Kategoria BISAC: Religion >> Christian Ministry - Pastoral Resources

This helpful book provides the link between theories about learning and human development and the tasks of pastors. Daniel Aleshire shows that paying attention to people can be the source of knowledge about the congregation and the basis for ministry, education, and Christian nurture.

A standard work in seminaries and a reliable guide for clergy in many denominations for over thirty years, The Christian Pastor has been revised to include up-to-date research on the role of pastors in contemporary life. In examining today's changing ministry, Wayne Oats makes use of recent psychological interpretations, and at the same time preserves the biblical and theological emphases of earlier editions.

Valuable for both seminarians and practicing clergy, this basic work integrates theology and pastoral care in a practical and useful way. Citing actual experiences, with questions for personal reflection, this much-needed study brings about a new awareness of the ministry of pastoral care.

Is the pastor a performer, manager, entertainer, therapist, or bureaucrat? While modern pastors are often associated with roles like these, Ben Campbell Johnson examines ministry and all its functions from a spiritual perspective and helps pastors see themselves as individuals called by God. With exercises designed to help them reflect on their experiences, he helps ministers recapture the essence of their calling.

The meaning of compassion is more than just sympathy, empathy, pity, and concern. Compassion has a theological meaning. In this book, Andrew Purves sees compassion as the center of pastoral care, holding theology, spirituality, and ministry together. He examines how a renewed compassion gives ministry shape and content which "grows out of the life of God, and God's care for the world."

Karen Lebacqz and Ronald Barton examine the gift of sexuality in relation to the parish and the dynamics of sexual desire and temptation. Included in this book are the expreiences of a pastor who did not set appropriate limits; explainations of how the pastoral role affects sexual contact between pastor and parishioner; suggestions for a framework of ethical analysis; an examination of questions for women in ministry, single pastors, and pastors who are gay, lesbian, or bisexual; and a review of ethical issues related to persons who carry responsibilities for the structures of ministerial...

In this book, Herbert Anderson and Kenneth R. Mitchell demonstrate that leaving home is a significant part of forming an individual identity and a natural aspect of maturing. It is also a lifelong process, but one that is desirable and appropriate for both the one who leaves and the ones left behind. However, understanding the process requires care. This book helps clarify what is at stake in the ordinary yet complex process of leaving home.

The Family Living in Pastoral Perspective series examines crucial times in family life in light of the family as a social unit. Each book...

Armstrong has once again broken new ground in this book. Pasters and seminary students, as well as lay leaders, will find its biblical word studies informational, its index useful, its illustrative style interesting, its...

Drawing upon the experiences and insights of a diverse group of notable contributors, this volume is perhaps the most complete study available on clergy ethics. The topics discussed include the separation of church and state, clergy professionalization, ethical pastoral care, and many more.

With concise and practical guidelines for recovering the identity of the church, Clark Williamson and Ronald Allen demonstrate that the central task of ministry is teaching the Christian faith. The authors believe that how well ministers understand what is required of them and how well they do what is required of them is part of the problem of churches today, as well as part of the solution.

In this instructive book, Hugh Halverstadt advocates a Christian vision of shalom for an ethical process of conflict management. He shows how respectfulness, assertiveness, accountability, and a focus on the larger common good should all serve as Christian behavioral standards. The book is ideal for addressing ministries, church systems, and other nonprofit organizations in conflict.

Sidney Batts encourages ministers to work with engaged couples to create unique, individual services that will be meaningful to the pair on their wedding day. The couple is able to give a personal touch to their ceremony by having many options from which to choose. The end result of the minister's and couple's efforts is a service that retains what is best of traditional form and language, but does not include unnecessarily archaic or sexist terms.

Robert Craig and Robert Worley have written this practical book as an aid to revitalizing church organizations, especially ones that perceive themselves as victims of outside forces. It is an excellent resource that offers guidance to congregations evaluating their current position and planning for renewal.

Teacher, faithful pastor, financial wizard, caretaker of the sick, activist, personal counselor, and preacher: these are some of the roles a minister must fill. The demands of these roles can lead to numerous dilemmas and stresses and, if not adequately addressed, to burnout. John Sanford deals concretely with the circumstances that give rise to this spiritual exhaustion and identifies the underlying dynamics. He studies each problem in detail, provides approaches and practical suggestions for dealing with it, and reviews the psychology of the ministering person to show how an individual...

According to Carl Dudley and Sally Johnson, the discovery of strong and compelling congregational self-images binds church members together and energizes ministry. They describe five images of churches' relationships to their communities over time--the Survivor, Prophet, Pillar, Pilgrim, and Servant styles--thus allowing churches to gain the knowledge necessary to build on their strengths and address their weaknesses.

Donald Capps draws upon the poetry of William Stafford and Denise Levertov to show how poetry can benefit the field of pastoral care. He argues that poetry focuses on the immediate experience and attends to life itself, whereas theology and ethics focus more on abstract discourse, seeking to achieve a more panoramic view of life.

This excellent book offers help to pastors and other caring Christians who must act as "triage officers" on the front lines of congregational and community life and who believe in and want to explore the importance of sexual issues in ministry. William Arnold believes that our sexuality is a defining element for understanding who we are and who God is. For a pastor to work with people in a helpful and redemptive manner, this powerful force must be faced with courage and care. However, the pastor must be aware that attempts to care can be damaging if there is not an openness to learning...

This valuable resource from one of the founding fathers of the black theology movement discusses how to minister to the black community. Using an interdisciplinary approach, J. Deotis Toberts shows how theological concepts can be applied to education, pastoral care, and political and economic issues.

This book will help pastors educated in the literate culture of academia bridge the cultural gap between them and those in their congregations who verbalize their faith in proverbs and stories. Tex Sample suggests some implications for preaching, teaching, and counseling and discusses how questions of morality and social change are handled by people who think in terms of communal relationship rather than abstract theory.