To commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the restoration of the diaconate as a permanent and stable order of ministry in the United States, the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA) at Georgetown University undertook a contemporary study of the diaconate in the United States. Building on studies completed in 1981 and 1995 as well as annual research that CARA has conducted for the USCCB since 2005, CARA designed a comprehensive study of deacons, their wives, diaconate directors, and bishops to explore all aspects of this ministry. This book explores trends in the diaconate as well as current and emerging opportunities and challenges in the ministry. Deacons and their wives, diaconate directors, and bishops share insights about how those trends impact diaconal ministry today and into the future.

"These who have turned the world upside down have come here too." (Acts 17:6) When Paul and Silas came to Thessalonica, they changed the community. How? By collaborating with God to bring his kingdom on earth. Will you collaborate on God's kingdom work in your community? If you're ready to see God move in all areas-business, education, media, arts, healthcare, spiritual growth, and more-this is the book for you. Leadership expert Reggie McNeal offers eight signature practices for leaders who want to partner with God and others for kingdom growth. Readers will gain practical advice to help people experience life as God intends.

How to More Effectively Leverage the Leadership Gifts and Abilities of Women in Your Church What would your church look like in the future if it were to maximize the dormant gifts of the women God has brought there? In Developing Female Leaders, Kadi Cole, twenty-year veteran in leadership and people development, offers a practical strategy to help church and organizational leaders craft cultures that facilitate the development of women as volunteer and staff leaders. Using interviews and surveys of more than one thousand women in key church and organizational roles, combined with current research, the author has created eight easy-to-implement "best practices" that help accelerate a woman's organizational contribution. Thorough appendices and references add even more guidance for setting vision, milestones, and goals. Developing Female Leaders is a one-of-a-kind resource for identifying what is missing today in your church to help it flourish in the future.

First published in 1984. The Victorian clergy occupied a uniquely prominent position in English society. Their church generated continual and often rancorous debate and they played an important part in the local provision of education, welfare and justice. Politically, also, they were never negligible. But, while in 1830 the clergy still constituted England's largest and wealthiest professional body, by 1914 their position was increasingly marginal. This title examines these changes and the issues in which the clergy was facing during this transition. The Victorian Clergy will be of particular interest to students of history.

"Lee probes far beyond the rags-to-riches tale, though Bishop Jakes'riches remain. He devotes much of the book to what he sees as Bishop Jakes' dual nature: businessman and preacher."--"Dallas Morning News"

"A clearly written, thoughtful interrogation of the financially successful, though morally suspect, merger of business and religion achieved by this African American preacher-millionaire."
--"Choice," recommended

"Shayne Lee, an assistant professor of Sociology at Tulane University, has provided us with the first critical examination of the most influential African American preacher of our time. A socio-cultural biography of sorts, the author examines T.D. Jakes rise to prominence from the hills of West Virginia to multimillion-dollar religious corporate enterprise. But this book does more than follow the development of T.D. Jakes and his ministry. As the author puts it, Jakes becomes 'a prism through which the reader may learn more about contemporary American religion.' Lee contends that Jakes is an embodiment of traditional American cultural ideals and the postmodern features that inform what it means to be American in this contemporary moment."
--"Pop Matters"

"Most of the public knows about the Bishop T. D. Jakes who graced the cover of "Time" magazine, preached "Woman, Thou Art Loosed!" and filled stadiums across the country with throngs of weeping fans. But how many know about the Jakes who boasted that he didn't have enough garage space for his luxury cars, said Jesus was rich, and once tried to evict the owners of a home he had just purchased though they only had a week to pay off their debts? That portrait of Jakes comes courtesy of "T. D. Jakes: America'sNew Preacher," Shayne Lee, a sociologist and professor at Tulane University in New Orleans, asks hard questions about Jakes' ministry."
--"Atlanta Journal-Constitution"

"Jakes has risen from poverty in the mining towns of West Virginia to a multimillion-dollar faith industry based in Dallas, benefiting from the controversial trend toward prosperity religion. Lee examines the rags-to-riches life of Jakes in the broader context of changes in how Americans view religion."
--"Booklist"

"Lee offers an intriguing exploration of Jakes's popularity. His entrepreneurial spirit and multimedia approach have endeared him to millions, while his lavish lifestyle and focus on Christians' right to material prosperity continue to spark criticism. Lee avoids heavy jargon and effectively pares his study down to the essentials, making this an accessible portrait."
--"Publishers Weekly"

