23 minute read
Education
Keri Day is associate professor of constructive theology and African American religion at Princeton eological Seminary.
978-0-8028-7882-3 | Paperback 176 pages | $19.99 US | $26.99 CAN £15.99 UK | Available June 2021
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Notes of a Native Daughter
Testifying in Theological Education Keri Day
In Notes of a Native Daughter, Keri Day testi es to structural inequalities and broken promises of inclusion through the eyes of a black woman who experiences herself as both stranger and friend to prevailing models of theological education. Inviting the reader into her religious world—a world that is African American and, more speci cally, Afro-Pentecostal— she not only uncovers the colonial impulses of theological education in the United States but also proposes that the lived religious practices and commitments of progressive AfroPentecostal communities can help the theological academy decolonize and reenvision multiple futures.
Mark D. Jordan is the R. R. Niebuhr Professor of Divinity at Harvard Divinity School.
978-0-8028-7903-5 | Paperback 176 pages | $19.99 US | $26.99 CAN £15.99 UK | Available
Transforming Fire
Imagining Christian Teaching Mark D. Jordan
How should Christian teaching happen, especially in this time of signi cant change to theological education as an institution? Mark Jordan addresses this question by rst allowing various depictions and instances of Christian teaching from literature to speak for themselves before meditating on what these illustrative examples might mean for Christian pedagogy. Each textual scene he shares is juxtaposed with a contrasting scene to capture the pluralistic possibilities in the art of teaching a faith that is so o en rooted in paradox. He exempli es forms of teaching that operate beyond the boundaries of scholarly books and discursive lectures to disrupt the normative Western academic approach of treating theology as a body of knowledge to be transmi ed merely through language.
Daniel O. Aleshire served as executive director of the Association of eological Schools from 1998 to 2017.
978-0-8028-7875-5 | Paperback 176 pages | $19.99 US | $26.99 CAN £15.99 UK | Available
Beyond Profession
The Next Future of Theological Education Education Daniel O. Aleshire Daniel O. Aleshire
Daniel Aleshire, the longtime executive director of the Association of tive director of the Association of eological Schools, o ers a brief eological Schools, o ers a brief account of how theological educaaccount of how theological education has changed in the past and how tion has changed in the past and how it might change going forward. He it might change going forward. He begins by re ecting on his own exbegins by re ecting on his own extensive experience with theological tensive experience with theological education and then turns to reviewing education and then turns to reviewing its history, dating back to the seventeenth century. Amid this historical survey, he uncovers an older model of the eld that he believes must become dominant once again—what he calls formational theological education— and explores educational practices that this model would require.
Elizabeth Conde-Frazier is a nationally recognized authority on Hispanic Bible Institutes. She now leads a major grant project for the Asociación para La Educación Teológica Hispana.
978-0-8028-7901-1 | Paperback 176 pages | $19.99 US | $26.99 CAN £15.99 UK | Available August 2021
Atando Cabos
Latinx Contributions to Theological Education Theological Education Elizabeth Conde-Frazier Elizabeth Conde-Frazier
Latinx Protestantism is a rapidly growing element of American Chrisgrowing element of American Christianity—in both Pentecostal and tianity—in both Pentecostal and non-charismatic forms. How should non-charismatic forms. How should institutions of theological education institutions of theological education in the United States welcome and in the United States welcome and incorporate the gi s of these populaincorporate the gi s of these populations into their work? tions into their work?
In this book, Elizabeth Conde-Frazier takes stock of the cabos sueltoszier takes stock of the — loose ends—le over from the history loose ends—le over from the history of Latinx Christianity, including the ways the rise of Pentecostalism disrupted existing power structures and opened up new ways for Latinx people to assert agency. en, atando cabos—tying these loose ends together—she re ects on how a new paradigm, centered on the work of the Holy Spirit, can serve to decolonize theological education going forward, bringing about an in-breaking of the kingdom of God.
