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The Rabbit and the Elephant: Why Small Is the New Big for Today's Church
If you put two elephants in a room together and close the door, in 22 months you may get one baby elephant. But two rabbits together for the same amount of time will result in thousands of baby rabbits! In The Rabbit and the Elephant , “micro church” planters Tony and Felicity Dale use the “rabbit” illustration to show the pace at which the Christian faith can (and should) be growing—through evangelism that is explosive and transformational. The Rabbit and the Elephant contains the key to 21st century evangelism—taking the gospel to where the pain and the people are.
256 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2009
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
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November 28, 2023This book shares about how house churches were formed. The idea is that everyone has something to share.
It gives examples of caring for individuals that lead to movements of people being saved and starting their own church at home. It talks about things that potentially shouldn’t be done.
It gives examples of caring for individuals that lead to movements of people being saved and starting their own church at home. It talks about things that potentially shouldn’t be done.
May 20, 2012
Barna and the Dales from yet another Direction
Anyone familar with the revolution taking place in the local church scene is aware that George Barna has been writing and researching this phenomenon for the past several years. In addition to his own independent writing and research, Barna has been partnering with various proponents and leaders within the organic and simple church community to jointly write books on related themes.
In this joint effort with Tony and Felicity Dale, transplanted simple church planters from England now in the United States, Barna works with them to present a book that is both reinforcing of some of his past work and observations and yet also presents a more practical view of how simple churches are planted and grow.
Much of this book is a simple recounting of the Dale's experiences in planting small home based churches over the past 20 years in the US since their arrival in 1987. Prior to that, they recount the events surrounding similar churches in London connected within the medical community that they moved within at the time.
Parallels are drawn from Church history to reinforce many of the points made and the Dale's more charismatic evangelical perspective come through strongly too. From this is drawn one of the major premises of the book, namely that "A shift with the potential impact of the Reformation is happening in the Western church today. And this time it is occuring as the church - instead of the Bible - is being put back in the hands of ordinary people." (p. 23). Add to this an analysis of western culture which has traditionally valued program based large organizations as opposed to the smaller family like congregations of the growing simple/organic church movement and the introductory chapters of the book quickly move to a more practical recounting of what this movement looks like from the practical and demonstrable experience of the Dales.
A full scope of topics then ensues addressing issues such as leadership, discipleship, fellowship, finances, diversity, the absence of hierarchy and many of the other questions that would normally arise both from skeptics and those not familiar with the model presented.
All in all, this reviewer found the book to be very practical and a nice contrast and follow-up to some of the other works of Barna which have been more technical and statistics based or tied more into an ecclesiastical deconstruction of today's institutional churches.
Make no mistake however, many reading this book will be shaken to their core as they ask the fundamental questions about things that until recently have gone unquestioned by many. If any more evidence of the power of this message and model is needed, one need only be reminded that over 1,000,000 people will leave institutional churches this year. Many may well find themselves in the small, quickly spreading simple and organic type churches that this book outlines.
5 stars. A very timely and powerful book.
Bart Breen
Anyone familar with the revolution taking place in the local church scene is aware that George Barna has been writing and researching this phenomenon for the past several years. In addition to his own independent writing and research, Barna has been partnering with various proponents and leaders within the organic and simple church community to jointly write books on related themes.
In this joint effort with Tony and Felicity Dale, transplanted simple church planters from England now in the United States, Barna works with them to present a book that is both reinforcing of some of his past work and observations and yet also presents a more practical view of how simple churches are planted and grow.
Much of this book is a simple recounting of the Dale's experiences in planting small home based churches over the past 20 years in the US since their arrival in 1987. Prior to that, they recount the events surrounding similar churches in London connected within the medical community that they moved within at the time.
Parallels are drawn from Church history to reinforce many of the points made and the Dale's more charismatic evangelical perspective come through strongly too. From this is drawn one of the major premises of the book, namely that "A shift with the potential impact of the Reformation is happening in the Western church today. And this time it is occuring as the church - instead of the Bible - is being put back in the hands of ordinary people." (p. 23). Add to this an analysis of western culture which has traditionally valued program based large organizations as opposed to the smaller family like congregations of the growing simple/organic church movement and the introductory chapters of the book quickly move to a more practical recounting of what this movement looks like from the practical and demonstrable experience of the Dales.
