Managing Polarities in Congregations: Eight Keys for Thriving Faith Communities [Paperback]

Roy M. Oswald and Barry Johnson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 31, 2009

Congregations often find themselves in power struggles over two opposing views. People on both sides believe strongly that they are right. They also assume that if they are right, their opposition must be wrong--classic 'either/or' thinking. A polarity is a pair of truths that need each other over time. When an argument is about two poles of a polarity, both sides are right and need each other to experience the whole truth.

This phenomenon has been recognized and written about for centuries in philosophy and religion. It is at the heart of Taoism, where we find the familiar polarity of yin and yang energy. In the past fifty years, business leaders have come to appreciate the phenomenon, often called dilemma or paradox. No matter what it is called, the research is clear: leaders and organizations that manage polarities well outperform those who don't.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Finally--an insightful and practical guide for applying polarity management to some very common congregational dilemmas! This book unties knots that keep congregations stuck, and provides ways to shift conversations to new places. Oswald and Johnson are wonderful teachers of the principles of polarity management who reinforce your learning through illustrations and processes that can be grasped by congregational leaders and immediately applied. --Lawrence Peers, Senior Consultant, The Alban Institute

I was introduced to the concept of polarity management several years ago, but for me it remained a theory without a practical application. Recently I read Managing Polarities in Congregations, and the concept came alive! I now have an excellent tool for use with congregations as they encounter an increasing number of polarities. --B. Leslie Robinson, Jr., Interim President, Center for Congregational Health, Winston-Salem, North Carolina

A single polarity map can liberate anxious people from either/or thinking, enabling them to see options, value other perspectives, and think creatively. A robust set of eight such maps adapted to your faith tradition will prove an extremely useful tool as you follow the Spirit's leading into the fullness of God's will. The authors of Managing Polarities in Congregations taught me these concepts and I've used them many times as a pastor and consultant with blessed results! Read this book to revolutionize your capacity for critical thinking, creative problem solving, and organizational leadership. --Fred Oaks, founder of ChurchOver40.com and author of Welcome, Pastor! Building a Productive Pastor-Congregation Partnership in 40 Days

About the Author

Roy M. Oswald is executive director of the Center for Emotional Intelligence and Human Relations Skills. An ordained Lutheran pastor serving in a congregation and a Lutheran synod, Roy has consulted in the area of leadership development for over three decades. He is the author of sixteen books, including Discerning Your Congregation's Future, The Inviting Church, and Personality Type and Religious Leadership.

Barry Johnson is president of Polarity Management Associates, an international training and consulting firm. The founder of Polarity Management® and the Polarity Map™, he is the author of Polarity Management, Identifying and Managing Unsolvable Problems. Barry holds a Ph.D. in organizational development from International College and has more than thirty years of experience as an organizational development consultant.

Product Details

• Paperback: 253 pages
• Publisher: The Alban Institute (December 31, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1566993903
• ISBN-13: 978-1566993906
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 7 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #301,584 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very practical, April 15, 2010

By 

E. C. G. Pender "Eddy de Pender" (Netherlands) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Managing Polarities in Congregations: Eight Keys for Thriving Faith Communities (Paperback)

This book is a wonderful tool in thinking about congregations. The 8 polarities that are described are very well formulated and recognizable. The model that is being presented can directly be applied in the situation you are in. It is well written and good examples are used. Recommendable reading for leadership in the church

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The 1st Question Leaders Should Ask in Decision Making, April 8, 2011

By 

Richard Burkey "Lifelong Learner" - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Managing Polarities in Congregations: Eight Keys for Thriving Faith Communities (Paperback)

Is this a problem to solve or a tension to manage? Understanding how to use that question in making decisions is the great value I learned from Managing Polarities in Congregations and why I highly recommend it to leaders in faith communities.

Do you breathe in or out? Hopefully both. That makes breathing a tension to manage, and learning to do that well leverages your breathing capacity for greater growth and endurance.

Oswald and Johnson apply the concept of Polarity Maps to 8 keys for thriving faith communities. For some faith communities, it is a choice between strong pastoral leadership or strong lay leadership. For many faith communities,it's an either/or battle. Oswald and Johnson show how it's best as both/and, then they show how to leverage that polarity for growth.

Other polarities to manage include: Tradition AND Innovation, Spiritual Health AND Institutional Health, Management AND Leadership, Inreach AND Outreach, Nurture AND Transformation, Making Disciples: Easy Process AND Challenging Process, Call AND Duty.

The list could go on. As I read the book I thought of other polarities / tension areas to leverage for growth -- Church AND School, Work AND Family, etc. Appendix A applies polarities to Small Groups.

Buy this book for your leadership and for those who serve with you. Build your own polarity maps. Identify the problems that need to be solved, and discover the polarities that need on-going management and leverage them for growth.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Creates a foundation for powerful communication, September 10, 2010

By 

Ann V. Deaton "Leadership Coach" (Richmond, VA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Managing Polarities in Congregations: Eight Keys for Thriving Faith Communities (Paperback)

If more leaders knew how to recognize and manage polarities, we would have much more vibrant faith communities. Johnson and Oswald have written a tremendously useful book. Their discussion of polarity management will help not only congregations, but any organization which finds itself in disagreement. Out of passion for the work and mission of the organization, and sometimes just because we all have our own ways of seeing things, polarities will always exist. In understanding polarities more completely (which the reader will begin to do within the first chapter), a clear path forward opens in the midst of conflict. This is an awesome, readable book. It will change the conversations and what's possible in many congregations!