What is a congregation for? What are members for? What are pastors for? Bob Sitze, an evocative and sometimes whimsical writer and workshop leader, offers a new vision for congregations and their leaders – a vision that releases us from the growing burden of trying harder to invent and implement “better” worship, evangelism, stewardship, small […]
This breakthrough work, the first to describe sexual addiction, is still the standard for recognizing and overcoming this destructive behavior. With insight and sensitivity, Dr. Patrick Carnes outlines how to identify a sexual addict, recognize the way others may unwittingly become complicit or codependent, and change the patterns that support the addiction.
Pastoral-to-program size change is frequently described as the most challenging of growth transitions for congregations. Now Alban senior consultant Alice Mann, author of The In-Between Church: Navigating Size Transitions in Congregations, addresses the difficulties of that transition in this resource designed specifically for a congregational learning team. Conceptualized and developed by Mann for an Alban online […]
Much has been written on redefining the structure of mainline churches — but the one factor that is most critical to church renewal is the most neglected. That factor is how people join the church. It is the integrity of the membership — and not the number of members — says Jan Linn, that determines […]
The Celts believed that the visible and invisible worlds, the material and the spiritual, were one. For them, certain places were sacred – places where the divide between visible and invisible was very thin, where the presence of the spiritual was almost palpable. In this book, Margaret Silf introduces seven traditional sacred spaces, such as […]
When a Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) congregation searches for a new pastor or associate pastor, there are many official guidelines to follow. This step-by-step guide for nominating committees not only makes these procedures clear and understandable, but it goes behind the rules and regulations to the deeper theological and practical concerns. Foose explains how to get […]
Well-known Episcopal priest and author Malcolm Boyd draws on the many and varied experiences of his 78 years to provide lessons for others who are facing middle age and beyond. The themes of this book – Learning, Remembering, Simplifying, Maturing, Exploring, and Understanding – reflect Boyd’s own life, a life that has taken him from […]
If you would like to see your congregation turn around, then this… seminar will help you understand the truth that God wants all churches to experience and pass on new life and meaning to every community. While this seminar is based on the turnaround of a small rural congregation, these same levers have been used […]
George Hunsinger asserts that the polarity of “progressive politics and traditional faith” is not true to the gospel and not true to the church’s own tradition. More directly, Hunsinger demonstrates that the Presbyterian Church’s new “Study Catechism” embodies theology and social witness together in fidelity to the gospel. Social Witness in Generous Orthodoxy — Theology and […]
Prepare for a journey in the African American tradition as Steal Away calls you to escape the spiritual drylands of your daily life and move toward a deeper communion with God. Steal Away offers an inspiring collection of devotional materials, biblical wisdom literature, prayers, music, art, and journaling exercises designed to help you develop a strengthened spiritual and prayer […]