When the Ground Moves: A Case Study in Black Church Leadership and Congregational Resilience Open Access

Abstract

This doctoral project, When the Ground Moves: A Case Study in Black Church Leadership and Congregational Resilience, examines how Black congregations navigate disruption and cultivate resilience in the face of significant institutional, relational, and contextual shifts. Grounded in both sociological and theological frameworks, this study defines congregational resilience as the capacity of a faith community to adapt to disruption, mobilize internal and external resources, construct meaning in seasons of instability, and maintain its witness within both church and community.

Using Elmwood United Presbyterian Church as a case study, this project explores a period of profound transition marked by financial crisis, leadership change, and the consolidation of multiple worship sites into a single location. While the initial disruption destabilized the congregation’s structures, identity, and sense of continuity, it also created conditions for reimagining ministry, strengthening the community, and clarifying the church’s mission.

This project draws upon qualitative interviews with church members, focus groups, a review of historical documents, conflict management, adaptive change, and Black Church literature. It identifies key practices that contributed to Elmwood’s resilience. These include engaging community resources, cultivating new practices, and preserving a shared sense of identity amid change.

This project argues that resilience is not merely the ability to survive disruption but the capacity to be transformed through it. For Black churches, whose histories are deeply intertwined with struggle and survival, resilience is both inherited and enacted. Ultimately, this study offers a framework for leaders seeking to guide congregations through shifting ground, demonstrating that while disruption is inevitable, it can also serve as a catalyst for renewal, deeper purpose, and sustained communal impact.

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School	Candler School of Theology
Department	Ministry
Degree	DMin
Submission	Dissertation
Language	English
Research Field	African American Studies Theology Black Studies
Keyword	Change Congregation Conflict Resilience Black Church
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor	Roger Nam, Emory University
Committee Members	Soren Hessler, Emory University

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