Download or read book Congregational Connections written by Carroll Anne Sheppard and published by Xlibris Corporation. This book was released on 2011-09-15 with total page 136 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Congregational Connections challenges both clergy and lay leaders to become deeply sensitized to the demographic reality of six separate generational cohorts being alive at once. This is the first time in the worlds history that such a thing has happened to humans, and none of us has the reality clear in our minds yet. It takes work to analyze consciously what we are seeing when multiple generations are present. We discover that we are quite happy when we see the expected three Elders, Parents raising kids, and the children themselves-- and we often fail to ask: Who isnt here? Demographers and marketers have created names for these six cohorts (a cohort is a group of people born within a 20 or 25 year span who have some distinctive characteristics). In America today we have Builders (approximately ages 110-87); Silents (86-68); Boomers (67- 51/48); GenXers (51/48 27); Millennials (27- 11) and GenZ (10 and under). The first three Builders, Silents and Boomers are referred to in Congregational Connections as Olders; and the second three (GenX, Millennials and GenZ) are referred to as Youngers. A great shift in worldview and preferred technologies separates Olders and Youngers. Today five of these cohorts (the youngest Builders, Silents, Boomers, GenX and the oldest Millennials) are playing adult roles in a world that recently seemed to be populated by Elders and Parents raising Children. It is making everyone grumpy. There does not seem to be psychological room for all these players. The March 2011 cover of Philadelphia Magazine pictured a generic texting device with the following text: Dear Baby Boomers, Just die already. (Well take Philly from here. Thanks) XOXO, Generation X In congregation after congregation, Olders are wondering why the Youngers dont seem to be attending worship regularly. Yet when they do come, the Olders wish they would make their children stop texting and the parents would stop checking their cell phones. Youngers are wondering why Olders want to have all these time-wasting repetitive meetings and wont use e-technologies to avoid them. And why arent they being respected? Congregational Connections offers a discussion of who these cohorts are, and why they act the way they do. Its nine chapters cover: How We Got Here; Six Different Cohort Experiences; The Generational Divide; Realities for Congregational Life; Worship; Christian Formation; Programs and Space; Community is Congregation, and The Way Forward: Hope. The books aim is not only to have readers become aware of the six cohorts and their different attitudes and needs, but also to offer insights through Congregational Moments (case studies) that let readers see how these realities play out in church life, and suggest questions for discussion. Why is it happening now? In her book, The Great Emergence, Phyllis Tickle offers us a thesis that we are in the middle of the next Reformation. These happen every five hundred years, and take about 150 years to roll their paradigm shift of technology and worldview through society. The last Reformation was fueled by printing technology that promoted widespread literacy and a worldview shift that supported increasing political democracy and social leveling. The one that we are living through now is about electronic technology (radio, phone, television, computers, internet, and who knows?) and an even flatter social environment. Those changes by themselves seem sufficient to make the Second Reformation happen. Yet added to their pressures is the arrival of six generational cohorts on the worlds playing field. Each cohort has its own identity, but Olders and Youngers break into two different sides of the game. Whats more, by the time the Second Reformation finishes rolling through, medical advances may add several decades to the average lifespan. Perhaps eight, nine or even more generational cohorts will be alive together at its end. Right now, congre

Download or read book Real Connections written by Joy Skjegstad and published by . This book was released on 2021-06-30 with total page 184 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Authors Joy Skjegstad and Heidi Unruh have a passion for helping persons build genuine relationships. In this book, Skjegstad and Unruh give strategies and suggestions for churches and their community to create authentic relationships within all age groups and various abilities. Skjegstad and Unruh challenge churches and Christians to discuss and take healthy action on topics such as racism, sexual orientation, gender choices, loneliness, literally speaking to neighbors, and actively engaging youth and young adults. Real relationships and change can happen in church, community events, group activities, and individuals.

