The church is not only the central place of Christian worship but also a place of faith-filled education. Christly Gestures reframes the very meaning of religious education, exploring what the form and content of Christian learning would look like if local churches truly saw themselves as the body of Christ. Author Brett Webb-Mitchell begins with the writings of Paul, using them to clarify the biblical image of Christ's body as the community of believers. Taking this powerful analogy to heart, he suggests that Christian education must not only nurture the minds and spiritual lives of church members but also educate their bodies into the "Christly gestures" - performing acts of faith that imitate Jesus and embody the gospel in daily life. In the quest for a richer, more relevant understanding of Christian education, Webb-Mitchell provides meaningful answers to questions concerning the purpose, context, ways, and means of educating Christians today.
Nearly twenty percent of adolescents have developmental disabilities, yet far too often they are marginalized within churches. Amplifying Our Witness challenges congregations to adopt a new, practice-centered approach to congregational ministry -- one that includes and amplifies the witness of adolescents with developmental disabilities. Replete with stories taken from Benjamin Conner's own extensive experience with befriending and discipling adolescents with developmental disabilities, Amplifying Our Witness Shows how churches exclude the mentally disabled in various structural and even theological ways Stresses the intrinsic value of kids with developmental disabilities Reconceptualizes evangelism to adolescents with developmental disabilities, emphasizing hospitality and friendship.
Defining the Nature, Process, and Mission of Dogmatic Discourse. Theologians often discuss method in a remote and preliminary way that suggests they are not yet speaking theologically when speaking methodologically. But it is also possible to reflect on the work of Christian dogmatics in a way that is self-consciously nourished by biblical reasoning, resourced by tradition, joined up with ecclesial practice, and alert to spiritual dynamics. Bringing together theologians who are actively engaged in the writing and editing of extended dogmatics projects, The Task of Dogmatics represents the proceedings of the 2017 Los Angeles Theology Conference and seeks to provide constructive accounts of the nature of the dogmatic task. The eleven diverse essays in this collection include discussions on: Identifying theology's pattern and norm. The validity and relativity of doctrinal statements. The Apostle Paul and the task of dogmatics. The retrieval of patristic and medieval theology. Each of the essays collected in this volume engage with Scripture as well as with others in the field—theologians both past and present, from different confessions—in order to provide constructive resources for contemporary systematic theology and to forge a theology for the future.
In this book, Marva Dawn insists that churches need to engage in a serious process of community discernment concerning worship in order to employ the best tools and forms, and she offers reflections to further the discussion. Each part of A Royal "Waste" of Time begins with a sample Scripture-based sermon since Dawn emphasizes that the church's worship must follow biblical guidelines and form a biblical people.--From publisher's description.
Practicing Pilgrimage: On Being and Becoming God's Pilgrim People explores both the theological, cultural, and spiritual roots of Christian pilgrimage, and is a "how-to" book on doing pilgrimage in our suburban backyards, city streets, rural roads, churches, retreat centers, and our everyday life. Brett Webb-Mitchell takes the ancient practice of Christian pilgrimage and applies it to our contemporary lives. .embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; }
In "Keeping the Sabbath Wholly," Dawn introduced the vital Sabbath aspects of resting, ceasing, feasting, and embracing. Now, she expands these into a way of life for serving God and the Kingdom every single day of the week. (Practical Life)
The history of the Christian spiritual life suggests that those who truly teach the spiritual life have been themselves "taught by God." The phrase "taught by God" occurs in Christian writings across several centuries. This book draws on the teachers and teaching models that animate Christian history, bringing it into conversation with the issues and concerns of contemporary teachers and learners who seek to follow Christ. The authors contend that the various strands of the Christian spiritual and mystical tradition provide continuing guidance for Christian teachers in the cultivation of their own spiritual lives and the lives of their students. They order this book around four aspects of Christian educational ministries: the identity of the teacher, contexts in which we teach, models for teaching, and evaluation of teaching. Readers are invited to look at the world of teaching through multiple sides of a prism, refracting differently with each effort, drawing the eye toward a variety of subtle nuance, and inviting varied interpretations of the subject we see. Each chapter focuses on particular spiritual teachers (Francis de Sales, Catherine of Siena, Søren Kierkegaard), practices (monastic rules, spiritual direction, examination of conscience), and images (pilgrimage, imitation, apprenticeship) as exemplars of or frameworks for teaching and spiritual formation in the church today.
