, “God’s plan”, an “equitable society”, the “reign of God”, “cosmic redemption”, and other important terms all remain undefined, and the reader is largely left guessing.

I wondered whether the authors are mindful of dominion theology. Although they state that the Church “is not the hope of the world – Christ is”, they preface a chapter with the quote: “To spread the kingdom of God is […]

ordering lives and relationships and institutions and communities according to God’s authority”. This ultimately means “the renewal of the entire world”. Dominion theology holds that the Christian Church is to exert power and control over secular institutions and will eventually establish a theocratic rule over all the governments of the earth. If the authors do not believe in dominion theology, they would appear to come uncomfortably close to it.

The authors decribe “expanded opportunities and funding” for faith-based organisations in the U.S.A. They suggest, therefore, that the Church should “seize this historic moment”, and accept U.S. government funding. However, they then let slip that this could compromise evangelism where”your ministry receives government grants”. Yet the book gives little if any consideration to such a dilemma, or to wider issues of Church and state. We simply “leverage those dollars”!

The book suffers many smaller lapses. For instance, the authors glide without distinction from Jesus’ “new messianic community” to “a just, peaceful, and equitable society”. Are we therefore to equate the two? The argument flows without pause from Jesus’ “healing sick bodies” to Christians ministering to “people’s physical needs”. How, therefore, are we to reconcile Biblical miracles with acts of service? The old question of literalism, too, raises its head, in the interpretation of passages such as Luke 4:16-19. Are we to read such passages literally, or figuratively? Further, the book takes Christ as a model for social ministry, yet not, apparently, the New Testament Church.

These and other issues give one the sense that the book’s theological foundations are not adequately grounded or thought through.

SYNTHESIS

For all its quirks, this is, on the whole, a worthwhile book – for the reason that it has its feet firmly planted in reality, being based on careful research of a fairly broad sampling of thriving Churches – at least within the greater Philadelphia area. It shares the experience of these Churches in an impartial and accessible way, and thereby passes on invaluable information to the reader. It also incorporates the “big picture” with regard to evangelical Christian social ministry.

I couldn’t help sensing, as I read this book, that “holistic” ministry might represent, for some, a politically correct version of outreach today – that it might become the new unifying or rallying factor that makes either social ministry or evangelism more palatable to a given Church. Yet in the process, something important might be lost. Depending on the Church in question, there could be the risk that, rather than rediscovering a new radicalism of faith, it might yield instead to the desire to be a modish (holistic)

Church.

CITATION OF REFERENCE

Sider, Ronald J., Olson, Philip N., & Unruh, Heidi Rolland. Churches That Make A Difference. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Books, 2002. ISBN 0-8010-9133-0. Publisher Price U.S.$19.99.

Rev. Thomas Scarborough is the minister of an Evangelical Congregational Church in Cape Town, South Africa. During the course of a Master’s degree through Fuller Theological Seminary, he needs to read and reflect on some 100 books – hence this review!