Wednesday, August 15
Missional v. Attractional…?
These two words, “missional” & “attractional” have caused a great amount of discussion in book clubs, small groups, and church planting gatherings that I have been a part of this past year.It’s always interesting to me how certain words come to represent certain ideas but when you go to the root of that particular word, or where the use of the word began you find the original definition or purpose is quite different.
We attempted to define these two words at our last ‘think tank’ (described in yesterday’s post), here are some notes from that gathering:
Missional thinking…
-incarnational, to bring flesh and bones to the message
-it’s going out, it’s meeting needs. Being the hands and feet of Jesus
-non-consumer
-selfless, the church has more of a purpose than itself
-more risk
Attractional thinking…
-high value on appearance (service, programs, etc.)
-it’s providing a place for people to come
-geared for consumption, very programmed based
-more sedentary
Honestly, I’m a little concerned that we put too much value in these words. We have a tendency to do that… We find the newest ‘trend’ or ‘label’ and we wear it out. And we like to define two different views in a way that makes you feel like you have to pick a side… I want to try and not do that.
I’d love to hear some of your thoughts on this…
How do you define these words in light of what they mean in the world of church and faith communities? Which have you experienced?
Mark Nelson at 5:12 PM 5comments
5 Comments
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at 10:08 AM
jason said... I know in my years of ministry, most of what I was witnessing and doing was "attractional"...and in the years since thinking back on it, much of what I was doing seems empty. It was about programs with cool names (4:12, Extreme, High Point, etc), getting people together to have fun and help them "like church" so they'll want to come back.
The problem is that attractional ministry is merely a method. Missional ministry involves purpose, vision, and true relationships. Missional ministry can USE attractional thinking as a part of it's greater purpose, but does not allow it become the focus.
"Emerging", another buzz word the last few years, is really related to Missional thinking. It's about being with people, opening yourself up, living life alongside others, guiding them as they guide you.
My point? You can use attractional thinking, but only as a support to missional ministry.-
at 12:29 PM
Brad Smith said...
i really agree with the idea of using some of the attractional stuff to get to the missional...
working with college students, i see the non-consumeristic part of the missional deal as a really great thing. the generation that is in college right now just seems to be very consumer minded
the other part of missional thinking that i really like is the incarnational part...i like very much the idea of simplifying things down to really being about looking, thinking, being like Christ-
at 1:16 PM
The Anonymous Human said...
I would disagree (go figure) a little with Jason that attrational is a method and missional is a...well, whatever the opposite of a method is. Attractional ministry includes vision, purpose and true relationships as well. That being said, I agree that a lot of attractional ministry I have been a part of has been geared towards getting people to like church to get them "hooked". Something about that seems off. But then again, we serve a savior that used miracles to help people with their faith. Even when he prayed aloud at Lazarus' "funeral" he said he's done all this for our benefit. Tell me that's not attractional.
I used to be about 100% attrational and 0% missional in my approach to ministry. Then I went 100% missional and 0% attractional. I think the balance is somewhere in the middle, but not 50/50. More like 100/100. We should always be about going to the masses, and be as appealing to them as possible. I really liked Hirsh's point that most of the time we aim at the 15% or so of the population that will like our attractional stuff while ignoring the 85% that isn't white, suburban, straight, or affluent.
I think it's a good struggle to wrestle with, but not one that has a clear winner. More like a nice gray area to wonder around in.-
at 3:56 PM
jason said...
great thoughts, anonymous human. it is definitely good to wrestle with.
with that in mind, don't ever disagree with me again.
just kidding. =)-
at 3:13 PM
The Anonymous Human said...
note taken.