The Varieties of Religious Strife
Speed Leas
The level of conflict has less to do with the problem than with people's reaction to it. Just because people are open and honest with each other doesn't mean that real differences do not exist. Of course, as the stakes get higher, so does the possibility of more intense conflict.
— Speed Leas Conflict comes in many colors. We normally know it as red, fiery hot: shouting matches, withdrawn pledges, fired pastors, split churches. This type of conflict burns everyone it touches. But conflict also comes in blue, as cool and calm as a placid mountain lake. Issues are moved, seconded, debated calmly, and voted upon. People walk out of meetings "losers" but not bitter or angry. Other conflict is green, contributing to the growth of a congregation. Some is black, foreboding doom for the church. Some is an amorphous gray, uncertain and undecided but enveloping the church like fog. So when we talk about church conflict, we're talking about many things. And when we talk about dealing with conflict, we need to recognize the specific color of conflict we're dealing with. Analyzing the Levels of Conflict
In my consulting work, I see at least four types, or levels, of church conflict. In each level of conflict, two major factors give me clues about the amount of difficulty a church is facing: the objectives of the parties involved and the amount of distorted thinking. By "objectives" of the parties I mean their goals—what they are trying to accomplish. In lower-level conflicts, parties usually stay focused on the problem or difficulty. In higher-level conflicts, the goal of the parties shifts to trying to hurt one another or gain control. By "amount of distorted thinking" I mean this: as people become more anxious or frightened, it becomes more ...
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