Virtually all churches aim to invest meaningfully in the faith development of the younger generations who have been entrusted into their care. Some churches have a longstanding track record of faithfulness in living out this commitment. Some lose sight of this priority over time and allow their intentionality to fade. This book makes a distinctive contribution to our understanding of children’s, youth, and young adult ministries by appropriating Erik Erikson’s concept of generativity (“the interest in establishing and guiding the next generation”) as a way of exploring congregational life. Eleven accomplished authors representing five different countries provide diverse theological and cultural perspectives on key aspects of what it means for churches to invest intentionally in the faith development of the members of emerging generations. Their chapters challenge us to think about the intergenerational dynamics of our churches, the crucial partnership between church and parents, and what it means to involve young people meaningfully in the life of the church. The intriguing topics explored by this group of authors—and the diverse contexts from which they write—promise to broaden and enrich our thinking about caring for children, youth, and young adults as a vital responsibility shared by the entire congregation.

Virtually all churches aim to invest meaningfully in the faith development of the younger generations who have been entrusted into their care. Some churches have a longstanding track record of faithfulness in living out this commitment. Some lose sight of this priority over time and allow their intentionality to fade. This book makes a distinctive contribution to our understanding of children's, youth, and young adult ministries by appropriating Erik Erikson's concept of generativity ("the interest in establishing and guiding the next generation") as a way of exploring congregational life. Eleven accomplished authors representing five different countries provide diverse theological and cultural perspectives on key aspects of what it means for churches to invest intentionally in the faith development of the members of emerging generations. Their chapters challenge us to think about the intergenerational dynamics of our churches, the crucial partnership between church and parents, and what it means to involve young people meaningfully in the life of the church. The intriguing topics explored by this group of authors--and the diverse contexts from which they write--promise to broaden and enrich our thinking about caring for children, youth, and young adults as a vital responsibility shared by the entire congregation.

Fifty years after Stonewall, the experiences of LGBTQ+ Christians are--rightfully--beginning to be received with interest by their churches. Queering Wesley, Queering the Church presents a prototype for thinking about Wesleyan holiness as an expansive openness to the love and grace of God in queer Christian lives rather than the limiting and restrictive legalism that is sometimes found in Wesleyan theology and praxis. This inventive project consists of queer readings of ten John Wesley sermons. Reading these sermons from a queer perspective offers the church a fresh paradigm for theological innovation, while remaining in line with the tradition and legacy of Wesley that is so central and generative to Wesleyan churches. Arguing that a coherent line of thought can be drawn from Wesley's conception of holiness to the queer, holy lives of LGBTQ+ Christians, Queering Wesley, Queering the Church playfully utilizes queer theory in a way that is fully compatible with Wesleyan teaching. This book aims to be a first step in seriously considering the theological voices of LGBTQ+ Christians in the Wesleyan tradition as a valuable asset to a vital church.

The various contributors make clear the relevance of Giussani's thought to the North American and Western cultural and religious context. They point to an important element in all of Giussani's work - his proposal that the Christian Event is the answer to the deepest and most pressing questions in today's world. With his clear and vigorous awareness of the cultural, philosophical, and theological issues central to the contemporary debate, Giussani succeeds in making the truth of the Catholic tradition both reasonable and relevant. Contributors include Lorenzo Albacete (Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico), Jorge Mario Bergoglio (Cardinal Archbishop of Buenos Aires), Remi Brague (Université La Sorbonne, Paris), Carlo Caffarra (Archbishop of Ferrara-Comacchio), Ralph Del Colle (Marquette University), Ravan Farhâdi (United Nations), Giorgio Feliciani (Catholic University of Sacred Heart, Milan), Neil Gillman (Jewish Theological Seminary, NY), David J. Horowitz (DHMA Inc, NY), Rodney Howsare (DeSales University), Nikolaus Lobkowicz (Catholic University of Eichstätt), Gilbert C. Meilaender (Valparaiso University, Chile), John O’Connor (Cardinal Archbishop of New York), Marc Ouellet (Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity),Javier Prades (Theological Faculty, San Damaso, Madrid), David L. Schindler (John Paul II Institute, Washington, DC), Angelo Scola (Pontifical Lateran University, Rome), J. Francis Stafford (Pontifical Council for the Laity), Shingen Takagi (Koyasan University, Japan), and Michale Waldstein (Internationales Theologisches Institut für Studien zu Ehe und Familie, Gaming, Austria).

