The Positioning of the Parish in a Context of Individualization

Abstract

English Now that religious participation largely depends on individual choice, existing religious congregations find themselves confronted with the challenge of organizational renewal. Both sociological and theological authors disagree on two strategies as successful ways of coping with this new “market situation”. The first strategy is that of the service institution; the second, that of the exclusive firm. We conducted a survey among parish councils in the Netherlands regarding the positioning of Roman Catholic parishes in this respect. Factor analysis shows that these parishes do not differentiate along these lines. They do differentiate, however, on the factors of “perceived accessibility” and “Christian pro-file”. Thus, three parish types could be discerned: the open parish, the inviting parish and the “parochial” parish. These types reflect different ways of coping with the strategic challenge parishes are faced with: holding on to a Christian profile, while trying to stay in contact with the public. French Le contexte de l'individualisation des choix religieux oblige les paroisses à une remise en question de leur positionnement. Du côté des sociologues et des théologiens, le débat est analogue et porte sur l'efficacité des stratégies paroissiales. Mais les premiers favorisent la stratégie de l'organisation de services religieux, tandis que les autres celle de la "firme exclusive''. Or, l'analyse d'une enquête parmi les paroisses catholiques aux Pays-Bas montre que les paroisses ne suivent pas cette ligne de partage. Confrontées au dilemme de choisir entre accessibilité et profil chrétien, les paroisses adoptent en fait une des trois positions suivantes: la paroisse publique, la paroisse accueillante et la paroisse "à l'esprit de clocher''.

Orthodoxie en beleving

“…De dienstverlening aan matig geïnteresseerden is de omvangrijkste optie (De Groot, Kregting en Borgman, 2005). Een aanzienlijk deel van de Nederlandse katholieken beschouwen zich waarschijnlijk niet als leden van de Rooms-Katholieke Kerk, maar als deel van het publiek waar de kerk diensten aan verleent.…”

People Make the Place: Religious Leadership and the Identity of the Local Congregation

“…This uncertainty of identity may be both cause and effect of the general decline in church participation and involvement. In many mainline churches people belonging to the same congregation differ widely in their vision of what their church should stand for and what should be the mission of their congregation (Carroll and Roozen 1990;Finke and Stark 1992;Gremillion and Castelli 1987;Groot et al 2005;Hartmann 1996;Hauerwas and Willimon 1989;Hoge and Roozen 1979;Kelley 1972;Peyrot and Sweeney 2000;Stollberg 1998). The religious relevance of the social life of the religious community has become quite uncertain.…”