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Systems thinking is a little like immunology: If the T-cell count plummets, that jeopardizes the body's resistance to disease. One thing affects another. Everything is connected.

To understand the parts, you must look at the whole—that's systems thinking.

In his book Generation to Generation, Edwin Friedman, who died in 1996, applied the way family members related to one another to the way churches and synagogues operate as a whole. A disciple of Friedman, Peter Steinke, a Lutheran (ELCA) minister and counselor, has written Healthy Congregations (Alban Institute), which evaluates the health of a congregation using family-systems theory. Steinke views churches as living, breathing organisms.

Leadership senior associate editor Dave Goetz asked Steinke how systems thinking might help pastors bring health to their congregations.

In Healthy Congregations, you say that disease in a church can be good. How so?

Peter Steinke: For any system to be healthy, it has to be challenged; sometimes that challenge comes in the form of conflict. A healthy congregation is one that actively and responsibly addresses or heals its disturbances. It is not one with an absence of trouble.
I work with many churches that deal with their problems in secrecy—talking behind people's back, for example. That sort of behavior doesn't lend itself to healing. Healing comes with exposure to the light.

How should a pastor resist secrecy?

One way is simply to announce it: "We've had secret meetings. We need to deal with things openly here."
The biblical injunctions in Matthew 18 are so clear. By going to the offending brother or sister, taking along a leader, bringing the issue to the whole community, you are creating exposure.
On the other hand, sometimes criticism or complaining may be legitimate, and if the pastor attacks, he prevents people from speaking their mind and their values.

How does a church build a strong immune system?

By having a strong sense of vision and mission. Then a church can judge its behavior and activities. Otherwise, the basis for decision-making becomes personal whims.

Can a pastor evaluate a church's health before accepting the call to it?

If the congregation hasn't had much vision or a sense of mission, you should ask yourself, "Are they ready for it? Do they see the value of it?" So often a church says, "We want you to help us change," but the change is never specified. The more specific and concrete the discussion about change becomes, the more likely that change can take place.

How long does it take for an unhealthy church to become healthy?

From two to five years. Edwin Friedman once said, "For any chronically anxious system to get better it has to go through an acute phase." The biggest enemy of the healing process is to short-circuit the change or conflict or whatever is creating the acute phase. I think it was Kierkegaard who said, "In order for the wound to be healed, the wound must be kept open."
When the system has conflict, the system opens up. It's a wonderful time for the church family to learn. But the first thing it wants to do is close up again. For example, when a church loses a pastor, the first thing it wants to do is get another, quickly. Instead, the church should use that period for learning.

How does a pastor survive the acute phase?

First, remember that it's not going to stay acute forever. You have to have fevers. You have to vomit before the system gets back into balance. That means you need stamina and a long-range view of things. This is where a consultant, a coach, or someone on the outside can be helpful.
Second, you need to find a release outside the church so the conflict isn't on your mind all the time.
Third, you need to remember that everything that goes on is not about you, even though it gets focused on you. In any emotional system, the people in the most responsible or vulnerable position become the target of the anxiety. If you're the senior pastor, the anxiety in a church will be focused on you.

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