A full scope of topics then ensues addressing issues such as leadership, discipleship, fellowship, finances, diversity, the absence of hierarchy and many of the other questions that would normally arise both from skeptics and those not familiar with the model presented.
All in all, this reviewer found the book to be very practical and a nice contrast and follow-up to some of the other works of Barna which have been more technical and statistics based or tied more into an ecclesiastical deconstruction of today's institutional churches.
Make no mistake however, many reading this book will be shaken to their core as they ask the fundamental questions about things that until recently have gone unquestioned by many. If any more evidence of the power of this message and model is needed, one need only be reminded that over 1,000,000 people will leave institutional churches this year. Many may well find themselves in the small, quickly spreading simple and organic type churches that this book outlines.
5 stars. A very timely and powerful book.
Bart Breen
January 18, 2010
“If you put two elephants in a room together and close the door, if you’re lucky, in three years you may have one baby elephant. But when you put two rabbits together for the same amount of time…”
Thus begins a key analogy for evangelism and church planting movements (CPMs) depicted in this latest book by church planters, Tony & Felicity Dale and renowned research dude, George Barna. The first half of the book lays foundations for CPM found in scripture, history and modern day movements. The latter half are very nearly topic-by-topic duplication of the Harvest Multiplication and Missions Strategy Coordinator training courses running worldwide right now: Prayer, What Defines a Church, What Makes for Ease of Reproducibility and Mulitiplication, Luke 10 Principles, Abundant Seed Sowing methods, Making Disciples and Leaders, the Impact and Use of Finances, and Challenges and Pitfalls to Movements – keys identified by missions leaders and field church planters as key to seeing the Great Commission spread the most rapidly to the most number of people within any society, ethnic or language group – both Western and non-Western contexts.
The Rabbit and the Elephant is suitable for those hungering for churches that are relationship- rather than event-based, for anyone wanting to spruce up their outreach skills, and for those needing fresh vision for what church was in the New Testament and what it can still become today.
Thus begins a key analogy for evangelism and church planting movements (CPMs) depicted in this latest book by church planters, Tony & Felicity Dale and renowned research dude, George Barna. The first half of the book lays foundations for CPM found in scripture, history and modern day movements. The latter half are very nearly topic-by-topic duplication of the Harvest Multiplication and Missions Strategy Coordinator training courses running worldwide right now: Prayer, What Defines a Church, What Makes for Ease of Reproducibility and Mulitiplication, Luke 10 Principles, Abundant Seed Sowing methods, Making Disciples and Leaders, the Impact and Use of Finances, and Challenges and Pitfalls to Movements – keys identified by missions leaders and field church planters as key to seeing the Great Commission spread the most rapidly to the most number of people within any society, ethnic or language group – both Western and non-Western contexts.
The Rabbit and the Elephant is suitable for those hungering for churches that are relationship- rather than event-based, for anyone wanting to spruce up their outreach skills, and for those needing fresh vision for what church was in the New Testament and what it can still become today.
December 6, 2010
Describes the growing house church movement worldwide, including many heart-warming stories of unchurched people becoming Christians. I love the simplicity of a movement where ministry is expected from the beginning and no group gets bigger than 20 or 30 people. The title refers to reproduction of churches being more like rabbits than elephants. These people are very evangelical. But they truly depend on the guidance of the Holy Spirit for the content of their meetings as well as for how to spread the Good News.
May 31, 2013
A very non-institutional approach to church. So, not surprisingly, I really liked it. I have little doubt that hierarchal, institutional forms of the church in the U.S. are going to continue to shrink. The question is whether the informal, "flat" leadership churches described in this book will continue to grow and become an important alternative - or, whether this movement will succumb to the fragmentation and fringe foci that are its special temptations.
November 5, 2011
This book is short and sweet. Its primarily a bunch of stories of people doing "simple church". i thought it was put forth in a very humble way and it has some good warnings for those who are venturing our in the house-church movement. I would highly recommend it.
January 19, 2016
This is a new way of thinking and doing church. It basically goes back to the basic first century church that meets in the home or other places. Great idea for a new outreach or starting a church in a different culture. A refreshing read!
October 18, 2009
Simply simple. Simply doable.
October 19, 2012
A great read on 'simple church'.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews