Start Here: An Overview and Evaluation of the Church
I have developed this simple questionnaire to help pastors and other leaders in their search for appropriate mission. The factors mentioned here are gleaned from my personal research. They are factors noted to be missing from the lowest income rural counties in the US. Some were missing from nearly all counties, a few were missing from only a half dozen or so. You are the judge of your own county.
Is economic growth important to you, your family and your community? Do you wish your church and other non-profit groups could help you and your neighbors develop a more significant economy? If so, this brochure is for you, your pastor, your faith groups, your local clergy associations, your family, your schools, fraternal organizations and community service clubs. Everyone, if fact, who takes seriously the economic state of the local community.
This material is written from personal experience. It is taken from demographic research and personal interviews with hundreds of persons across the United States. It reflects visits by the author to about 100 of the lowest income counties in the nation. It also reflects living in some of the most affluent cities of America, from Phoenix to Seattle to New York City.
This study is appropriate for every faith group, but is focused on Christianity. Regardless the wishes of the leadership, every faith group is judged by the rank and file by the way it impacts their lives. Support for economic development is one of those impacts.
The title is derived from the ancient practice of freeing slaves after a fixed number of years, perhaps seven or fifty years. Or, in other words, enough is enough!
How does your faith impact your community? Evaluate your own community and faith group. In the first underlined space of each topic, evaluate the situation of your community. In the second blank space, evaluate the intent and effect of your faith group in this topic area. Use a score from a low of 1 to a high of 10.
1: ___/___ The Sense of Creation as a Gift Psalm 8
Reality itself is seen in the community as a personal gift from God for the benefit of humankind. It is therefore to be treated with as much respect, gratitude, concern and understanding as can be mustered. God creates the world and humankind, then comes to us bearing everything as a gift. Matters of ecology and resources are of intense concern for the entire community.
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