A Congregational Social Worker’s Role in Benevolence Ministry: A Case Study of Five Models

Abstract

Benevolence is often a way for the church to engage with the local community, however, churches often struggle with how to do so most effectively. This paper provides a description of five church models from Baptist congregations in Central Texas. This paper will summarize each church’s approach and synthesize the approaches to form recommendations for congregational social work, including roles of the social worker in the congregation and suggestions for how churches might work with social workers to enhance and better articulate policies and practices around benevolence ministries. A highlight of the literature surrounding congregational community ministries will also be included. This article aims to advance the role of social workers in congregations and giving tangible tools for both social work and congregational engagement with benevolence funds.