Based on the National Study of Youth and Religion--the same invaluable data as its predecessor, Soul Searching: The Religious and Spiritual Lives of American Teenagers--Kenda Creasy Dean's compelling new book, Almost Christian, investigates why American teenagers are at once so positive about Christianity and at the same time so apathetic about genuine religious practice. In Soul Searching, Christian Smith and Melinda Lundquist Denton found that American teenagers have embraced a "Moralistic Therapeutic Deism"--a hodgepodge of banal, self-serving, feel-good beliefs that bears little resemblance to traditional Christianity. But far from faulting teens, Dean places the blame for this theological watering down squarely on the churches themselves. Instead of proclaiming a God who calls believers to lives of love, service and sacrifice, churches offer instead a bargain religion, easy to use, easy to forget, offering little and demanding less. But what is to be done? In order to produce ardent young Christians, Dean argues, churches must rediscover their sense of mission and model an understanding of being Christian as not something you do for yourself, but something that calls you to share God's love, in word and deed, with others. Dean found that the most committed young Christians shared four important traits: they could tell a personal and powerful story about God; they belonged to a significant faith community; they exhibited a sense of vocation; and they possessed a profound sense of hope. Based on these findings, Dean proposes an approach to Christian education that places the idea of mission at its core and offers a wealth of concrete suggestions for inspiring teens to live more authentically engaged Christian lives. Persuasively and accessibly written, Almost Christian is a wake up call no one concerned about the future of Christianity in America can afford to ignore.

Church Ecology invites readers that God has in fact created us to be more than we have become. Called by Christ to discipleship, we are the true heirs of Christ. We are called to share the gifts that God has given to each of us on behalf of the whole community so that we can more effectively be the body of Christ in and for the world today. As a part of that call, we have a responsibility to discover, and sometimes re-discover, those whom God has gifted for leadership and invite them to prIn Church Ecology, the authors lay out a practical step-by-step approach to creating a leadership pathway that is grounded in scripture and prayer. Their creative, reflective process and practical suggestions invite all who participate to remember who they are in Christ. They invite us to be curious about current leadership development processes, curious about what those processes could be, curious about the journey - past, present, and future - and curious about past, present, and future capacity for fruitfulness. They invite us to ask questions and they ask us questions, coaching us to determine the next appropriate action step for our unique church situation. They also remind us that a leadership pathway for a community should not be built or created by one person, but a diverse small group of persons who are passionate about growing a healthy and generative church ministry, outreach, and witness.Church Ecology invites us to anticipate and prepare for future leadership in the church. Instead of leaving the development of church leadership up to happenstance, Ken and Kelly invite us to anticipate and to prepare for future leadership through an intentional process of creating a leadership pathway that empowers us to live a healthy, balanced life with Christ and one another as the church. Developing a leadership pathway serves to open up endless possibilities for us to be one with Christ, one with each other, and one in God's transforming ministry to all the world - not just for the moment but for the future.

In a revised an updated edition, this comprehensive, up-to-date text offers a framework for intentional intergenerational Christian formation. It provides the theoretical foundation of intergenerationality, then gives concrete, practical guidance on how worship, learning, community, and service can all be achieved intergenerationally.

No detailed description available for "Old Church Slavonic Grammar".

How does God's involvement with the generation of Holy Scripture and its use in the life of the Christian church figure into the human work of Scripture interpretation? This is the central question that this book seeks to address. In critical conversation with the influential hermeneutic programs of James Barr, Paul Ricoeur and Hans Frei, Topping demonstrates how God's agency has been marginalized in the task of Scripture interpretation. Divine involvement with the Bible is bracketed out (Barr), rendered in generic terms (Ricoeur) or left implicit (Frei) in these depictions of the hermeneutic field. The result is that each of these hermeneutic programs is less than a ’realist’ interpretative proposal. Talk of God is eclipsed by the terminal consideration of human realities. Topping argues for the centrality of doctrinal description in a lively theological understanding of Scripture interpretation for the life of the church.

Insightful instructions on how to make your church grow -Invaluable manual on how to enlarge the local church -Comprehensive exposé that leaves no stone unturned -Concise instructions on how to become a mega church pastor - Helpful hints on how to develop your ministry