Practicing Congregation : Imagining A New Old Church
$48.33
Diana Butler Bass’ groundbreaking project to explore encouraging signs of vitality among mainline Protestant churches is now gaining the momentum of a movement. The author’s cover story in Sojourners magazine offers a compelling overview of what characterizes these healthy, vital, and inspiring congregations. The Practicing Congregation is a central text on the road to envisioning a new way of being a church. From Nomads to Pilgrims, its follow-up companion book, contains reflections on practices by the pastors of some of the vibrant congregations that were studied in the writing of The Practicing Congregation.
ABOUT THE BOOK
The conventional wisdom about mainline Protestantism maintains that it is a dying tradition, irrelevant to a postmodern society, unresponsive to change, and increasingly disconnected from its core faith tenets. In her provocative new book, historian and researcher Diana Butler Bass argues that there are signs that mainline Protestant churches are indeed changing, finding a new vitality intentionally grounded in Christian practices and laying the groundwork for a new type of congregation.
The Practicing Congregation tracks these changes by looking at the overall history of American congregations, noting the cultural trends that have sparked change, and providing evidence of how mainline churches are reappropriating traditional Christian practices. The signs of life that Butler Bass identifies lead the reader beyond the crumbling “liberal vs. conservative” dualities to a more nuanced and fluid understanding of the shape of contemporary ecclesiology and faithfulness. In so doing, she helps readers understand tradition in new ways and creates an alternative path through the culture wars that today arrest the energies of most denominations.
Invigorated by stories from Bass’s own experience, The Practicing Congregation provides a hopeful and exciting vision of “the once and future church” that Alban founder Loren Mead first named over 10 years ago. The imaginative “retraditioning” the author identifies and celebrates will guide pastors and other leaders on this “pilgrimage of creating church,” and convincingly counter the naysayers that long ago gave up on the viability of the mainline church.
in stock within 3-5 days of online purchase
SKU (ISBN): 9781566993050
ISBN10: 1566993059
Diana Bass
Binding: Trade Paper
Published: September 2004
Publisher: Rowman and Littlefield Publishing Group
Print On Demand Product
Related products
-
Draw The Circle
$18.99Do you pray as often and as boldly as you want to? There is a way to experience a deeper, more passionate, persistent, and intimate prayer life. Drawing from forty days of true stories, Mark Batterson applies the principles of his New York Times bestselling book The Circle Maker to teach us a new way to pray. As thousands of readers quickly became many tens of thousands, true stories of miraculous and inspiring answers to prayer began to pour in, and as those stories were shared, others were bolstered in their faith to pray with even more boldness. In Draw the Circle, through forty true, faith-building stories of God’s answers to prayer, daily scriptures and prayer prompts, Batterson inspires you to pray and keep praying like never before. Begin a lifetime of watching God work. Believe in the God who can do all things. Experience the power of bold prayer and even bolder faith in Draw the Circle.
Add to cartin stock within 3-5 days of online purchase
-
Kingdom Family Devotional
$18.40This new devotional from Dr. Tony Evans and his son Jonathan Evans will provide both single and married parents with a resource tool to maximize those family devotional times, such as the dinner hour or bedtime. The family virtues-based devotional provides 52 separate topics, one for each week of the year, and five devotionals within each topic that will guide devotional times Monday through Friday. This is a wonderful way to build a spiritually strong family week by week, day after day-a perfect way to head into the weekend. Topics range from the basics of the faith-such as salvation, spiritual warfare, prayer, forgiveness, and discipleship-to essentials of living as followers of Christ: money, prayer, family, friends, and priorities. The subject matter is simplified so even young children can grasp important concepts. This is a perfect resource for busy families.
Add to cartIn stock
-
Your Comeback : Your Past Doesnt Have To Determine Your Future
$16.99Moses Was a Murderer…
Rabab was a harlot….
Jacob lied…
Jonah rebelled…
Esther was a diva.These and other Bible heroes were far from perfect. They failed, they sinned, they deceived…and yet each of them had a dramatic comeback and were used of God beyond their richest imagination. The Bible isn’t the only source of “comeback” stories. Life is full of such dramatic turnarounds. Whether it’s a sports team coming from behind to win an upset or a late blooming student who wins the scholarship, or….your life story, God delights in arranging for comebacks.
Like the Biblical and contemporary examples told in The Comeback, your future can include an amazing comeback story. Popular pastor and Bible teacher, Dr. Tony Evans offers hope by pointing you to the good news that God loves to use less than perfect people. If you’re less than perfect, you qualify!
“It is definitely not too late for you. God has a purpose, a destiny, and a goal for your life. Don’t go backward on Him now. You’ve come too far. You can’t change your past regardless of how much you may want to. But your past does not have to determine your future.” Dr. Tony Evans
Add to cartIn stock
-
Our Love Is Here To Stay
$21.99Marriage is full of changing seasons-some bright with promise, others more challenging. Strong marriages require daily maintenance-and a strong, mutual commitment to the God who enables us to love and persevere.
Designed to help you pray and consider God’s Word together, each devotion offers practical, biblically grounded advice that will encourage you to deepen your relationship with God and draw closer to each other.
“It is our hope that God will use these daily devotions to help you enhance the spiritual, emotional, and personal development of your marriage relationship. Then you, too, will be able to look with confidence into the future and say, ‘Our Love Is Here to Stay!'”
Add to cartOnly 1 left in stock (additional units can be purchased)
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.