Marketing in Dutch Mainline Congregations: What Religious Organizations Offer and How They Do It

Abstract

In rational choice theory, the central explanatory term for the vitality of religious organizations is ‘cost’. The higher the cost, the more successful the organization is supposed to be. However, as cost and reward are complementary, research should also pay attention to the rewards offered by religious organizations. The article proposes marketing theory as a way to analyze the rewards offered by religious organizations. The value of marketing theory is shown by analyzing three renewal movements active in Dutch mainline churches: the liberal ‘Church as an inn’, the ecumenical Alpha Course, and the orthodox-Catholic Neocatechumenical Way. Further, the activities of selected local congregations working with the concepts of these movements are evaluated. In the conclusion, the value of marketing for a further development of rational choice theory is discussed. Give and it shall be given unto you. (Luke 6, 38)

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