No Longer Strangers
Transforming Evangelism with Immigrant Communities Eugene Cho and Samira Izadi Page, editors
Foreword by Ann Voskamp A new vision for evangelism that honors the most vulnerable
“In No Longer Strangers, a remarkable group of contributors with deep and diverse experience in ministry to the marginalized show how to be incarnational in our evangelism.” — ED STETZER
Wheaton College
“A signi cant and insightful contribution to the ongoing discussion about Christianity and immigration. e authors understand that each person who wishes to immigrate is created in the image and likeness of God and should be treated as such, including in how the gospel is brought to them. is book provides a vision of what that looks like for the church.” — J. D. GREEAR
pastor of The Summit Church and 62nd president of the Southern Baptist Convention
“ is book calls us to rediscover an expression of biblical Christian faith that does not ignore those who will form the spiritual backbone of the next evangelicalism.”
— SOONG-CHAN H
author of The Next Evangelicalism
CONTRIBUTORS
The Invitation
A Theology of Evangelism Richard R. Osmer Moving beyond mere conversionism
Many Christians today are uncomfortable with older, simpler notions about evangelism as conversionism but see as insu cient the more progressive model of evangelism as hospitality. Transcending that dichotomy, Richard Osmer advances a theology of evangelism as a multifaceted act of invitation into Christ-following community.
Osmer begins by exploring references to evangelism in the New Testament—both in the Gospels and in the le ers of Paul. He then enters into dialogue with Karl Barth to work through ideas of church witness and the relationship of evangelism to salvation. Finally, with lucid explanations and illustrative case studies, he o ers guidance for pastors, laity, and students to use as they reimagine how evangelism might best happen in their churches and missional organizations. Osmer’s approach mirrors the conviction, stated in his introduction, that our concept of evangelism must be formed and constantly reformed by keeping the Bible, church doctrine, and practical theology in conversation.
Foundational to Osmer’s rendering of evangelism as invitation is the essential truth that it is Christ and the Holy Spirit who calls converts and makes disciples—not Christians. us, we can invite our neighbors to the wedding feast while remaining reassured that the table is already set.
Laurie Beshore, Andrew F. Bush, Eugene Cho, K. J. Hill, Torli H. Krua, Sandra Maria van Opstal, Samira Izadi Page, Issam Smeir, Ann Voskamp, and Jenny Yang.
Rev. Eugene Cho is president and CEO of Bread for the World. He is also the founder/visionary of One Day’s Wages, founder and former senior pastor of Quest Church, and the author of Overrated: Are We More in Love with the Idea of Changing the World an Actually Changing the World? and ou Shalt Not Be a Jerk: A Christian’s Guide to Engaging Politics.
Rev. Dr. Samira Izadi Page is the founder of Gateway of Grace Ministries, an outreach ministry to refugees. She is a Muslim-background Christian from Iran and a sought-a er speaker, workshop leader, and church mobilizer. She has a doctorate in missiology and is the author of Who Is My Neighbor?
978-0-8028-7865-6 | Paperback | 224 pages | $19.99 US | $26.99 CAN | £15.99 UK Available May 2021 Richard R. Osmer is Princeton eological Seminary’s Ralph B. and Helen S. Ashenfelter Professor of Mission and Evangelism. An ordained Presbyterian minister, he chairs the Commi ee to Write New Catechisms for the Presbyterian Church (USA). His other books include Practical eology: An Introduction, e Teaching Ministry of Congregations, and Religious Education between Modernization and Globalization.
978-0-8028-7622-5 | Paperback | 275 pages | $24.99 US | $33.99 CAN | £19.99 UK Available October 2021
We Aren’t Broke Good Works
Uncovering Hidden Resources for Mission and Ministry Mark Elsdon
Foreword by Craig Dykstra What if everything you need is already there?
Despite talk of nancial struggle and decline in the church, most religious institutions have more resources than they know. is book is an invitation to innovation, possibility, and hope in utilizing those hidden resources— property, investments, people, and passion—that are available right now to revitalize churches and missional organizations, as well as their surrounding communities. communities.
“One of our biggest challenges in the church is imagination. In this book, Mark Elsdon reminds us that there is no scarcity of resources, only a scarcity of creativity and courage.” — SHANE CLAIBORNE
author, activist, and cofounder of Red Letter Christians
“Mark Elsdon knows what he is writing about: a capacious Christian vision of the common good. What he proposes is not abstract but grounded—a tested way of perceiving and acting that reorders the power of money and property for the sake of a more just and thriving neighborhood or town.”
