Church and Management

Abstract

"''The camel is a horse designed by a committee". The purpose of this well-known witty remark is to highlight the apparent incompetence and inefficiency of committee structures. However, if the truth be told, it is in fact a glowing compliment to what can be achieved by careful management and design. The camel may have a rather comical appearance but it is ideally suited to its natural habitat. The frequent failures and frustrations felt by chairpersons and committee members alike are more likely to arise because ofthe absence of any clear management thinking rather than anything to do with the general nature of committees themselves. The question must, nevertheless, be asked: what place, if any, does management thinking have in the context of the church? Bearing in mind that the church is a community engaged in spiritual activity, created by divine initiative, based on faith in the ongoing purposes of God, under the headship of the risen Christ, and led by the Holy Spirit it is sometimes assumed that the idea of management is, therefore, not only unnecessary but also a denial of these spiritual elements. Such an assumption needs to be thoughtfully but critically examined in the light of the· testimony of scripture and the experience of the Church past and present"