A theological and practical exploration of ministry formation in the church today.

The word "supervision" can have a negative connotation to those being supervised and leaders alike. You don't have to read very far in Transforming the Rough Places to realize that there is nothing negative about the supervision that Dr. Pohly describes. The result of years of research and experience, Dr. Pohly's method and rationale offer tools to make supervision a positive experience for all those involved. What he describes is a value-centered leadership style that focuses equally on the ministry or task to be done and the person doing the task. Practicing these skills in supervision can easily enhance all business, ministry, and personal relationships. Discover what it means to lead in a way that can be transformative for the individual and the institution.

In the past century the ecumenical movement has made extraordinary efforts in healing the wounds of division in the body of Christ--the church. However, in their formal preparation for ministry, many clergy learn little or nothing about the achievements, methods, or implications of ecumenism. This failure to adequately educate and inspire successive generations of Christian leaders about the quest for the church's visible unity risks not only an irretrievable loss of ecumenical memory, but also a return to a time in which ignorance, fear, mistrust, suspicion, stereotypes, caricatures, recrimination, anathematization--even persecution--characterized the relations between divided churches. Drawing on decades of reflection on ecumenical reception and formation, and using the Anglican Church of Canada as a model, this book presents an approach to teaching the practical and theological aspects of ecumenism in a way that is both holistic and pragmatic and offers the potential to raise up a new generation of church leaders who are also agents of reconciliation and Christian unity.

God clearly intends that lives of Christians and the life of the church should differ from those of the unredeemed. The Christian and the church should be “salt and light.” Preparing spiritual leaders who have the grace, credibility, and wisdom to effect such change demands more than transmission of knowledge. Equipping for transformative ministry requires a divinely empowered and educationally intentional experience that leads to transformation in the lives of students. Ministry Education that Transforms brings together theological insight and educational research in support of practical methods that align with transformative ends. The authors’ experience with Global Associates for Transformational Education (GATE) workshops, and the impact they have had with this approach to education formation, testifies that this is not a mere call for change, but a tried and tested methodology crucial to theological education.

For more than 40 years the Historic Documents series has made primary source research easy by presenting full primary documents and excerpts from documents on the important events of each year for the United States and the world. Each volume includes approximately 70 events with well over 100 documents from the previous year, from official or other influential reports and surveys, to speeches from leaders and opinion makers, to court cases, legislation, testimony, and much more. Historic Documents is renowned for the well-written and informative background, history, and context it provides for each document. Published annually, the updated 2014 volume begins with an insightful essay that sets the year’s events in context, and each document or group of documents is preceded by a comprehensive introduction that provides background information on the event. Full-source citations are provided. Readers have easy access to material through a detailed, thematic table of contents and an index, as well as an“Other Historic Documents of Interest” section which lists related entries from this and previous editions.

The Church is currently experiencing a transition in the way it understands and practises both mission and ministry. It is to be outward-looking, engaging with the wider community, involving all its members in mission and clergy are to play the role of enablers and equippers of the ministry of the whole church. However, ministerial formation in colleges and courses throughout the country lags behind this emerging consensus. ‘Theological education’ is still largely based on academic models. Reimagining Ministerial Formation offers a new way forward, where ‘ministry’ comes to be about the whole church, and ministerial formation is about collaboration between clergy and laity. It argues strongly for a shift away from ‘front-loaded’ training, to a new focus on formation as a life-long process.

The influence of materialist ontology largely dominates philosophical and scientific discussions. However, there is a resurgent interest in alternative ontologies from panpsychism (the view that at the base of reality exists potential minds, minds, or mind-lets) to idealism and dualism (the view that all of reality is material and mental). The Routledge Handbook of Idealism and Immaterialism is an outstanding reference source and the first major collection of its kind. Historically grounded and constructively motivated, it covers the key topics in philosophy, science, and theology, providing students and scholars with a comprehensive introduction to idealism and immaterialism. Also addressed are post-materialism developments, with explicit attention to variations of idealism and immaterialism (the view that reality depends on a mind or a set of minds). Comprising 44 chapters written by an international and interdisciplinary team of contributors, the Handbook is organised into five clear parts: Idealism and the history of philosophy Important figures in idealism Systematic assessment of idealism Idealism and science Idealism, physicalism, panpsychism, and substance dualism Essential reading for students and researchers in metaphysics, philosophy of science, philosophy of religion, and philosophy of mind, The Routledge Handbook of Idealism and Immaterialism will also be of interest to those in related discplines where idealist and immaterialist ontology impinge on history, science, and theology.

Spirituality, discipleship, and evangelism are three critical, timeless disciplines used by the church to transform faith communities from followers to disciples and then to effective faith practitioners. It is not always easy to cultivate these disciplines, but as an empowered faith practitioner and doer of the Word, each of us can learn how to be revitalized and transformed. The Spiritual Order of a Messy Church is written for both laypeople and clergy who are intentionally pursuing personal and spiritual growth by using historic, grounded themes practiced by the early church—spirituality, discipleship, and evangelism. Author Santosh K. Marray describes the correlation between Acts 2:42–47 (the classical model of the early church for spirituality, discipleship, and evangelism) and the affirmations embodied in the baptismal covenant. He describes how both laypersons and clergy can develop a personal spiritual order to govern their lives and translate that spiritual structure to the congregations they may be leading and with whom they worship. In this challenging period where church growth is in decline, especially in mainline churches, The Spiritual Order of a Messy Church advocates a more robust spiritual engagement undergirded by a rule of order. Spirituality, appropriately defined as “formed for Christ,” could be achieved through the user-friendly approach advocated here. The message of Jesus is that the authentic Christian is one who practices what she or he believes.

Missiologists and mission-oriented folks have been invited to reflect on topics that touch on the transforming power of Gods Spirit. This series of essays has been produced as one way of celebrating the fascinating, missional career of Dr. Eugene Bunkowske, long-time missionary to Africa, long-time linguist and Bible translator, long-time seminary professor, life-long sharer of the Good News of Jesus the Christ. This volume offers plenty of meat to engage the serious student of missions but also a number of gems that will enlighten any Christian with a commitment to outreach or an interest in the churchs mission. Lutheran ChurchMissouri Synod readers will be especially interested in some of the pieces, though any student of Sacred Scripture will benefit from many of the essays.