Seven Principles of Successful Multiracial Churches

This sidebar is based on principles that I developed more completely in my book, One Body, One Spirit: Principles of Successful Multiracial Churches. Below are the different principles illustrated in the book with a brief explanation of each principle.

Inclusive Worship

An inclusive worship style is one that includes the cultural elements of more than one racial group. It may be a mixture of several different racial worship styles or a style that is unique from all racial cultures. An inclusive worship style communicates to visitors of different races that they and their cultures are respected.

Diverse Leadership

Racially diverse leadership reflects the racial diversity of the church members in multiracial congregations. Even if the official clergy leadership was not racially diverse, the laity leadership (elders, deacons) tended to be multiracial. Multiracial leadership is especially vital because it attracts African-Americans to a congregation.

An Overarching Goal

Few churches make becoming multiracial a primary focus of their church. Multiracial churches often have a goal that was aided by the fact the church was multiracial. Having a goal separate from racial issues can be important for helping church leaders sell members of the church on the importance of becoming racially integrated.

Personal Skills

Pastors of successful multiracial churches acknowledge the importance of developing personal skills. My research found these personal skills include the ability of church leaders to handle the interpersonal needs and conflicts that arise in their ministries, to empower other members of the church, and to develop patience. These personal skills are important because multiracial churches may produce additional interpersonal problems that require superior personal skills.

Location

European-Americans have left the inner cities in droves to escape the poverty and presence of racial minorities. Predominately white churches often leave such areas, selling their buildings to emerging minority churches. It is uncommon for multiracial congregations to emerge from the suburban churches that were established as people fled the inner city. By staying in a minority or multiracial residential area, a multiracial church communicates acceptance to people of color.

Intentionality

It takes work to create and sustain multiracial churches. The few times the development of multiracial churches was at least partially accidental, members of these churches worked to sustain the integrated nature of their congregations. Intentionality includes some of the previously documented elements, such as altering worship style or developing multiracial leadership, but also includes an attitude that values working toward a multiracial atmosphere in the church.

Adaptability

A monoracial church is concerned with a single racial culture. A multiracial church must adjust and adapt to multiple racial groups and cultures. Sometimes this adaptation is easily predictable. For example, a non-Hispanic congregation wanting to reach a first generation Hispanic population must adapt to using Spanish. On the other hand, this adaptation is not always easy to predict. For example, interracial romantic relationships often bring out hidden racism within many church members. In both cases, a multiracial church must adapt to the new racial reality within the multiracial congregation.

George Yancy, Argyle, Texas