How does liturgy impact the formation of faith? The Protestant Church has traditionally emphasized human reason and doctrinal knowledge. But there is another method with great formative power--participation in liturgy. Human beings gain important knowledge not only through traditional, cognitively focused learning, but also through practice and participation. And because knowledge is wholistic, an inability to express an idea in language does not necessarily signify an absence of knowledge. This book shows how liturgy transmits knowledge that transcends human reason. We repeat the liturgy in weekly public worship, and its contents are inscribed on our minds and bodies. Contrary to common belief, this is also true for children and cognitively challenged individuals. They may be unable to verbally express the contents of their faith in a way that satisfies "normal" adult expectations, but these two groups of people are capable of rich religious experiences. This book explores how welcoming them into experience and practice of worship and sacrament can benefit children, cognitively challenged church members, their families, and the church community as a whole, and makes us all a more inclusive community in Christ.
How the issues of the past affect the future of "Deep Church"--a concept conceived by C. S. Lewis. Orthodox, Catholic, and Protestant traditions drink from the well of a common tradition rooted in the early church. Many Evangelicals are now reengaging with the practice of the early church as they seek to live as disciples today. Remembering the past is essential for facing the future. In Remembering Our Future leaders and theologians reflect on a range of issues for which a vibrant contemporary faith requires a careful listening to the past. What is the place of tradition in the church's life? How should we interpret the Bible? How should we worship? What, in other words, might "Deep Church" look like?
Much ministry to children looks more like mere entertainment than authentic spiritual formation. But what if children's ministries were rooted in a mind set whereby we taught children, with our words and actions, how the story of God, the story of church history, the story of the local community, and the story of the child intersect and speak to one another? What if children's ministry was less about downloading information into kids' heads and more about leading them into these powerful, compelling stories? Beckwith aims to help ministers and parents create a ministry that captures children's imaginations not just to keep them occupied, but to live as citizens of the kingdom of God. In addition to providing theological reasons for formational children's ministry, the book offers examples of how Ivy and other practitioners are implementing a formational model.
"Michael Pasquarello has written a 'must read' book articulating a Trinitarian vision for preaching. His compelling argument is richly informed by traditional biblical hermeneutics, creedal history understood as storied attestation of the witness of Scripture, and liturgical theology and practice considered as embodied performance of the Bible's divine narrative. Here is a clear summons to the church to abandon all lesser homiletic aims and to prayerfully and faithfully proclaim the holy gospel to the glory of God." --Charles L. Bartow, Princeton Theological Seminary "Like all of Michael Pasquarello's work, his newest book not only upholds the classical Christian tradition but also breathes new vitality into it. In an era in which preaching is reduced to persuasive communication, Pasquarello reminds us that the Christian message has a content that originates in and gives expression to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit." --Richard Lischer, Duke Divinity School "One of the refreshing things about this fine book by Michael Pasquarello is that, when he thinks about the ministry of preaching, he is not afraid to measure the breadth historically or plumb the depths theologically. Pasquarello has written this book like a good sermon--faithfully, thoughtfully, prayerfully, and with a profound word to speak. We are in his debt." --Thomas G. Long, Candler School of Theology "Boldly challenging homiletical accommodation to American culture, Pasquarello seeks to change the subject of preaching from method and 'marketing' to the Triune God, who is the source and goal of our speech. A welcome theological vision of preaching." --Charles L. Campbell, Columbia Theological Seminary "Christian Preaching brings together two disciplines that have sadly grown apart such that they almost developed irreconcilable differences--preaching and theology. Pasquarello offers a brilliant critique of theology as technique and draws on the theology and sermons of Irenaeus, Augustine, Luther, Wesley, and others, convincingly demonstrating that effective, pragmatic preaching requires substantive theological engagement (and vice versa). This book accomplishes its purpose so well that it should be used not only in preaching courses but also in basic theology courses. No preacher should be let loose on a congregation without passing through Pasquarello's Christian Preaching." --D. Stephen Long, Marquette University
