Congregation Assessment Tool for Parish Priests
By the Rev. Frank Baltz, (‘69)
From my home in Marietta, Georgia, part of the metro Atlanta area which stretches more than 70 miles in diameter and comprises over five million people, there is no way I can know everything I might want or need to know about this vast area. At best I can know my immediate area well and be knowledgeable of some of the main roads, businesses, and institutions in the other areas. If metro Atlanta were likened to a pie, I know my slice and a few things about the rest of the pie.
Similarly, congregational leaders–even rectors–cannot know 100% of their parishioners’ views and feelings on all the topics that concern them. At best they each have a slice of the pie, gained by limited observations and conversations. Often, they bring inadequate understanding of parishioners’ perspectives to vestry meetings and decision-making that affect the congregation, sometimes with mixed–sometimes disastrous–results. It’s helpful to have a tool to more accurately assess parishioner opinion on these important issues.
The Congregational Assessment Tool (CAT), a product of Holy Cow! Consulting, headquartered in Westerville, Ohio, provides information not normally available to church leaders. This tool paints a picture–kind of like viewing the underwater portion of an iceberg–of each congregation’s story, as told by its parishioners, thereby giving leaders greater clarity with which to make better plans and decisions.
With this tool, the congregation is invited to take a computerized questionnaire (about 100 questions): 85 basic questions; 5 questions designed specifically for that congregation; and questions from 2 supplemental modules, based on the needs of the congregation. Once completed, the survey responses are collated into a 30- to 50-page Vital Signs Report showing the percentages of respondents’ answers against benchmarks in percentiles of more than 2000 other churches that have taken the CAT in the last six years.
The Vital Signs Report goes “into the weeds” on important topics such as congregational climate, culture, and priorities, including indices on hospitality, morale, conflict management, governance, spiritual vitality, readiness for ministry, engagement in education, worship, and music, stewardship, and other critical congregational concerns. Once prepared, the Vital Signs Report is presented to church leadership by a certified report interpreter, who can assist with deciphering and digesting the data and be on-hand for developing next steps for the congregation, based on information collected. The fees for these services are formulated on a sliding scale, depending on each congregation’s budget.
Full disclosure, I’m now serving in my retirement as a CAT Vital Signs Report interpreter; I would not be part of this organization if it weren’t for the excellent work they’re doing to assist congregations and parish leadership, in particular, with the tools and information necessary to gain insight, break logjams, and see their way clear to gaining momentum for congregational maturity and growth. I only wish I’d had such a tool available to me during my many years of parish ministry!
The Rev. Frank Baltz is a graduate of Nashotah House (M.Div. ‘69; S.T.M. ‘79); Rector Emeritus of St. Jude's, Marietta, Georgia; former instructor of the elective class at Nashotah House, "Building Congregations That Thrive.” Although retired from active parish ministry, he continues to preach, teach and coach church leaders. For more information on the CAT and sample Vital Signs Reports, go to www.holycowconsulting.com.