Finding unity in a polarized church
By the power of the Holy Spirit, our hearts are joined in one holy unity writes Ron Byars.
More Stories from this Author
Reflecting on Jesus’ last words and unspoken truths
What are we supposed to do about climate change? Reproductive rights? Gun violence? Jesus addresses none of these pressing issues in his last words to the disciples, but that doesn't mean we're left to find solutions on our own, writes Ron Byers.
Reflections at an ordination
There is no sure-fire recipe guaranteed to produce faith, Ronald Byars writes. Maybe that’s why so many testify that their faith came as a gift.
The traveling Bible study
One can have perfect vision and fail to see what really matters. Sometimes it seems as though it takes a miracle to see all the way to the heart of things. That's what we see on the road to Emmaus, writes Ronald Byars.
Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents
Isabel Wilkerson Random House, 496 pages Isabel Wilkerson explains “systemic.” “Systemic” racism isn’t a blanket accusation against non-Black people. Rather, it encompasses..
Rebuilding from the foundation up
Pastors find a place in my prayers every day, both those known to me and the many who are not. Pastoral ministry..
Begin Again: James Baldwin’s America and Its Urgent Lessons for Our Own
Eddie S. Glaude Jr. Crown, 272 pages When Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, it must have seemed to many abolitionists that..
The Collected Sermons of David Bartlett
David Bartlett (foreword by Leonora Tubbs Tisdale) Westminster John Knox, 256 pages At a commencement ceremony in Richmond, Virginia, I introduced myself..
Won’t Jesus miss us?
While I was leading a church-sponsored trip, the father of a parishioner told me a family story. His two daughters had left..
Miracles: God’s Presence and Power in Creation
Luke Timothy Johnson WJK Press, 392 pages True story: A young pastor wrote an article for the church newsletter one Easter making..
Advent: The Once and Future Coming of Jesus Christ
Fleming Rutledge Eerdmans, 426 pages Fleming Rutledge has gathered from her repertoire of (mostly) unpublished materials a number of sermons and writings..
What about the sacraments?
Churches like our own are “challenged more strongly by the sacraments than by anything else,” according to J.J. von Allmen, a Swiss..
Preacher: David H.C. Read’s Sermons at Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church
David H.C. Read (John McTavish, editor) Wipf & Stock, 272 pages Teachers of homiletics debate whether or not preaching can be taught...
Paying attention to the elephant in the room: Recommitting to adult Christian formation
My friend, a retired Lutheran pastor, confessed in a sermon that he was a believer on Sunday, but by Thursday nearly an..
Money and Possessions (Interpretation: Resources for the Use of Scripture in the Church)
Walter Brueggemann Westminster John Knox Press, Louisville, Ky. 384 pages This book is not a biblical manual on how to get rich...
Destroyer of the gods: Early Christian Distinctiveness in the Roman World
Larry W. Hurtado Baylor University Press, Waco, Texas. 304 pages It has to be a very different experience to be part..
The Crucifixion: Understanding the Death of Jesus Christ
by Fleming Rutledge Wm. B. Eerdmans, Grand Rapids, Mich. 696 pages Fleming Rutledge is a preacher. Preachers preach, but it is no..
God Hovered Over the Waters
by William A. dePrater III Wipf & Stock, Eugene, Ore. 188 pages This book on the emergence of the Protestant Reformation might..
How Odd of God: Chosen for the Curious Vocation of Preaching
by William H. Willimon Westminster John Knox Press, Louisville, Ky. 160 pages Willimon’s book is the print version of his 2014 Macleod..
The God We Worship: An Exploration of Liturgical Theology
by Nicholas Wolterstorff Wm. B. Eerdmans, Grand Rapids, Mich. 196 pages Nicholas Wolterstorff is a distinguished philosophical theologian in the Reformed tradition...
The church: Mother, mentor and coach
It’s a special Sunday at our Presbyterian church because members of the confirmation class are going to make their first public professions..
Our Only Comfort: 52 Reflections on the Heidelberg Catechism
by Neal D. Presa Westminster John Knox, Louisville, Ky. 160 pages The parking lots of the Dutch churches were packed every Sunday..
Worship with Gladness: Understanding Worship from the Heart
by Joyce Ann Zimmerman Wm. B. Eerdmans, Grand Rapids, Mich. 163 pages Joyce Ann Zimmerman is a Catholic theologian and director of..
The Touch of the Sacred: The Practice, Theology, and Tradition of Christian Worship
by F. Gerrit Immink Wm. B. Eerdmans, Grand Rapids, Mich. 280 pages Immink is rector and professor of homiletics at the Protestant..
The Spiritual Practice of Remembering
by Margaret Bendroth William B. Eerdmans, Grand Rapids, Mich. and Cambridge, U.K. 141 pages American culture is inclined to feel a sense..