"Places an important contemporary African American religious leader in the context of recent trends in American religion in general and also of certain traditions of the Black Church in the African American experience. Lee's description and analysis of the phenomenon that is T.D. Jakes helps us gain a greater understanding of contemporary American religion and of African American religion as at once patently distinct but also quintessentially American."
--Milmon Harrison, Ph.D., author of "Righteous Riches: The Word of Faith Movement in Contemporary African American Religion"

T.D. Jakes has emerged as one of the most prolific spiritual leaders of our time. He is pastor of one of the largest churches in the country, CEO of a multimillion dollar empire, the host of a television program, author of a dozenbestsellers, and the producer of two Grammy Award-nominated CDs and three critically acclaimed plays. In 2001 "Time" magazine featured Jakes on the cover and asked: Is Jakes the next Billy Graham?

T.D. Jakes draws on extensive research, including interviews with numerous friends and colleagues of Jakes, to examine both Jakes's rise to prominence and proliferation of a faith industry bent on producing spiritual commodities for mass consumption. Lee frames Jakes and his success as a metaphor for changes in the Black Church and American Protestantism more broadly, looking at the ramifications of his rise--and the rise of similar preachers--for the way in which religion is practiced in this country, how social issues are confronted or ignored, and what is distinctly "American" about Jakes's emergence. While offering elements of biography, the work also seeks to shed light on important aspects of the contemporary American and African American religious experience.

Lee contends that Jakes's widespread success symbolizes a religious realignment in which mainline churches nationwide are in decline, while innovative churches are experiencing phenomenal growth. He emphasizes the "American-ness" of Jakes's story and reveals how preachers like Jakes are drawing followers by delivering therapeutic and transformative messages and providing spiritual commodities that are more in tune with postmodern sensibilities.

As the first work to critically examine Bishop Jakes's life and message, T.D. Jakes is an important contribution to contemporary American religion as well as popular culture.

In Pope Pius XII on the Economic Order, economist Rupert J. Ederer explores the views of Eugenio Pacelli, who served as pope during the tumultuous period of 1939 to 1958. Prodigious in his output, Pius XII produced 40 encyclicals, 19 highly regarded Christmas messages, and series of addresses to groups and organizations, laying the groundwork for the economic views of his successors. According to Ederer, it "is safe to say that no Roman pontiff has addressed the problems confronting the social order as frequently and as widely outside the formal structure of encyclicals as Pius XII. This applies in a special way to his masterful and prophetic Christmas Messages." Through the study of Pius XII's encyclicals and Christmas messages, Ederer examines this important pontiff's views on economics and the social order, the world of work, agriculture and farmers, food and population, the middle class, and the world of money and finance. Students and scholars interested in the history of Pius XII's papacy will find in Ederer's analysis an insightful study of Catholic economic thought during an era when nations representing the forces of capitalism, fascism, and Communism were joined in a fierce battle for dominance.

Many congregations are experiencing significant change both within and beyond their walls, and both members and leaders feel a sense of loss in the midst of these changes. In the midst of change, loss, and grief, congregations yearn for leadership--typically with differing expectations of what constitutes effective leadership in response to their needs, hopes, and priorities. At the same time, congregations resist leadership. After all, leadership assumes those who follow will be open to more change. Strategic Leadership for a Change provides congregational leaders with new insights and tools for understanding the relationships among change, attachment, loss, and grief. It also helps to facilitate the process of grieving, comprehend the centrality of vision, and demonstrate theological reflection in the midst of change, loss, grief, and attaching anew. All this occurs as the congregation aligns its vision with God's and understands processes of change as processes of fulfillment.

