Zeitschrift für Evaluation: Issue Church Evaluatio in Transition

Church Evaluation in Transition: Flourishing Congregations as a New Measurement Tool. The German church is undergoing significant change: a rising number of people are leaving the church and decreasing levels of church affiliation suggest an impending disruptive break. Resource scarcity and organizational downsizing are dominating church development debates, while the question of the quality of congregation life is often neglected. However, it might be worthwhile for congregations in various contexts to align their evaluation practices with the impact goal of congregational flourishing. This article introduces a theoretical framework for measuring congregational flourishing. The multidimensional model of congregational flourishing considers three dimensions: the individual, the congregation as a whole and the social context. The model builds on empirical research, which has repeatedly demonstrated the association between church attendance and human flourishing.

Keywords
Human Flourishing, Church Evaluation, Wellbeing, Church Development