Grief as innovation
“Grief makes all things new, just in the way no one wanted.”
The post-Christendom church must innovate and adapt to survive our changing religious landscape. Where can we faithfully broaden our thoughts about the ways “ministry” and “church” can look and be? How can we open our eyes, ears and hearts to discover what has been with us all along? How do we clear pathways for the next generations? This issue of the Outlook highlights creatives playing with new forms and approaches to ministry — in the metaverse, on the canvas, on stolen ground, and right down the street. The church can continue to be a conduit for the light of Christ if we can embrace a spirit of innovation and follow the One who has the power to make all things new.
“Grief makes all things new, just in the way no one wanted.”
“The future of church is going to be digital; the question is how do we harness this for good?”
"Reading this book feels like being in spiritual direction or on a walk with a wise friend. Affirming. Faithful. Good company in hard times."
"I believe we are all aspiring memoirists; we long to see our lives whole, discern their meaning, and share it with our children, grandchildren and others."
"Duncan writes for those who want to know they do not face their finite disappointment in the church alone, yet hold infinite hope for the world beyond the church."
Mark DeVries and Trey Wince encourage a generational approach to innovation.
The folks who are finding ways to do church differently — and in ways that might have a faithful impact.
Art, says Juli Kalbaugh, can help us see how our lives are more than just the sum of our parts.
In the Pacific Northwest, Dustin Benac writes, is an American Christianity that’s decoupled from Christendom.
In each issue of the Outlook, we include a discussion guide to further reflect on the issue. We recommend using this guide in your Bible study, small group or book club. It's our invitation into a faithful conversation.
For Outlook's May 2023 issue, Editor/Publisher Teri McDowell Ott thinks about innovation.
"I had always felt firmly rooted in my Presbyterian identity yet drawn to ecumenical and interfaith spaces."
If a Bible is read in the forest and no one is there to hear it, is it still God’s Word?
Roger Rizk, a soon-to-be Union Presbyterian Seminary grad, shares his experience as an intern at Caldwell Presbyterian Church.