Pope Francis: His Life and Thought paints a compelling picture of a truly remarkable man, showing the evolution of his theological ideas in detail until his election as pope in 2013. Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio was a highly unusual candidate for the papacy for two main reasons: the 'pope from far away' is the first from the Americas and the first former Jesuit to have been elected. Bergoglio's theological principles have been profoundly shaped by his Argentinean heritage and Jesuit spiritual formation. The author also reveals that his thought was deeply a ected by his simple Argentinean upbringing and fearless work in the slums of Santiago and Buenos Aires as a young Jesuit, and later as a bishop and a cardinal. Bergoglio has consistently emphasised the importance of alleviating the suffering of the poor, following the teaching of Vatican II, and in keeping with his own unflinching morality. This volume reveals Pope Francis as an exceptionally humble and altruistic man, doctrinally conservative, and engaged less in politics than in the struggle to bring the Church to the margins of society. It will be of great interest to any reader who wishes to know more about this inspiring individual. Mario I. Aguilar is a theologian from Chile, now Professor of Religion and Politics at the University of St Andrews in Scotland. He has written extensively on the Church in Latin America, Africa and Asia, including Cardenal Raul Silva Henriquez: Presencia en la vida de Chile 1907-1999 and A Social History of the Catholic Church in Chile (9 volumes). He is a Camaldolese Benedictine Oblate and has lived in Scotland for the past 20 years. "This reflection draws upon Aguilar's own experiences as a Latin American theologian and it engages directly with many of the Spanish sources that shed light upon the life and thought of Jorge Bergoglio. He] cuts a swath through fact and myth as he charts the new pope's formative experiences in detail. . . . Food for thought for anyone seeking to understand what has made him the pontiff he is." Prof. Gerard Mannion, Amaturo Professor in Catholic Studies, Georgetown University. "Pope Francis has already provided a breath of fresh air, and this welcome and timely book explains why. Anyone who thought God had no surprises up his sleeve will discover here how this new leader has been formed to be a challenging and transforming presence both in his own Church and further afield." Rt Revd Prof. N.T. Wright, Former Bishop of Durham, Research Professor of New Testament and Early Christianity, University of St Andrews.

Jong Hun Joo offers a model of how both solid biblical understanding and effective practice of worship can be realised in churches today by exploring the theology and practice of Matthew Henry (1662-1714). Matthew Henry is one of the most famous biblical commentators in the English-speaking world. He was, however, also a pastor who was liturgical in negotiating the political and religious landmines of his day. This all but overlooked aspect of Henry's biography and writings is both a window into his life and times, and an insightful view into the pastoral dimensions of Christian rituals and practices in the home and church. Joo discerns how Henry understood and practised English Presbyterian worship as an example of Reformed worship in his context and suggests how contemporary churches can appropriately develop and articulate their own worship in their own contexts, making the case for worship renewal.

With the Beatification of Monsenor Oscar Romero, our current Pope Francis has asked theologians to consider how we might allow for an expanded definition for martyrdom in the 21st century. Remembering Oscar Romero and the Martyrs of El Salvador responds to that challenge. How do we name Oscar Romero, Rutilio Grande, the U.S. churchwomen, and the Jesuits and two laywomen killed at the UCA as martyrs? Is it a new category with a new definition? Or is it simply an amplification of what we have long considered Christian witness? While there is a long history of martyrdom in Latin America, this book elaborates on four case studies for martyrdom focusing on the reality in El Salvador: Rutilio Grande, S.J. killed in 1977, Archbishop Oscar Romero killed in 1980, the U.S. churchwomen killed in 1980, and the six members of the UCA Jesuit community and their two female collaborators killed in 1989. Insights from the work of Jon Sobrino illuminate these case studies. First, his Christological insights from Jesus the Liberator and Christ the Liberator are used to analyze the reality of martyrdom, particularly in reference to the terms martyr, crucified people, and martyred people. Second, his more recent articles challenge a strict interpretation of the traditional definition of martyrdom, especially focusing on his terms Jesuanic martyr, a martyr for justice, and even a more polemic suggestion of an anonymous Christian martyr. Finally, the book concludes by combining Sobrino's insights and the reality of martyrdom today, updated with the recent scholarship in Romero's beatification process which attempts to show Romero as a martyr. In the end, the book hopes to offer some suggestions for an expanded definition of martyrdom in the 21st century. By responding to the call of Pope Francis for an expanded definition, the reality of martyrdom in Latin America might be better understood and applied to the universal church.

Online churches are Internet-based Christian communities, pursuing worship, discussion, friendship, support, proselytization, and other key religious goals through computer-mediated communication. The first examples appeared in the mid-1980s, but this genre of online activity has been revolutionized over the last decade by considerable institutional investment and the rise of new low-cost social media platforms. Hundreds of thousands of people are now involved with online congregations, generating new kinds of ritual, leadership, and community as well as new networks of global influence.

