In the last issue of Parish Pulse we introduced readers to the results of the July 2008 Parish Health Summit held in Wheaton IL.
A dozen or so clergy from reasonably vibrant parishes gathered to discuss the challenges of building and sustaining a true life in Christ in 21st century American Orthodox parishes. One outcome from the gathering was to agree upon eight essential focus areas for building good parishes. We outlined those eight areas in last issue of Parish Pulse. A somewhat expanded description can now be found
here.
A Parish Assessment and Review Framework Attendees also agreed that it would be valuable to expand these eight essential focus areas into a model that could serve as an
assessment framework for parishes. The consensus seemed to be that a framework or model could in a variety of ways.
Here are some of them:
1. Stimulation -- Focus on Being Made WellGood parishes don't stand still. They are in a state of hopeful, continual dissatisfaction with their efforts to reflect Christ as the church. They grow and adapt -continually discerning where God wants them to go and hat He wants them to do in His name.
Sometimes parishes are in a rut - or on a perpetual plateau -resting on the rung of a ladder. In these cases stimulation and encouragement may be needed. In the fifth chapter of John's gospel Jesus asked the paralytic at the pool of Bethesda "Do you want to be made well?" Likewise before parishes can be made well they have to ask that same question of themselves - "Do we want to be made well?" A good model can
stimulate a thoughtful, focused review of parish values and behaviors and build an understanding of and a thirst for brighter possibilities for the community.
2. Diagnose -- Find a Fruitful Area for Effort
Once a parish starts on a path of revitalization and renewal there will be no shortage of opinions of "what's wrong". In situations when a parish is in decline everything gets questioned and opinions are polarized. This makes it hard to agree on the most significant problem or opportunity facing the parish. Dialogue stops and often the loudest voice wins. The Inventory model can provide valuable structure to that conversation. By offering a specific set of focus areas it enables groups to move past debating and emotion into fact based conversations on Gospel centered issues. A key benefit of an assessment framework can be to accelerate a parish's ability to achieve consensus on where they should focus revitalization action and to get busy with building or rebuilding vitality into the parish. They may choose to build up an area of weakness -- or conversely they may choose to enhance an already strong quality of the parish community.
A model can help get people on the same page.3. Prescribe -- Identify What Can Work in Our Parish SituationOnce a parish selects a particular focus for their renewal effort the real work begins. New behaviors, values and practices need to be enacted. But that is of course easier said than done. Parishes at rest are often in that state because they've continued to do what they've always done. The inventory model may help parishes to identify specific approaches, structures,
ministries, and formational tools applied by others. The conversation that starts with questions like:
- "Can this work in our parish?
- Can we try this? If not why not?
- What would be a better way to achieve this in our community?"
will be a critical step
. No parish will be successful in a renewal effort by
copying what others do - or by emulating the static words of a model. However the specific items in the model
can be a foundation for prescribing, and proscribing, actions that apply to our unique parish situation.
4. Measure -- Follow ThroughHave we made progress? As a parish we said we wanted to work together on x, y or z. How are we doing? The inventory model posits sets of potential metrics that can be used as starting points for evaluating where we are on our journey.
Version 1 of the Parish Health Model is
available for download here. As you and your parish encounter ways to improve and enhance this model -- please keep us informed. Your feedback can make this a stronger tool in the future.
In two years the distribution of Parish Pulse has grown from 200 names to nearly 1000 names -- more than a few from outside our Diocese. (Total is 993 to be precise.)
Through the generosity of Archangel Michael Orthodox Church in Broadview Heights OH an additional Parish Health Grant has been offered. This grant, for $1000, goes to Holy Ascension parish in Albion MI. This grant is in response to a proposal made as part of the original call for proposals for the grant effort. 
One of the communities receiving a Parish Health grant was Holy Cross Mission in Chisago City MN. The grant dollars were used to build awareness for the community by expanding their presence at community festivals and also to establish and stock a bookstore for distributing books and pamphlets on Orthodox Christianity. 
The Parish Health grant team at St Mark's parish in Rochester Hills MI has been hard at work on the project associated with its grant -- learning to communicate better with non Orthodox inquirers. As the first step in the effort a survey of persons who embraced the Orthodox faith as adults ("converts") was created and distributed to parishes at the Diocesan Assembly in October. 
In addition an online version of the survey (replete with one or two typos and errors traceable to yours truly) was made available to Parish Pulse readers a week or so later.
The Council of Orthodox Christian Churches of Detroit sponsored a two day workshop on October 17-18 at Holy Transfiguration Orthodox Church in Livonia MI.
