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The ministry of the trained full-time professional congregational Christian educator has seen a dramatic arc over the last 20-some years. Once a viable ministry supported by seminaries, denominations, guilds, and congregations, it may be on the endangered species list of “worst prospective jobs for seminary graduates.”
That does not mean that people are no longer called to that vitally important ministry. But now, that ministry is more often than not filled with passionate lay leaders and ministry staff largely untrained in religious education. In some churches, it’s a part-time position; arguably, in most, it’s a volunteer position.
It’s not surprising then that we get so many requests for help from congregational educators asking, “How do I do this job?” If I were to share an elevator ride with someone asking that question and had to give a quick answer, it would include these points:
1. Philosophy Matters. No educational enterprise succeeds without a strong foundation, and that includes clarity of its informing educational philosophy. Your philosophy of education will provide discernment about the who, what, when, where, and how of your educational approaches and programs. Do you have a guiding philosophy of education (a legitimate philosophy, not notions, predilections, hunches, beliefs, or prejudices)?
2. Your church’s size will determine educational programming. The context of your congregation will, to a great extent, determine the nature, shape, and scope of your religious education program. Some of this is pragmatic: a smaller congregation will have fewer resources than a large congregation (budget, facilities, staff, volunteers, etc.). But part of it is cultural and relational. For a small church, attempting to emulate the programs of a large church fails to appreciate the advantages and strengths of a more authentic approach suited to its context.
3. Your church’s life cycle stage will shape its educational program. Every church goes through a predictable lifecycle. The educational needs and capacities of a congregation differ at each stage. To learn more about congregational lifecycles and its educational implications, see The Hidden Lives of Congregations.
4. All common trade market curricula are the same. A common plight of the church educator is the perennial search for a better Church or Sunday School curriculum. What that really means is that your Sunday school teachers have used the same curriculum product for three years and are starting to be unhappy with it— and it happens about every three years. Church curriculum publishers don’t write curriculum for your church. They create products that cater to the lowest common denominator to sell as widely as possible. Your church is unique—no one writes curriculum for your church. The answer, of course, is to move from consumers of a product to curriculum developers.
5. Everyone outgrows any educational program. If only because of maturation, everyone outgrows any single educational program. You wouldn’t go back to high school to meet your adult learning needs, would you? The best reason people outgrow a program is that you’ve been successful in helping them grow in their learning and faith, and they have achieved the program’s educational intent (see point 1 about philosophy). But that means that they need something different, not more of the same. What will you do with someone who outgrows Sunday School? Attend to your members’ spiritual and learning needs, and shape your programs accordingly.
6. Your people don’t read the Bible enough or in the right ways. Biblical illiteracy remains the most significant liability and impediment to spiritual growth in our churches. Let’s face it, most church members hear very short passages with little context during the Sunday worship service. Those who attend Sunday school will read a few more verses (perhaps not connected to the text used in the worship service). And tragically, most don’t pick up the Bible during the week. Spiritual formation and maturity in faith require the individual and corporate disciplined practice of Scripture reading. You have to program that.
7. You’re not doing enough teacher training. Any educational enterprise is only as effective as its teaching faculty. Most church teachers are passionate and dedicated volunteers with little training in the teaching arts. Most don’t have an informed philosophy of teaching and learning (see point 1), and most don’t know the difference between pedagogy, approach, method, and technique. Ongoing teacher training should be a regular part of your religious education program.
8. You’re not doing enough assessment. There is a difference between activities and outcomes. Most churches focus on counting how many learning opportunities they offer and how many attend, but fail to assess the outcomes of those activities. What difference does it make that you are offering programs? What difference is it making in the lives of the participants? Are your church members growing because of what you are offering in your educational ministries? How do you know?
9. You’re not doing enough intergenerational programs and experiences. Churches are by nature communities of faith, and communities are generative: they pass on their culture, beliefs, practices, and faith to the next generations. The tendency toward age-graded, segmented and siloed programming in churches sabotages this critical function of being a community of faith. Offering intergenerational religious education is more than an occasional program; it is a way of being and doing church.
10. The most transformative educational experiences happen outside the church buildings. The educational experiences we offer to our members when they come to church are important. Still, the most transformative experiences, those which facilitate spiritual growth and lead to spiritual maturity, happen outside the church building. Growth in faith requires the practice of faith. How many of your programs are focused on learning about faith in a classroom as opposed to practicing faith daily in the lives of your members?
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–Israel Galindo retired as the Associate Dean for Lifelong Learning at the Columbia Theological Seminary in 2025. He is the author of the bestseller, The Hidden Lives of Congregations (Alban), Perspectives on Congregational Leadership (Educational Consultants), and A Family Genogram Workbook (Educational Consultants), with Elaine Boomer & Don Reagan, and Leadership in Ministry: Bowen Theory in the Congregational Context. His books on education include Mastering the Art of Instruction,The Craft of Christian Teaching (Judson), How to be the Best Christian Study Group Leader (Judson), and Planning for Christian Education Formation (Chalice Press).
