In a previous column (part one), two strategies were suggested for the first year of a teaching elder’s ministry. What else assists..
When we look back at World War I 100 years after its start, it’s easy to see that public opinion was wrong..
What should a teaching elder and the session try to accomplish in the first year of ministry? If people think that the..
WASHINGTON D.C. – It was late on a recent Friday afternoon when I slipped into New York Avenue Presbyterian Church here to..
I think of Margaret E. Towner as the Presbyterian Jackie Robinson. In 1956, she broke the gender line to become the first..
For four straights Sundays, my congregation brought in two excellent seminary professors to talk to us first about why we should care..
The task of selecting a new pastor is formidable and challenging for many members and, for some, downright scary. It requires considerable..
Like many congregations, mine has a library. It’s near the office on the first floor of the church building and is named..
Most church leaders are well aware of ministries sponsored across the country to the 22 million Americans who need help dealing with..
Late last year, as I was finishing the manuscript for my new book, “Woodstock: A Story of Middle Americans,” which is rooted..
Recently there has been quite a bit of discussion about the incident in the Full Gospel Tabernacle in Middlesboro, Kentucky, where a..
People of faith often use metaphors related to eyesight. We’ve seen the light. We get the gift of new eyes. We see..
Since many churches are constantly searching for ways to attract new members and an increasing number of Americans are claiming to be..
My memories of the first time I taught a weeklong seminar at Ghost Ranch about getting from pain to hope through writing..
During the coming year many congregations should be asking an important question as they engage in long term planning, “How can we..
I knew something fascinating was coming when my friend and co-author, Rabbi Jacques Cukierkorn, sent me an e-mail saying, “Gentiles do not..
Two weeks of study leave included in a pastor’s compensation package provide a valuable time for spiritual and academic growth, relaxation and..
At the end of a line of 14 other persons standing in front of our congregation to profess their faith and become..
My congregation may or may not help to create one of the “1001 New Worshiping Communities” the PC(USA) is promoting, but just..
LIBERTYVILLE, ILL – I was barely in the door of my sister’s house here for a recent visit when she said, “Oh,..
Most of us have heard the possibly apocryphal story of theologian Karl Barth answering a student’s question about the most important thing..
In the summer of 2011, I was in downtown Detroit (site of the 2014 General Assembly) for the annual conference of the..
I first became a full voting member of a Presbyterian congregation in 1958 through a confirmation class. I thought it was cool..
HORSESHOE BAY, B.C. -- Before lunch arrived at the Olive and Anchor restaurant here, my Presbyterian friend Valarie told me she had “a..
A few months ago at our congregation’s all-church retreat, I had a chance to talk with keynoter Frank Yamada, president of McCormick..
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