The law of “three hearings” and “seven touches” stem from research into effective evangelization practices of growing churches. These principles illustrate the journey of an unchurched individual towards committing to a Christian community.
The Principle of Three Hearings
An unchurched visitor rarely joins a church after a single visit. Much like significant purchases, decisions of faith take time. Typically, a person needs to hear the Gospel three or four times before making a meaningful commitment to Christ or the church.
The Principle of Seven Touches
To nurture an unchurched visitor’s interest in Christ, swift and frequent follow-ups are crucial. If contacted seven times after their first visit, visitors are more likely to return. These “touches” can include letters, emails, calls, personal visits, or other forms of personal contact from church members.
When both principles are applied, unchurched visitors are significantly more likely to respond positively to the Gospel and join the church. Indeed, Jesus modeled this approach by personally accompanying and inviting His disciples to spend time with Him (John 1:38-39). Welcoming, maintaining contact, and accompanying are essential elements of authentic and fruitful evangeliz
(Much of the information in this text is drawn from the book “154 Steps to Revitalize your Sunday School and Keep your Church Growing” by Elmer L. Towns.)
Pierre-Alain Giffard, Director of Pastoral Work
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- Pope Francis on Evangelization
- Revitalizing the Rural Parish for Mission
- Factors Leading to Christian Conversion
- Evangelizing Through Random Acts of Kindness
- Questions To Start Spiritual Conversations
- Three Feet From Gold
- Spreading the Gospel One Act at a Time
- Gather, Witness and Invite
- Prayer to Receive the Spiritual Gifts of The Holy Spirit
- The Language of Evangelization
- Key Factors for Parish Growth According to Rich Birch
- How to defeat Satan?
- Bringing Love, Hope and Healing Through the Gospel
- Love: Our Fundamental Vocation
- Touched by the Master
- A Man, a Dog, and the Ultimate Love
- The essence of evangelization: Loving God and our neighbours
- Loving Our Enemies and Reconciling with Others
- A Powerful Prayer for Healing: You Are The LORD Who Heals Me
- Living a Life of Love: Mother Teresa’s Legacy
- Living a Life of Love: Lessons from the New Testament
- In The Shadows Of Darkness, A Powerful Force Is At Work
- 19 Pastoral Orientations for Parish Renewal and Growth
- The Missionary Renewal of Catechesis
- Characteristics of missionary parishes
- Powerful healing prayer attributed to St. Padre Pio
- We are called to share our faith with others
- Should we seek to grow the Church?
- Find a Need and Fill It – Revealing God’s Heart in the Community
- 15 Habits to Evangelize on a Daily Basis
- The Church’s Mission
- Three Barriers to Building An Invitational Culture In Your Parish
- The Relational Evangelizer
- Doing Church at Home
- The Blind Girl
- A Group of Frogs
- The Elephant Rope
- A Shared Faith is a Growing Faith
- In The Shoes Of The Unchurched
- Parish Evangelizing Cells
- Six Unique Features of Missional Parishes
- Steps Towards Becoming A Missional Parish
- What Is Evangelization, And How Should It Be Carried Out?
- Discussion And Self-Assessment Questions For Parish Evangelization
- A Missional Church Is A Church That Prays
- The Jesus Prayer: A Method To Pray At All Times
- What can help children raised Catholic continue practicing the faith as adults?
- An Example of a Missionary Parish: Phoenix First Assembly of God
- Satan’s Tactics
- Learning to Be a Missionary
- When we cry out to God, he answers
- Presence and Proclamation
- Saving those who are lost
- Saint-Nazaire Parish: The story of a missionary transformation
- Small Groups and Evangelization
- Evangelizing By Inviting People To Receive Jesus As Lord And Saviour
- You Will Receive Power…
- Have You Heard About the Law of Three Hearings and Seven Touches?
- Three Habits of a Fruitful Christian Life
