A few days ago a Huffington Post article reported on a recent study "based on data collected as part of the General Social Survey by researchers at the National Opinion Research Center (NORC) at the University of Chicago" that found older people are more religious. The pattern of higher rates of belief in God among older respondents was consistent throughout the world (in the 30 countries considered by this research). So What? While some commonly held views about religion are Read More …
Review of The Jesus We Missed (#0716)
Meet the Author Patrick Henry Reardon is pastor of All Saints' Orthodox Church (Chicago, IL) and a senior editor of Touchstone magazine. Father Reardon was educated at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (Louisville, KY), St. Anselm's College (Rome), The Pontifical Biblical Institute (Rome), and St. Tikhon's Orthodox Seminary (South Canaan, PA). He is a prolific writer who has published over a thousand articles, editorials, and reviews. Additionally he has Read More …
Plate or Plate Free? (#0715)
Shane Raynor recently wrote a blog post encouraging congregations to adopt a plate free practice. More specifically, Raynor proposes that congregations that still pass offering plates or baskets consider moving away from this practice for several reasons: Many people don’t use cash and checks anymore. Some people believe the negative stereotypes about churches and money. Passing the plate puts people on the spot. Someone could get the idea that church has a cover Read More …
Is Your Church’s Website Visitor Friendly? (#0714)
Most people visit your church's website before visiting your congregation's physical campus. How welcoming is your site for prospective visitors? Tyler Walworth recently suggested assessing your site in light of questions visitors will likely ask including: Where is the church located? Who is the pastor? What should I expect? Will I be singled out as a visitor or pressured in any way? How do I join? Do I have to join? Should I know anything before I arrive? So What? A Read More …
Review of Beyond Religion (#0713)
Meet the Author His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso (short for Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso), "is both the head of state and the spiritual leader of Tibet." For decades he has been among the most recognizable advocates of peace, and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his continued non-violent efforts aimed at the liberation of Tibet. Additionally, His Holiness has received nearly a hundred formal awards or honors for his Read More …
New Perspectives (#0712)
Matthew Paul Turner's recent blog post entitled "25 Christian Blogs You Should Be Reading" highlights a list of blogs he finds insightful that don't typically receive significant attention or traffic. After reading his list and clicking through to a few of the blogs, I started to fashion my own list. After listing just a few I realized how easy it would be to add several dozen Christian blogs I have found of interest that would not appear on any lists of top Christian blogs. As Read More …
Measurement Matters (#0711)
Mike Bonem, a former executive pastor who now serves as an organizational consultant, wrote an article entitled "Measuring What Matters" in the Spring 2012 edition of Leadership Journal. He names several barriers to generating helpful metrics including two that are especially problematic in a church setting: Not clearly defining what should be measured A perspective that measurement is an unspiritual discipline (p.72) So What? In my experiences very few congregations effectively Read More …
Just Going Through the Motions (#0710)
Thom Rainer, President & CEO of LifeWay Christian Resources, recently shared several statistics from Brad Waggoner's The Shape of the Faith to Come (2008), including "47 percent of Protestant churchgoers admitted to just 'going through the motions' often during the singing and prayer portions of worship services." So What? How might your congregational leadership begin a conversation about this matter? What is an appropriate response to the statistic that roughly half of those Read More …
My Useless Education is Quite Useful (#0709)
"The 13 Most Useless Majors" is a truly unique list worthy of discussion given the amount and significance of conversation surrounding reforming higher education. To create the list, the authors narrowed the field of possible majors using "new research (PDF) from Georgetown University" then applying "data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, equally weighing the following categories to determine current and future employment and earnings potential for our final ranking: Recent graduate Read More …
The Future Church (v.2020) – 10 Shifts (#0708)
Over the last two weeks I have shared the top ten ways I hope the American church of 2020 will differ from the church of 2012. The list builds on trends in church and the larger culture; is realistic rather than idealistic; and is guided by hope in rather than fear about the future. The list seeks to consider broad shifts within American Christianity rather than specific changes or changes more likely in some traditions and less likely in others. Additionally, it Read More …