Creating Church Online is the first large-scale sociological investigation of this area, offering a significant and timely advance in the study of religion, media, and culture. Five ethnographic case studies are presented, based primarily in the UK, USA, and Australasia, providing levels of detail, scope, and variety previously unexplored by researchers in this field. Comparative analysis of these case studies demonstrates the emergence of intriguing new hybrids of digital, local, and institutional religion, reflecting major shifts in contemporary patterns of religious commitment. Author Tim Hutchings constructs a rich account of the culture and practice of five online churches, emphasizing worship, leadership, and community and the relationship between online and everyday life. Through such in-depth analysis, this book explores the significance and impact of online churchgoing in the religious and social lives of participants, as well as the relationship between online and everyday life, in search of a new theoretical framework to map religious users engagement with new media."

Archbishop Romero and Spiritual Leadership in the Modern World presents a contemporary and integrated understanding of one of the most remarkable pastoral leaders of our time. This bishop, Oscar Romero of El Salvador, experienced deeply the overwhelming sufferings of the Salvadoran people, as well as those within himself. He cried out in vain to Presidents Carter and Reagan, "no more arms to El Salvador," but his pleas were not heard at that time. Knowing that he would soon be murdered, Romero promised that he would rise again in the Salvadoran people. This book illustrates how this is happening and conclusively demonstrates that by respecting transparency and with dogged perseverance, a nonviolent public leader can become an influential leader, even in times of the most savage repression and marginalization. Archbishop Romero accomplished precisely that through determination, courage, and honing his public skills, while simultaneously conducting himself in deeply spiritual ways.

William Wykeham was an extraordinary figure whose rapid ascent from peasant to chancellor bucked contemporary trends. Wykeham's administrative talents ensured that he became bishop of Winchester, holder of one of the richest sees in Christendom and Chancellor of England under Edward III and Richard II. "Everything was done by him and nothing was done without him" wrote the contemporary chronicler, Jean Froissart. His lasting contributions to society arose from two passions, architecture and education. He made effective use of the rich revenues of his see to indulge both. He rose in the service of King Edward III having masterminded the royal building works at Windsor Castle. His own building projects included episcopal palaces, colleges, churches and Winchester Cathedral. His interest in education resulted in the foundation of two iconic educational institutions - the public school Winchester College and New College Oxford Much of this has been recognised.Virginia Davis highlights Wykeham's extraordinarily commitment to good governance and his extensive involvement in English politics between c1360-1402. Wykeham has been recognised as a key government figure in Edward III's reign from c. 1360 but his contribution to politics and government throughout the turbulent reign of Richard II and beyond, has not hitherto been fully appreciated. This book offers a fascinating biography of one of the key-figures of late fourteenth-century England, an acquaintance of Chaucer and a man who wielded immense political power. It covers in detail his fall from political power in 1376-77 and his rehabilitation. Wykeham - even when not holding political office - was a figure to whom the decision-makers of late fourteenth century England listened.

This book examines the potential of conducting studies in comparative hagiology, through parallel literary and historical analyses of spiritual life writings pertaining to distinct religious contexts. In particular, it focuses on a comparative analysis of the early sources on the medieval Christian Saint Francis of Assisi (1182-1226) and the Tibetan Buddhist Milarepa (c. 1052-1135), up to and including the so-called 'standard versions' of their life stories written by Bonaventure of Bagnoregio (1221-1274) and Tsangnyoen Heruka (1452-1507) respectively. The book thus demonstrates how in the social and religious contexts of both 1200s Italy and 1400s Tibet, narratives of the lives, deeds and teachings of two individuals recognized as spiritual champions were seen as the most effective means to promote spiritual, doctrinal and political agendas. Therefore, as well being highly relevant to those studying hagiographical sources, this book will be of interest to scholars working across the fields of religion and the comparative study of religious phenomena, as well as history and literature in the pre-modern period.

