by Thomas F. Fischer

Introduction

Thomas Fischer, an active clergyman in the Michigan District of Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, directs ministryhealth.net, a Web site that offers articles and other resources for building healthy congregations. Topics featured in ministryhealth.net include systems theory, communication, conflict, and self-management.

This Web version of "Understanding Congregational Anxiety" is based on an essay written for the 2004 book published by Alban, www.congregationalresources.org. A print-ready version is available by clicking on the link at the bottom of the left-hand menu. (You'll need to have installed the free download, Adobe Acrobat.)

Also at the bottom of the left-hand menu is a "Search" function to help you find specific titles or key words in the "Anxiety" Web site.

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"How can they do that?"
"Are they out of their minds?"
"Can’t they see how they are destroying each other?"
"When will they finally realize what they’re doing?"

Virtually every congregational leader has had thoughts like these upon encountering congregational conflict. And leaders often find it even more troubling that the parties involved seem unaware of the consequences of their actions.

What may help congregational leaders cope with—and help heal—such conflict is an understanding of the nature of anxiety. Key to this understanding is the recognition that groups tend to demonstrate the same patterns of behavior as individuals during times of high anxiety. These patterns are often so ingrained in a congregation’s way of life that they may, to a large extent, be predictable.