If you had one or two things you could tell your preacher that would help energize you when you are listening to a sermon, what would they be?
That question was the last one put to 263 people interviewed for a study sponsored by the Lilly Endowment and Christian Theological Seminary. The purpose of the interviews was to give the interviewees an opportunity to name qualities in preaching that engage and disengage listener interest. The interviews took place in the Midwestern part of the United States in twenty-eight congregations — nine made up primarily of African Americans, fourteen compromised mainly of persons of non-Hispanic European origin, and three of mixed ethnicities — from thirteen denominations and Christian movements. The people interviewed come from both genders, the span of ages, as well as different denominations and locations (urban, suburban, small town, rural).
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Some items in the interviews explored how the parishioner’s perception of the character of the preacher (and sense of relationship with the preacher) affect the parishioner’s willingness to listen to the sermon. Other questions were asked about the listener’s perception of the content of the sermon, the feelings stirred by the message, and the preacher’s embodiment (delivery) of the sermon.
The last question in the interviews gave respondents an opportunity to identify what they would most like for preachers to do to engage them.
It is tempting to think, “If ministers just take up the suggestions of these 263 laity, they will learn how to preach engaging sermons.” However, two factors remind preachers that the conclusions of the study can only be dialogue partners in the pastor’s ministry of preaching. First, an important finding of the broader study is that the listening climate varies from congregation to congregation. This article lifts up themes that are widely articulated in the churches in the study, but these respondents do not speak for all worshippers everywhere. Ministers need to give their own congregations the opportunity to say what local listeners find energizing.
Second, preachers are called to articulate messages that are consistent with the deepest Christian convictions, even when local preferences do not measure up to the fullness of God’s purposes. A preacher must wrestle with the degree to which the preacher can incorporate listener preferences into the shaping of the sermon and still remain faithful to the gospel.
I discuss the eight leading responses in the approximate order of frequency with which they are mentioned in the study. Toward the end of the article, I list several other responses that do not appear as often but that are still suggestive. Of course, several of the interviewees’ comments illustrate the fact that these categories are not separable but mutually affect one another.