Conversation starters, incomplete thoughts, and links from Adam S. McHugh, author of Introverts in the Church

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

An Old Story

I don't really know why, but I find this fascinating. This is an editorial from the Boca Raton News (it's somewhere in Florida) from 1994, talking about the struggles of introverts in churches.

What's still amazing to me is that no one has ever written a book about this topic, until well, October 2009.
Posted by Adam S. McHugh at 9:56 AM

1 comments:

  1. I'd venture a guess that most of the surveys done to determine what people "want" in churches are answered by extraverts since most introverts don't want to participate in a phone survey and certainly aren't going to seek out a person standing around with a clipboard asking strangers questions. So over time, churches begin to use the data in surveys as a way to "market" themselves, and since the data reflects a bias no one accounts for, churches become more and more focused on one aspect of the Body of Christ.

    This seems to replicate itself in all sorts of ways in churches, not just in terms of introversion. It may just be easier to see how not looking at potential flaws in the data gathering process may have far-ranging consequences.
    ReplyDelete

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Claremont, CA, United States
Adam S. McHugh is the author of Introverts in the Church: Finding Our Place in an Extroverted Culture. He is an ordained Presbyterian minister, spiritual director, chaplain, speaker, and retreat leader. He has been published in The Washington Post, The Christian Century, RELEVANT Magazine, Psychology Today, and Leadership Journal, among other publications. He is a graduate of Claremont McKenna College and Princeton Theological Seminary. On February 28, 2012 he will serve as guest chaplain in the U.S. House of Representatives. He lives in Claremont, CA.

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