— MARK LABBERTON
author of The Dangerous Act of Loving Your Neighbor
“ is book packs a wallop—it could not be timelier or more important for congregations today. Elsdon calls churches to reckon with the impact of their nances— not just whether they can make bank—and turns impact investing into something mighty close to a spiritual practice.” — KENDA CREASY DEAN
author of Almost Christian: What the Faith of Our Teenagers Is Telling the American Church
“We Aren’t Broke does an excellent job of digging into challenging topics and highlighting new ways for the church to utilize its assets and reclaim its position as the transformational agent of change in our communities.”
— DERRICK MORGAN
retired NFL linebacker and managing partner at KNGDM Group
Mark Elsdon, an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA), is cofounder of RootedGood, which seeks to create more good in the world through social innovation; executive director at Pres House on the University of Wisconsin’s Madison campus; and owner of Elsdon Strategic Consulting. Hospitality and Faithful Discipleship Keith Wasserman and Christine D. Pohl
For over forty years, the community of Good Works, Inc., has shared life with its neighbors in rural southeastern Ohio, a region with high poverty rates and remarkably resilient people. O ering friendship to those without a support network and shelter, care, and community to people without homes, those involved with Good Works have made it their mission to embody the gospel in innovative and lifegiving ways. What insights can be gleaned from Good Works, and how might these lessons be applied to our own communities and churches?
Christians everywhere who hunger for lifegiving involvement in their local communities—wherever they might be, and in whichever circumstances— will nd inspiration and guidance in this quiet but powerful Appalachian ministry. Short prayers and questions for re ection at the end of each chapter make this a book to be studied and shared among those who know that love of God and neighbor is the starting point, but who aren’t sure where to go from there. from there.
“Good Works is an inspiring and beautiful book full of wisdom. It weaves together Christine Pohl’s decades of insightful scholarship with the practical, lived wisdom of Keith Wasserman and the community of Good Works, Inc. is book helps us all go deeper into Jesus’s call to hospitality and faithful discipleship and to be inspired to live more faithfully ourselves.” — L. GREGORY JONES
Duke Divinity School
“Wasserman and Pohl invite us to pull up a seat at the table of iendship where laughter and tears ow eely and where people who are counted as li le in the eyes of the world discover they are seen and known. Good Works welcomes us into their home and introduces us to a family where all are embraced.”
— MICHAEL MATHER
author of Having Nothing, Possessing Everything
Keith Wasserman is founder and executive director of Good Works, Inc., a nonpro t ministry that works alongside people in rural Appalachia to build a community of hope among those struggling with poverty, isolation, exclusion, and homelessness.
Christine D. Pohl is professor emerita of church in society at Asbury eological Seminary. Her other books include Living into Community: Cultivating Practices at Sustain Us and Making Room: Recovering Hospitality as a Christian Tradition.
978-0-8028-7898-4 | Paperback | 248 pages | $18.99 US | $25.99 CAN | £14.99 UK Available June 2021 978-0-8028-7701-7 | Paperback | 160 pages | $16.99 US | $22.99 CAN | £13.99 UK Available July 2021
At the Blue Hole
Elegy for a Church on the Edge Jack R. Reese
Foreword by Wesley Granberg-Michaelson At the Blue Hole is the story of Churches of Christ in America seen through three de ning events, from their origins to their current state of rapid decline. Jack Reese o ers an elegy of remembrance and a promise of hope—that if these churches claim their own death, this oncethriving fellowship may nd resurrection and a future.
“Equal parts theologian, pastor, and historian, Jack Reese is uniquely quali ed to write this book. His pages are personal and prophetic—a re ection on what has happened among Churches of Christ and a description of what must be changed.”
— MAX LUCADO
pastor and bestselling author
“It takes courage to o er a way forward, courage to name some of the failures of the past, courage to o er a diagnosis and prognosis that require actual change in lifestyle. at’s what Jack Reese o ers in these pages, and I pray many readers take this positive, honest, and challenging book to heart.”
