In the One Church Software Query Builder, parentheses group conditions together and control the order in which your query's logic is evaluated — the same way they work in a math equation, where multiplication and division are handled before addition and subtraction.
In the same way, AND is evaluated before OR. Parentheses let you change that order so the query evaluates the way you intend.
Why use parentheses?
Parentheses help you build queries with several AND and OR conditions by making it clear which parts of the logic should be evaluated together.
Without parentheses, the system evaluates conditions in the order they're listed, which can lead to incorrect or unexpected results.
Example without parentheses
Without parentheses, the system may interpret this as:
Is Archived? = no (record type = "Active" AND Age < 18)
This would include all active profiles, or only visitors who are under 18 — which may not be what you intended.
Example with parentheses
This means: only include people who are either active profiles or visitors, but only if they are under 18.
How to add parentheses
1. While building your query, select Add parentheses (the ( ) button below the query rows).
2. An empty set of parentheses appears with a highlighted area. Choose the filters you want to group together from the Filters pane on the left, and they'll be placed inside the parentheses.
To control how each condition combines with the others, select the and / or connector to the left of a condition to switch between them.
Tip: A few habits that make grouping easier:
• Preview your results to make sure the logic works the way you expect.
• Sketch your logic out before building it in the Query Builder.
• Use AND within a group for tighter matching, and OR to widen your results.