Should church small groups be filed exclusively under the rubric of “Stuff White People Like”? That’s the provocative question that Leadership Journal‘s Out of Ur blog recently posed. Riffing off an interview with leaders from River City Community Church, a multiethnic congregation in Chicago, writer Sam O’Neal wondered aloud if small groups are primarily “a white way to do church.” And the conversation among River City’s leaders does raise some interesting questions about the role that culture plays in shaping our ecclesiological practices.
“The fact is small groups aren’t as important to other ethnicities as they are to white people,” says Arloa Sutter, River City’s pastor of community life.
Adds senior pastor Daniel Hill: “White people rely on small groups to connect. Other ethnicities form community more organically, more relationally.”
Check out the complete post to get a feel for the context and flow of the discussion, and then head back here to continue the conversation UrbanFaith-style.
Since Out of Ur raised the subject, we’d love to hear your thoughts on this: Are small groups primarily a white way of doing church? If you attend a non-white or multiethnic church, what is your congregation’s community structure like? Do you rely on small groups as a way of keeping people connected, or do you have other systems in place? Or do you find that your congregation’s community just flows naturally, or “organically,” as Pastor Hill suggests?
What do you think? Send us your feedback. If we hear from enough of you, we’ll feature some of your thoughts, opinions, and ideas in an UrbanFaith article and share them with the good folks at Out of Ur.
No. Can I say it any plainer? Why turn everything into a racial issue. Worship, Bible studies, small groups, etc. don’t have anything to do with color or culture. It’s all about seeking God and getting closer to him. Stop making everything about race.
Harvey Carey, an African American pastor in Detroit, Michigan has taught on this very topic. He suggests that small groups tend to look different in churches of color than in primarily white contexts. In the African American church, groups that gather around common affinities (such as the choir) often function as small groups living in community together. They might not be called “small groups” but they serve the same function.
As a white female pastor – I must say I find it deeply disconcerting that whites are still troubled by conversations around race. The reality of the 21st century church is that whites have experienced significant privilege and advantages based on the oppression of people of color. This is a part of our heritage and identity and it is important that we not forget, but rather respond with humble spirits, repenting of our contributions, and seeking reconciliation with our brothers and sisters in Christ.
When I read the question – before I even got to the body of the conversation I was having some of the same thoughts that are expressed in the article. I have had contact with very few minority church communities who have “small groups” in the the traditional majority way of describing them. It seems as though the Caucasian culture (of which I am apart) values and prioritizes efficiency, privacy, and busy-ness which leave us feeling isolated, disconnected and hungry for community.
In most minority settings I have been in, “community” and connectedness are a normal part of living…and at times would take place as Mae suggests in the form of affinity groups – and thus one doesn’t feel the hunger to find that connectedness. I would also argue that those small groups (that happen in the primarily Caucasian setting) are a reflection of our other values (and thus to some extent defeat the purpose). They are a tidy, efficient way for us to spend time connecting (with minimal relationship outside of those settings) and pretty limited exposure and transparency during the times of togetherness. This has been my experience in a variety of Caucasian small group settings.
This is a great question! I’ve thought about this a lot and wondered if other folks also wondered about it. Small groups do seem to be more of a fixture of white evangelical churches than of African American or non-majority white churches. I’ve found that most of the “community” interaction in my church (I’m black) occurs within the context of doing ministry with my brothers and sisters in the church: choir rehearsal, prayer walks, volunteering to help out with the youth ministry, doing compassion ministries on Saturday mornings, attending and teaching Sunday School classes, etc. I guess it’s the difference between creating a program specifically for community-building and experiencing community as a byproduct of worshiping and serving together.
In my opinion, small groups probably better represent what the early New Testament church looked liked than do our current conceptions of “church” (i.e. the Sunday morning worship/entertainment service). The early church was all about community and relationships and about teaching and learning from each other about Jesus and his gospel. I think today’s small groups reflect our deep suspicion that true worship and community requires something more than what we routinely do on Sunday mornings in America.
I look at small groups as pratical, common-sense instruments for larger churches that need a way to create structures of accountability for its members. It’s also a way to organize members into manageable units that can study the Bible and pray together, do service projects together, and serve as the first line of support when a member is in need or experiencing a personal crisis. Small groups simply make good, practical sense, and that has nothing to do with race.
Chris-
I totally get where you are coming from. However, in my experience large African American churches typically don’t have small groups in the classic way that Caucasian Americans do. I think the reason is that again – culturally African Americans (and most other minorities) don’t need to have a formal program set into place in order to support each other – they have organic (familial or community based) ways to support each other. They don’t need it to do service projects because they are less isolated from people who are hurting or broken – contact and interaction could be in their extended family which they are already involved with supporting. Again when it comes to personal crisis – the community is their to support each other (sometimes family sometimes friends). In fact – as I have lived in a predominately African American neighborhood for several years I have seen that community organically support, serve and “catch” each other in crisis situations more than I have ever seen a small group in a church do that…and I would say I have been in some pretty active small groups. So in a sense the “felt need” doesn’t often exist for the minority group to have formal groups when the same basic needs are being met without them. Just a thought of how I see the dialogue relating to race.
I think “small groups being a white thing” has a lot to do with the impersonal “sunday mega-church” being a “white thing”. Small groups are an attempted remedy to the over-institutional, under-discipling symptoms of the “white church”. I’ve seen and have experienced them done well… and I’ve been in some that are over-programmed and just perpetuate the aforementioned “symptoms”– undoubtably due to the fact that they are primarily attempts (in those cases) at “efficiency” or further institutionalization by church leadership.
That being said, there is a time and place for small groups. If a black or white or multi-ethnic or asian or hispanic church has a more organic method or means to achieving discipleship, accountability, and Christian community… then PRAISE GOD! And if a white suburban or “yuppy” church needs the tool of a small group ministry to get otherwise introverted, private, and complacent Christians out of their comfort zones, engaging them in a more Acts 2-style community… then HAVE AT IT!
I do believe that, if in fact small groups are a “white thing”, all this is because of the pre-existing differences of “white” culture(s) versus “minority” culture(s)… It is simply a reflection of a greater issue, and does not necessarily perpetuate, justify, or even speak to the core of that issue.
Call it whatever you want: “Small Group”, “Gospel Choir Rehearsal”, or just “Family Dinner with the Neighbors”… ANY reason to engage in intentional Christian community, accountability, and discipleship is a GOOD reason, regardless of your color or culture.
I believe we need to collectively experience the “Small Group” before we cast judgment on its merits, short comings, strengths, weaknesses and relevance in any Christian church setting.
I have experience with four small groups over six years and I must agree with Raymond and Aaron. The Small Group genesis, race, community impact, church size and associated correlation all become irrelevant once we’re inside – they simply cross all boundaries.
I suggest everyone test a Small Group then provide appropriate, experiential feedback.