Case Study Paper

Research a church and interview the leadership of that church, then write a case study paper based on the findings. The paper should be 1500 words in length, not including the title page, table of contents, footnotes, or bibliography. The paper should cite the course text and also 2-3 outside texts on discipleship. You will submit the paper as a Word document. Follow this procedure.

• Select a church as the subject for your case study. Arrange to speak to leaders in the church’s teaching department (concentrate on teens, older singles, and adults) and leaders who teach or preach to the whole church (it is not necessary to interview the senior leadership of the church, but you must interview those who teach or preach regularly).

• Include a brief background of the church’s history, denominational affiliation, and theology or statement of faith (not to exceed 300 words).

• Interview 2-4 leaders who supervise teaching, or teach/preach regularly. Identify the leaders and their positions in the paper’s discussion. The identity and title of the leaders interviewed much be included in the paper. The church’s website may be used to supplement material gleaned from interviews (cite interview data in your bibliography).

• Write a paper of 1500-2000 words, including sections on:

1) Analysis: Explain how the church accomplishes or fails to accomplish discipleship in the local church – students should demonstrate knowledge of the principles of spiritual formation and discipleship as gleaned from the texts as well as 2-3 outside sources.

2) Model: Compare and/or contrast the church’s discipleship model with other contemporary models (Saddleback's baseball diamond, one-on-one relational model, etc.).

3) Strategies: formulate appropriate strategies for the implementation of or improvement of their discipleship program. It might help to imagine that you are the Pastor of Discipleship in this context – how would you change and upgrade the discipling efforts of the church?

The quality of research, analysis, strategic focus, and writing skill will determine the student’s grade. Students should support their case study observations and analysis with appropriate citations from the required course textbooks, supplemental readings, and 2-3 outside sources. A bibliography or Works Cited page is required. A title page, introduction, conclusion, and section headings are also expected but not included in total word count.