A Primer on Church Planting 5 (BOOK REVIEW: PLANTING CHURCHES IN THE 21ST CENTURY)

Part V

Once it has been decided why, how, where, and when to plant a faith community, the question of "what kind of church to plant" arises. Murray writes: "Toward the end of the [20th century]...questions emerged about the kinds of church that were being planted. Were they truly missional? Were they contextually appropriate? Were they culturally attuned? Were many different kinds of churches needed in a diverse society?" (p. 133).

In response to these questions, Murray first rejects "cloning"--the common practice of "merely replicating a familiar model of church" (p. 135). This creativity-deficient approach leads to under-contextualized churches. "Cloning is not the answer" (p. 137).

Instead, starting churches should be seen as "an opportunity to reimagine church, experiment with new patterns and practices, integrate missional and ecclesial dimesions, review inherited traditions and assumptions, configure the relationship between gospel and culture in fresh ways, and pioneer on behalf of the wider church" (p. 138). This adventure requires from the people doing the work attentiveness to their convictions (they will need to agree on a vision), their context (they will need to do something that makes sense in their time and place), and their constraints (they will need to work with what resources they have). Murray thinks that churches should prioritize values ("availability and vulnerability," for example) and vision over purposes (he's not a fan of churches being "purpose driven") (pp. 144-147).

The chapter closes with a call to focus more on missiology and Christology than on ecclesiology:

More important are the missional questions, How is God at work in the neighborhood or network, and how can we get involved? How might the host community be transformed by the values of God's kingdom? Then comes the ecclesial question, What kind of church can participate creatively and effectively in this mission...? Some argue that even missional questions are secondary and that the primary questions relate to Christology, Who is the Jesus church planters represent and proclaim? What is the gospel in relation to the culture, needs, and aspirations of the host community? (p. 158)

to be continued