Download or read book Pastor Staff and Congregational Relationships written by Bernie M. Spooner, Ph.d. and published by CreateSpace. This book was released on 2014-02-11 with total page 264 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Pastor, Staff, and Congregational Relationships fills the need for a fresh and comprehensive resource for building quality relationships among pastors, church staff leaders, and church members and leaders. Often in this day of fast-paced changes, conflicts arise that might have been avoided if intentional attention were given to relationships. The book has been written by a team of experienced pastors, staff leaders, and laypeople who have demonstrated effectiveness in building healthy churches. The approach of the book is that servant leadership and good personnel administration are essential to quality staff and congregational relationships. Also, this book assumes that the pastor and vocational staff are called to help equip the congregation for ministry to the community and beyond. Because of the current context in churches, a chapter on the congregation relating to the pastor and staff and a chapter on conflict resolution are included. Furthermore, the book also treats the important issues of staff and congregational ethics and addresses the serious problem of moral failure. University and seminary professors will find this volume a good choice for a textbook for preparing ministers for church ministry. It will also be a valuable tool for pastors, general staff leaders, and lay leaders in local churches. Pastor, Staff, and Congregational Relationships focuses on servant leadership and addresses the roles pastors, staff, and laypeople play in creating and nurturing strong church relationships. Grounded in biblical principles and full of practical advice, this textbook brings fresh knowledge to a familiar topic. Starting with the premise that all are called to serve but each serves according to his or her own gifts and abilities, Pastor, Staff, and Congregational Relationships emphasizes the importance of the relationships that exist among pastor, staff, and congregational leaders.

Download or read book Congregation Community written by Nancy Tatom Ammerman and published by Rutgers University Press. This book was released on 1997 with total page 460 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Why do some religious institutions decline in the face of racial integration whilst others grow? How do congregations deal with economic distress? This study of congregations in the face of community transformation includes stories of over 20 congregations in nine communities across America.

Download or read book Connecting for a Change written by Christie Latona and published by Abingdon Press. This book was released on 2019-04-16 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: At its simplest, Mission Strategy is about aligning the what, who, how and when with God’s why. Learn to implement Mission Strategy in your community of faith! Church and community relevance and vitality depends on leaders who see their situation through the lens of Mission Strategy. At its simplest, Mission Strategy is about aligning the what, who, how and when with God’s why. The authors have lived Mission Strategy in a variety of bold ways and have helped others do the same. In doing so, they have created vitality in existing congregations and in newly formed clusters of churches. They have helped create zones of innovation and new ministry development. The sky is the limit when pastors, church leaders and laity in local churches begin emphasizing mission strategy in their conferences, regions, neighborhoods and churches.

Download or read book Interdependence written by Unitarian Universalist Commission on Appraisal and published by Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations. This book was released on 1997 with total page 188 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Your Church Can Thrive written by Harold Percy and published by . This book was released on 2003 with total page 118 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this brief, practical book Harold Percy helps congregations answer critical questions about their mission and ministry. Percy lays out the four main groups of people that represent the congregation's best opportunity to lead people to become committed disciples of Jesus Christ. He offers solid, easy-to-follow advice on how churches can understand the needs of these groups and reach out to them.

Download or read book A review of the congregational system in connection with a department of its local history the first circular letter of the Berks and west London association written by John Howard Hinton and published by . This book was released on 1826 with total page 20 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Congregational Hermeneutics written by Andrew P. Rogers and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2016-05-20 with total page 323 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Despite many churches claiming that the Bible is highly significant for their doctrine and practice, questions about how we read the Bible are rarely made explicit. Based on ethnographic research in English churches, Congregational Hermeneutics explores this dissonance and moves beyond descriptions to propose ways of enriching hermeneutical practices in congregations. Characterised as hermeneutical apprenticeship, this is not just a matter of learning certain skills, but of cultivating hermeneutical virtues such as faithfulness, community, humility, confidence and courage. These virtues are given substance through looking at four broad themes that emerge from the analysis of congregational hermeneutics - tradition, practices, epistemology and mediation. Concluding with what hermeneutical apprenticeship might look like in practice, this book is constructively theological about what churches actually do with the Bible, and will be of interest to scholars, students and practitioners.

