How Small Groups Can Power Big Change

[marmar]

from YES! Magazine:



How Small Groups Can Power Big Change
Progressive social movements don’t often take inspiration from conservative megachurches. But their lessons about organizational structure may be worth a second look.

by Sarah Byrnes
posted May 16, 2012


As a general rule, as communities grow, they lose social cohesion. There is a tricky tension between growing a group and a maintaining sense of personal belonging for members.

Like other voluntary associations, social movements struggle with this. But we can learn important lessons from the places that have figured it out—even from unlikely places like Saddleback “megachurch” in Orange County, CA.

Over 20,000 people attend Sunday worship at Saddleback, and yet members experience a strong, deep sense of belonging. That’s because Pastor Rick Warren has created “a church out of a network of lots of little church cells—exclusive, tightly knit groups of six or seven who meet in one another’s homes during the week to worship and pray.”

In other words, the secret is small groups. ..................(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.yesmagazine.org/blogs/common-security-clubs/how-small-grops-can-power-big-change