— BRIAN D. MCLAREN
author of Faith after Doubt
“At the Blue Hole de es categorization. Part spiritual autobiography, part history of the Churches of Christ, and part missional epistle for a denomination that like so many others is in steep decline, this volume is Jack Reese’s prophetic call to his people to come back to Jesus. . . . Well researched yet personal in its storytelling style, this book should be read by every Church of Christ minister, seminarian, and layperson, and by anyone who longs for renewal in the church.” — ELAINE A. HEATH
author of God Unbound: Wisdom from Galatians for the Anxious Church
Jack R. Reese has served as a preacher and missional leader in a variety of churches, urban ministries, and mission points across ve continents. He is currently an interfaith leader and executive minister at the Northside Church of Christ in San Antonio. In addition, he has served as a community organizer, ministry consultant, professor, and academic dean.
978-0-8028-7952-3 | Paperback | 240 pages | $21.99 US $29.99 CAN | £17.99 UK | Available October 2021 CALVIN INSTITUTE OF CHRISTIAN WORSHIP LITURGICAL STUDIES
Becoming What We Sing
Formation through Contemporary Worship Music David Lemley
Foreword by John D. Witvliet Contemporary worship music is ubiquitous in many Protestant Christian communities today. Rather than debating or decrying this post–worship-wars reality, David Lemley accepts it as a premise and examines what it means for us to be singing along with songs that aren’t so di erent from the pop genre. In Becoming What We Sing, he draws on cultural criticism, ethnomusicology, and liturgical and sacramental theology to process the deluge of the contemporary in today’s worship music. e result is a thorough assessment of contemporary worship music’s cultural economy that will guide readers toward greater consciousness of who we are becoming as we sing “our way into selves, societies, and cosmic perspectives.”
“Precisely the kind of scholarship that will help worship leaders to discern not just what kind of popular music we ought to be singing in our corporate worship buthow popular music might uniquely form in us a cruciform identity.” — W. DAVID O. TAYLOR
Fuller Theological Seminary
“ is book will help us all move to the next level in valuing [contemporary worship music’s] e ect on
corporate worship.” — CONSTANCE M. CHERRY
Indiana Wesleyan University
David Lemley is assistant professor of religion at Seaver College, Pepperdine University. He is also a contributing author and hymn editor in A Teaching Hymnal: Ecumenical and Evangelical.
978-0-8028-7408-5 | Paperback | 272 pages | $24.99 US $33.99 CAN | £19.99 UK | Available
Preaching Christ from Leviticus
Foundations for Expository Sermons Sidney Greidanus
“ e voice of the Lord lls the book of Leviticus in chapter a er chapter of direct speech, yet this portion of God’s Word remains neglected in our preaching. In Preaching Christ from Leviticus, Sidney Greidanus draws us back to the literary and theological heart of the Pentateuch to recover a voice speaking to the church with surprising and re eshing relevance. His thoughtful and reproduceable method provides a trustworthy guide along the exegetical journey om text to sermon. Students, pastors, and fellow scholars will bene t om his clear exposition of the text, his Christocentric approach to the theology of Leviticus, and his engaging examples of God’s holy Word proclaimed.” — CHRISTINE PALMER
Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary
“Preaching om the Old Testament is crucial for the church but o en neglected. A er all, it is di cult to know how the Old Testament relates to the gospel of Christ, which is the heart of the Christian faith. . . . For those who need help, Sidney Greidanus is an excellent teacher.” — TREMPER LONGMAN III
author of Confronting Old Testament Controversies
“Sidney Greidanus is one of the most gi ed advocates of ‘redemptive-historical’ preaching. . . . In a time when there is much confusion about what it means to preach in delity to the Scriptures, we very much need the lessons that he o ers us.” — RICHARD J. MOUW
Fuller Theological Seminary
Sidney Greidanus is professor emeritus of preaching at Calvin eological Seminary and the author of several books, including e Modern Preacher and the Ancient Text, Preaching Christ om the Old Testament, Preaching Christ om Genesis, Preaching Christ om Ecclesiastes, Preaching Christ om Daniel, and Preaching Christ om Psalms.