Download or read book A review of the congregational system in connection with a department of its local history being the first circular letter of the Berks and West London Association By J H H written by John Howard HINTON (the Elder.) and published by . This book was released on 1826 with total page 18 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Congregational Studies in the UK written by Karin Tusting and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2017-03-02 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book presents the first comprehensive introduction to congregational studies in the UK. Through a series of innovative essays, it explores the difference that the increasingly post-Christian nature of British society is making to life in Christian congregations, and compares this to the very different scenario which exists in the USA. Contributions from leading scholars in the field include rich case studies of local communities and theoretical analyses which reflect on issues of method and develop broader understandings. Congregational studies is revealed as a rich and growing field of interest to scholars across many disciplines and to those involved in congregational life.

Download or read book Congregational Music Conflict and Community written by Jonathan Dueck and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2017-04-28 with total page 198 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Congregational Music, Conflict and Community is the first study of the music of the contemporary 'worship wars' – conflicts over church music that continue to animate and divide Protestants today – to be based on long-term in-person observation and interviews. It tells the story of the musical lives of three Canadian Mennonite congregations, who sang together despite their musical differences at the height of these debates in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Mennonites are among the most music-centered Christian groups in North America, and each congregation felt deeply about the music they chose as their own. The congregations studied span the spectrum from traditional to blended to contemporary worship styles, and from evangelical to liberal Protestant theologies. At their core, the book argues, worship wars are not fought in order to please congregants' musical tastes nor to satisfy the theological principles held by a denomination. Instead, the relationships and meanings shaped through individuals’ experiences singing in the particular ways afforded by each style of worship are most profoundly at stake in the worship wars. As such, this book will be of keen interest to scholars working across the fields of religious studies and ethnomusicology.

Download or read book Places of Promise Finding Strength in Your Congregation s Location written by Cynthia Woolever, Deborah Bruce and published by Westminster John Knox Press. This book was released on with total page 146 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Partners Sisters and Twins written by Danny Hunter and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2023-07-27 with total page 201 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Congregations are increasingly developing partnerships as a way of engaging directly in global missions. One of the most common ways they do this is forming relationships with congregations in other parts of the world. This book looks at the reasons that churches seek out missions partners, how the partnership phenomenon developed, and what beliefs, concepts, structures, and practices inform the healthiest mission partnerships. With insights drawn from a survey of churches from across the country and around the world, this book provides data-driven insights to guide the practice of international congregational partnerships.

Download or read book Outside the Fold The External Relationships of Congregational Churches written by Thomas William Baxter Aveling and published by . This book was released on 1876 with total page 52 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Singing the Congregation written by Monique M. Ingalls and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2018-09-17 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Contemporary worship music shapes the way evangelical Christians understand worship itself. Author Monique M. Ingalls argues that participatory worship music performances have brought into being new religious social constellations, or "modes of congregating". Through exploration of five of these modes--concert, conference, church, public, and networked congregations--Singing the Congregation reinvigorates the analytic categories of "congregation" and "congregational music." Drawing from theoretical models in ethnomusicology and congregational studies, Singing the Congregation reconceives the congregation as a fluid, contingent social constellation that is actively performed into being through communal practice--in this case, the musically-structured participatory activity known as "worship." "Congregational music-making" is thereby recast as a practice capable of weaving together a religious community both inside and outside local institutional churches. Congregational music-making is not only a means of expressing local concerns and constituting the local religious community; it is also a powerful way to identify with far-flung individuals, institutions, and networks that comprise this global religious community. The interactions among the congregations reveal widespread conflicts over religious authority, carrying far-ranging implications for how evangelicals position themselves relative to other groups in North America and beyond.

Download or read book Address of G H to the congregation of Protestant Dissenters assembling in Hanover Square Chapel Newcastle upon Tyne in acceptance of their unanimous invitation to him to become their minister written by George HARRIS (Unitarian Minister.) and published by . This book was released on 1850 with total page 6 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: