Linking organisational life cycle models to church’s dual nature for effective management

A comprehensive understanding of the church’s dual nature is essential for effective governance and management. Traditionally, the church has been viewed through dichotomous lenses as either a purely spiritual organism or a physical organisation, often leading to gaps in management practices. This a...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Osward Sichula, Patrick Nanthambwe, Vhumani Magezi
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: AOSIS 2025-01-01
Series:Theologia Viatorum
Subjects:
Online Access:https://theologiaviatorum.org/index.php/tv/article/view/294
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1823858181041815552
author Osward Sichula
Patrick Nanthambwe
Vhumani Magezi
author_facet Osward Sichula
Patrick Nanthambwe
Vhumani Magezi
author_sort Osward Sichula
collection DOAJ
description A comprehensive understanding of the church’s dual nature is essential for effective governance and management. Traditionally, the church has been viewed through dichotomous lenses as either a purely spiritual organism or a physical organisation, often leading to gaps in management practices. This article addresses the critical question: how can the church’s spiritual and physical dimensions be effectively integrated into governance and management practices, particularly for newly established and growing churches? The article aims to propose a dual perspective for conceptualising the church as both a spiritual and physical entity to improve its governance and management. By linking Organisational Life Cycle models to the physical nature of the church, the study argues for practical strategies to enhance governance, optimise resource allocation and refine management practices. The article employs a systematic literature review to analyse existing perspectives, identify gaps and propose a comprehensive framework for integrating the church’s dual nature. The findings highlight the importance of balancing the church’s spiritual ethos with its organisational structure, addressing critical gaps in governance and management practices caused by one-sided conceptualisations. This framework provides practical insights for church leaders and administrators, ensuring that the church remains true to its spiritual mission while achieving effective organisational management. Contribution: This article makes a contribution to practical theology and organisational management within the context of ecclesial studies. Specifically, it addresses the intersection of theological understanding and management principles by offering a dual perspective on conceptualising the church as both a spiritual and physical entity. This contribution is particularly relevant for enhancing church governance, resource allocation and management practices, making it valuable for scholars, church leaders and administrators.
format Article
id doaj-art-2dc86a73a42945adad20423c8c905d11
institution Kabale University
issn 0378-4142
2664-2980
language English
publishDate 2025-01-01
publisher AOSIS
record_format Article
series Theologia Viatorum
spelling doaj-art-2dc86a73a42945adad20423c8c905d112025-02-11T13:30:16ZengAOSISTheologia Viatorum0378-41422664-29802025-01-01491e1e1010.4102/tv.v49i1.294113Linking organisational life cycle models to church’s dual nature for effective managementOsward Sichula0Patrick Nanthambwe1Vhumani Magezi2Unit for Reformed Theology and Development in South Africa, Faculty of Theology, North-West University, PotchefstroomUnit for Reformed Theology and Development in South Africa, Faculty of Theology, North-West University, PotchefstroomUnit for Reformed Theology and Development in South Africa, Faculty of Theology, North-West University, PotchefstroomA comprehensive understanding of the church’s dual nature is essential for effective governance and management. Traditionally, the church has been viewed through dichotomous lenses as either a purely spiritual organism or a physical organisation, often leading to gaps in management practices. This article addresses the critical question: how can the church’s spiritual and physical dimensions be effectively integrated into governance and management practices, particularly for newly established and growing churches? The article aims to propose a dual perspective for conceptualising the church as both a spiritual and physical entity to improve its governance and management. By linking Organisational Life Cycle models to the physical nature of the church, the study argues for practical strategies to enhance governance, optimise resource allocation and refine management practices. The article employs a systematic literature review to analyse existing perspectives, identify gaps and propose a comprehensive framework for integrating the church’s dual nature. The findings highlight the importance of balancing the church’s spiritual ethos with its organisational structure, addressing critical gaps in governance and management practices caused by one-sided conceptualisations. This framework provides practical insights for church leaders and administrators, ensuring that the church remains true to its spiritual mission while achieving effective organisational management. Contribution: This article makes a contribution to practical theology and organisational management within the context of ecclesial studies. Specifically, it addresses the intersection of theological understanding and management principles by offering a dual perspective on conceptualising the church as both a spiritual and physical entity. This contribution is particularly relevant for enhancing church governance, resource allocation and management practices, making it valuable for scholars, church leaders and administrators.https://theologiaviatorum.org/index.php/tv/article/view/294organisational life cycleorganisational life cycle modelsdual naturemanagement practiceschurch.
spellingShingle Osward Sichula
Patrick Nanthambwe
Vhumani Magezi
Linking organisational life cycle models to church’s dual nature for effective management
Theologia Viatorum
organisational life cycle
organisational life cycle models
dual nature
management practices
church.
title Linking organisational life cycle models to church’s dual nature for effective management
title_full Linking organisational life cycle models to church’s dual nature for effective management
title_fullStr Linking organisational life cycle models to church’s dual nature for effective management
title_full_unstemmed Linking organisational life cycle models to church’s dual nature for effective management
title_short Linking organisational life cycle models to church’s dual nature for effective management
title_sort linking organisational life cycle models to church s dual nature for effective management
topic organisational life cycle
organisational life cycle models
dual nature
management practices
church.
url https://theologiaviatorum.org/index.php/tv/article/view/294
work_keys_str_mv AT oswardsichula linkingorganisationallifecyclemodelstochurchsdualnatureforeffectivemanagement
AT patricknanthambwe linkingorganisationallifecyclemodelstochurchsdualnatureforeffectivemanagement
AT vhumanimagezi linkingorganisationallifecyclemodelstochurchsdualnatureforeffectivemanagement