978-0-8028-7602-7 | Paperback | 333 pages | $35.00 US $46.99 CAN | £27.99 UK | Available
Power in Weakness
Paul’s Transformed Vision for Ministry Timothy G. Gombis
Foreword by Michael J. Gorman A er Paul’s encounter with the risen Christ on the road to Damascus, he turned from coercion and violence to a ministry centered on the hope of Christ’s resurrection. In earthly terms, Paul had traded power for weakness. But—as he explained in his subsequent le ers—this “weakness” was actually the key to ourishing community that is able to experience God’s transformation, restoration, and healing. What would it mean for pastors today to lead their congregations in this way?
Instead of drawing leadership principles and practices from the worlds of business, education, and politics—which tend to orient churches around institutional power and image maintenance—Timothy Gombis follows Paul in making cruciformity the operating principle of the church. With practical insight, he guides the reader through practices and pa erns that can lead a congregation past a focus on individual salvation toward becoming instead a site of resurrection power on earth.
Foundations of Chaplaincy
A Practical Guide Alan T. Baker An approachable overview of the nature, purpose, and functional roles of chaplaincy
Chaplaincy is unlike any other kind of ministry. It involves working outside a church, without a congregation, usually in a secular organization. It requires ministering to those with starkly di erent religious convictions, many of whom may never enter a house of worship. It is, as Alan Baker writes, “ministry in motion.” ose who are embarking upon this unique and specialized call deserve equally unique and specialized guidance, and Foundations of Chaplaincy o ers exactly that.
“I have known Alan Baker for decades and can think of no one more quali ed to write about the foundations of chaplaincy. is book should be required reading for anyone who is a empting to understand how a positive and powerful ministry can be sustained in an inclusive environment of religious
diversity.” — REAR ADMI L BARRY C. BLACK
62nd Chaplain of the United States Senate
“ is is Pauline wisdom the church today urgently needs to hear. I hope this book shapes the pastoral imagination of every current pastor and seminary student.” — KRISTEN DEEDE JOHNSON
coauthor of The Justice Calling
“In this wise and timely book Tim Gombis opens up the theological vision of the apostle when it comes to power-mongering leaders in churches and society in a way that makes me even more fond of the apostle himself.” — SCOT MCKNIGHT
author of Pastor Paul
Timothy G. Gombis is professor of New Testament at Grand Rapids eological Seminary. He is also the author of Paul: A Guide for the Perplexed, e Drama of Ephesians: Participating in the Triumph of God, and a commentary on Mark’s Gospel in the Story of God Bible Commentary series.
978-0-8028-7125-1 | Paperback | 184 pages | $25.00 US $33.99 CAN | £19.99 UK | Available “A clear, lively, and theologically grounded exposition of the distinctive calling of chaplaincy, richly illustrated with stories and biblical resources. . . . is is a much-needed resource for a form of ministry of growing importance in our religiously plural world.”
— SOND WHEELER
Wesley Theological Seminary
Alan T. Baker is a deeply experienced chaplain who now trains, supervises, and endorses prospective and current chaplains in a variety of se ings. Baker’s experience includes service in college, corporate, and military chaplaincy. A graduate of the United States Naval Academy, Baker rose to the rank of rear admiral. He currently teaches at Fuller, Gordon-Conwell, and Wesley Seminaries.
978-0-8028-7749-9 | Paperback | 280 pages | $24.99 US $33.99 CAN | £19.99 UK | Available
Why Can’t Church Be More Like an AA Meeting?
And Other Questions Christians Ask about Recovery Stephen R. Haynes
Addiction—whether to a substance or to a behavior—is a problem within faith communities, just like it is everywhere else. But because churches are rarely experienced as safe places for dealing with addiction, co-addiction, or the legacy of family dysfunction, Christians tend to seek recovery from these conditions in Twelve-Step fellowships. Once they become accustomed to the ethos of vulnerability, acceptance, and healing that these fellowships provide, however, they are o en le feeling that the church has failed them, with many asking: why can’t church be more like an AA meeting?
