I have never really understood the popularity of the so-called "reality tv shows." I have never really understood, although I have studied it at far greater length, the popularity of megachurch pastor Joel Osteen. I don't pretend to know what will come of the agreement Osteen made to develop a reality tv show with "famed reality tv producer Mark Burnett." Each episode of the show will apparently feature 300-500 of Osteen's faithful (members of his Lakewood Church in Houston, TX) Read More …
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A Free Mainline Seminary Education (#0577)
Recently Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary announced that they will become the first mainline seminary to charge no tuition for "students in its master’s degree programs in divinity, marriage and family therapy and religion beginning in 2015." Rather than cutting costs or quality, the school intends to finance this initiative by increasing its endowment and decreasing the number of students admitted (moving from 150 to 130). So What? Many students begin their seminary Read More …
Blurry Lines (#0573)
Francine Hardaway is "an experienced marketing strategist with special expertise in startup companies," a "geek-to-human translator," and the co-founder of Stealthmode Partners. In a recent blog post she shared how to make your business more successful: The root cause of any business failure is the neglect of a simple, ancient Buddhist idea: the line where I end and you begin is blurry. As the Beatles used to sing, “I am you and you are me together.” As the founder of a business, the line Read More …
A Survey About my Theological Studies (#0565)
Yesterday I received an e-mail request to complete an Alumni Survey. The survey, sent by the university from which I received my doctoral degree, is a standard instrument provided by the Association of Theological Schools (ATS). The survey included a significant number of questions related to the usefulness of coursework for my current position and my overall experience. Since I now work full-time in higher education, I found many of the questions intriguing, Read More …
Wisdom from the Class of ’42 (#0560)
David Brooks begins his recent New York Times article, "The Life Report," by asking readers over the age of 70 to consider sharing a reflection about their life so far. He then shares wisdom from the Yale class of 1942. On the occasion of their 50th reunion members of the class wrote short autobiographical reflections. Brooks summarizes: The most common lament in this collection is from people who worked at the same company all their lives and now realize how boring they Read More …
Social Media Interaction with Students (#0552)
Earlier this week Slant33, a part of Barefoot Ministries, posted the responses of three youth ministry experts to the question: "Where do you draw the line on social media interaction with students? Why?" The responses vary widely: D. Scott Miller, director of the Division of Youth and Young Adult Ministry of the Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore, has a personal policy to never friend anyone under the age of eighteen on Facebook. Additionally, he believes this is the best policy Read More …
Welcoming Doubts & Questions in Youth Ministry (#0540)
"How to Welcome Doubts and Questions" is perhaps at once the most interesting and most relevant title for a youth ministry blog post that I have encountered in quite some time. The article, written by Youth Specialties staff, list six ways that youth ministry leaders can create an environment that welcomes doubts and questions. This "how to" list fails to mention what I have found to be the most helpful piece of advice on the topic: there are many aspects of the Christian faith for Read More …
God’s Role in Your Halloween Candy Consumption (#0533)
"If God knows, will you eat that Halloween candy?" is a question worth answering, and the title of Cathy Lynn Grossman's USA Today article. As a means of answering that question she explores recent research: According to lead author Kristin Laurin of University of Waterloo, Canada, "This is the first empirical evidence that simple reminders of God can diminish some types of self-regulation, such as pursuing one's goals, yet can improve others, such as resisting temptation." So Read More …
Social Media Tools for Churches 101 (#0497)
Alys Drake, communications manager for Howell Marketing Strategies, recently wrote a guest commentary in the Commercial Appeal that provides churches with a "social media primer." She includes six basics: Blogs Twitter Flickr and Tumblr Facebook Geolocation (e.g. Foursquare) Other (YouTube, Ustream, Vimeo, podcasting, QR codes, Google+) So What? In the article, Drake states, "Information is spread at lightning speed via social networks like Facebook and Twitter in a way Read More …
Top 10 Characteristics of a Healthy Youth Ministry (#0462)
Kenda Creasy Dean, an ordained United Methodist pastor and Professor of Youth, Church and Culture at Princeton Theological Seminary, recently blogged about the characteristics of a healthy youth ministry. Her Top 10 list: Jesus Lots and lots of parents who are growing in, and living out, their love of God and neighbor (and who are aware that this matters to their kids) A senior pastor who is crazy about young people A supportive congregation where people actively seek God and Read More …