Flourishing Congregations construct
What is a flourishing congregation?
From interviews with congregation and denomination leaders across Catholic, mainline, and conservative Protestant settings between Vancouver and Halifax, here are a series of variables that stand out to us – things leaders tell us contribute to, are evidence of, or are aspirations of what they associate with a flourishing congregation. A more detailed article summarizing these findings can be found here.
As our research progresses, especially when we survey and talk with congregants, our conception of what constitutes a flourishing congregation may evolve as well.
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Research Team
Sociology of Religion
Director
Ambrose University
Practical Theology & Religious Education
Associate Director
Ambrose University
Retired Professor Emeritus
Practical Theology
Ambrose University
Personal & Organizational Leadership
Member at Large
University of Saskatchewan
Purpose
Our purpose is to conduct and share Canadian and tradition-specific research on congregations that are flourishing
Mission
Our mission is to bring together academics and practitioners to research the factors surrounding flourishing congregations in Canada, develop tools and resources to help congregations to flourish, and share our research findings with congregations that wish to flourish.
partnership council
Don Moore
Executive Director of The Canadian Christian Business Federation
Rev Dr Don Moore serves as the Executive Director of The Canadian Christian Business Federation which supports business leaders “Connect their Sunday Faith with their Monday Work.”
Previously, as the National Church Ambassador with World Vision Canada, as the Executive Director of Vision 2000 Canada under the auspices of The Evangelical Fellowship of Canada and as the Dean of Briercrest Biblical Seminary.
He received his PhD from Michigan State University in education studying innovation and change in Christian higher educational institutions. He has been a professor, pastor, author, public speaker consultant, coach and international development leader.
Don is married to Dr Bonnie Mallard who is a University of Guelph professor in immunogenetics. She received the Governor General’s 2017 Award for Innovation at Rideau Hall in Ottawa.
Together they have 4 adult children and 8 grandchildren and an adorable baby kitten and a handsome grand puppy and live on a rural property near Guelph, ON.
Carla Leon
Manager of New Initiatives for EDGE at The United Church of Canada
Over the past 6 years Carla has launched a buying group, the Social Innovation Challenge, a mentoring program, an Innovation Grant program called Embracing the Spirit, and she continues to explore what is on the edge. Her background is in the for-profit sector and she has an MBA from UBC, which may be an unusual background, but she is finding ways to leverage her different lens and experience to help community of faith in building partnerships and reconnecting in their neighbourhoods.
David Eagle
Research Associate at Duke University
David Eagle received his PhD in sociology at Duke University studying the social organization of congregations in North America. He is presently a researcher with Duke Divinity School's Clergy Health Initiative where he is part of the largest data collection ever done with clergy, a 10-year project to understand the challenges that United Methodist pastors face in terms of their mental and physical health.
He is keenly interested in how religious adherence and belief is changing in congregations in North American and how these changes are impacting the shape of pastoral ministry and theological education. He has published on factors that influence clergy health, megachurches, and trends in religious adherence and attendance in Canada. His website is at www.davideagle.org.
Robb Warren
Co-Executive Director of Global Leadership Network Canada
Robb is married to Lois and together they have three amazing daughters. Living in Ottawa, Robb and Lois lead Global Leadership Network Canada. Together, they work with churches and leaders across the country to provide leadership resources that equip Christians by building their skill and inspiring their faith.
The Reverend Clara King
Rural Missioner for the Anglican Diocese of Calgary
Clara is honoured to join the Flourishing Congregations Partnership Council as its inaugural Chair. A Priest in the Anglican Church of Canada, Clara has two key roles in the Diocese of Calgary. She is Rector (Senior Priest) of St. George’s Anglican Church in North East Calgary; under her leadership, this immigrant/working-class parish is undertaking a multi-year program of revitalization. As Rural Missioner, Clara liaises with the many struggling rural congregations of the Diocese to explore paradigm-shifting approaches to rural missions.
Her work in identifying and addressing system issues at the parish and Diocesan levels has led to her leadership in designing and implementing two legacy resource programs which aim to change the culture of, and attitudes towards, rural ministry within the Diocese. Clara is both a creative thinker and a skilled facilitator who catalyzes collaboration among team members and enhances how groups work together, drawing out the amazing gifts and skills God has planted in our midst.