Inspired by his own quest to nd in church the sort of mutual support and healing he discovered in Twelve-Step fellowships, Stephen Haynes explores the history of Alcoholics Anonymous and its relationship to American Christianity. He shows that, while AA eventually separated from the Christian parachurch movement out of which it emerged, it retained aspects of Christian experience that the church itself has largely lost: comfort with brokenness and vulnerability, an emphasis on honesty and transparency, and suspicion toward claims to piety and respectability. Haynes encourages Christians to reclaim these distinctive elements of the Twelve-Step movement in the process of “recovering church.” He argues that this process must begin with he calls “Step 0,” which, as he knows from personal experience, can be the hardest step: the admission that, despite appearances, we are not ne.
Stephen R. Haynes is professor of religious studies at Rhodes College and theologian-in-residence at Idlewild Presbyterian Church in Memphis, Tennessee. A contributor to e Christian Century and Hu Post, he is also the author of several books, including e Ba le for Bonhoe er: Debating Discipleship in the Age of Trump.
978-0-8028-7885-4 | Paperback | 240 pages | $19.99 US $26.99 CAN | £15.99 UK | Available October 2021
A Year of Weekly Devotions Fleming Rutledge
Edited by Laura Bardolph Hubers “I bring you news of a living reality that changes everything. Jesus has come; Jesus will come. Whatever your own personal darkness, it has been and will be overcome.”
Means of Grace is a weekly devotional culled from the sermons of beloved pastor and theologian Fleming Rutledge, organized according to the framework of the liturgical calendar. Each entry, compiled and edited by Rutledge’s friend Laura Bardolph Hubers, begins with a biblical passage and ends with a short prayer. ose familiar with Rutledge’s work will recognize both her genuine empathy for human experience and her deep reverence for God. Anyone longing for the wise pastoral guidance of an adept veteran preacher—one who views Scripture not as bland “life lessons” or “timeless teaching” but as “the living God present and acting in the story of redemption”—will nd here a meaningful companion through the seasons of their spiritual journey that they can return to year a er year.
“A church year’s worth of biblical meditations by the great Fleming Rutledge? Yes, please! Rutledge is one of the best preachers of our time because of her relentless focus on the boundless grace made available to us in Jesus Christ. With a preacher’s heart, an incisive mind, and a lively theological imagination, she opens that Gospel to us week by week. What a gi .” — ALAN JACOBS
author of How to Think: A Survival Guide for a World at Odds
EXCERPT
You will meet turnings in the road every day, turnings that, if taken, will lead you further and further away from the living God, deeper and deeper into the worship of the gods of the image-makers. As you come to these turnings in the way, perhaps you will think from time to time of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and how they said, “Our God is able to deliver us . . . but if not, be it known to you, O King, that we will not serve the image which you have set up.” For, you see, ultimately the story of the three young men in the ery furnace, for all its thrilling qualities, is a story not of glory but of the cross. e story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego has maintained its power over the centuries as a story cherished by those who would walk into the ames and would not come out again on this side—martyrs, slaves, prisoners, those who bore their witness in the midst of the world that hates God. e worship of the living God may not bring us prosperity, may not bring us success, may not bring us advancement in this world, but he alone is worthy of worship for his own sake, he alone keeps his promises in the way that is best for us, he alone can and will vindicate the cause of his people. And for those who believe this, no road is too long, no re too hot, no night too dark, no sacri ce too great, for truly, as King Nebuchadnezzar was forced to admit, “ ere is no other God who is able to deliver in this way.”
May the Lord God of Hosts defend you for all your days and ll your hearts with the peace that passes human understanding.
Fleming Rutledge is an Episcopal priest, a best-selling author, and a widely recognized preacher whose published sermon collections have received acclaim across denominational lines. Her books include Help My Unbelief, ree Hours: Sermons for Good Friday, Advent: e Once and Future Coming of Jesus Christ, and e Cruci xion: Understanding the Death of Jesus Christ, which won Christianity Today’s 2017 Book of the Year Award.
Laura Bardolph Hubers is director of marketing and publicity at Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.
978-0-8028-7870-0 | Jacketed Hardcover | 264 pages | $24.99 US $33.99 CAN | £19.99 UK | Available August 2021
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