The Church, Authority, and Foucault addresses the problem of the Church's enmeshment with sovereign power, which can lead to marginalization. Breaking new ground, Ogden uses Foucault's approach to power and knowledge to interpret the church leader's significance as the guardian of knowledge. This can become privileged knowledge, under the spell of sovereign power, and with the complicity of clergy and laity in search of sovereigns. Inevitably, such a culture leads to a sense of entitlement for leaders and conformity for followers. All in the name of obedience. The Church needs to change in order to fulfil its vocation. Instead of a monarchy, what about Church as an open space of freedom? This book, then, is a theological enterprise which cultivates practices of freedom for the sake of the other. This involves thinking differently by exploring catalysts for change, which include critique, space, imagination, and wisdom. In the process, Ogden uses a range of sources, analysing discourse, gossip, ritual, territory, masculinity, and pastoral power. In all, the work of Michel Foucault sets the tone for a fresh ecclesiological critique that will appeal to theologians and clergy alike.

These essays explore team-based parish leadership theologically, sociologically, and pastorally in a variety of cultures and circumstances. The result is an extended conversation, both practical and deeply reflective, emerging from the collaboration of theologians, social researchers, organizational development specialists, and pastoral ministers. Collaborative Parish Leadership draws on the experience, strengths, challenges, and insights of the long-term pastoral-academic partnerships out of which it has grown. These include "Project INSPIRE," a pastoral team-formation project sponsored by Loyola University and the Archdiocese of Chicago and funded by the Lilly Endowment, Inc., as part of its Sustaining Pastoral Excellence initiative. Another partner initiative is the international pastoral minister exchange "Crossing Over," involving several Catholic dioceses in northwest Germany and based at Ruhr Universitat, Bochum. Authors of these essays have also been involved in Emerging Models of Pastoral Leadership, the Congregational Studies Team's Engaged Scholars fellowship (both also Lilly Endowment funded projects), and other projects. Collaborative Parish Leadership employs practical-theological methods, rooted in pastoral experience and integrated with scholarly reflection. Opening essays deal with the current situation of U.S. parishes, the parish consultancy model of Project INSPIRE, and a case study of several parishes that benefited from the project. The following chapters present comparative case studies of collaborative leadership in various settings: multicultural parishes in different parts of the U.S., parish clusters consolidating into single parishes using very different processes, and parishes in Chicago and Mexico City meeting similar urban challenges. Three authors associated with CrossingOver and its participating dioceses assess the general state of parish reorganization in Germany, and the potential of the unique approach to team leadership taken in the French archdiocese of Poitiers. The final chapters reflect on the theology of parish leadership from pastoral and systematic perspectives, and on the future needs and possibilities of collaborative approaches. Overall, Collaborative Parish Leadership engages and challenges academic and pastoral leaders in diverse social and ecclesial situations, suggests multiple models for cultivating collaboration, builds connections between collaborative action and theological development.

This book attempts to inspire both church leaders and lay people through serious discussion of strategies as to how to restore the church in the midst of a struggling and declining age. The author identifies the factors that have contributed to the decline of the church. Choe utilizes his experience working with a struggling ministry to propose twenty-four ideas and programs for the restoration of the church. He calls specifically on church leaders to inspire others to come together and rebuild the church. This book finds a decisive solution between Sunday pastor and Everyday pastor.

Missio Alliance Essential Reading List of 2016 In our quest to renew the church, Christians have walked through seeker-friendly, emergent, missional, and other movements to develop new expressions of the body of Christ. Now in the post-Christian world in North America we're asking the question again: Is there a way to be the church that engages the world, not by judgment nor accommodation but by becoming the good news in our culture? In Faithful Presence, noted pastor and scholar David Fitch offers a new vision for the witness of the church in the world. He argues that we have lost the intent and practice of the sacramental ways of the historic church, and he recovers seven disciplines that have been with us since the birth of the church. Through numerous examples and stories, he demonstrates how these revolutionary disciplines can help the church take shape in and among our neighborhoods, transform our way of life in the world, and advance the kingdom. This book will help you re-envision church, what you do in the name of church, and the way you lead a church. It recovers a future for the church that takes us beyond Christendom. Embrace the call to reimagine the church as the living embodiment of Christ, dwelling in and reflecting God's faithful presence to a world that desperately needs more of it.

Fr. Thomas Reese has observed that American Catholic dioceses are simultaneously mysterious and essential to the institutional health and vitality of American Catholicism. In recent years, as American Catholicism increasingly finds itself embroiled in scandal and conflict, this mysteriousness has given way to feelings of suspicion, frustration, and even contempt. How can American dioceses navigate this complex and often hostile social, cultural, and political environment? Several decades ago, J. Michael Sproule invited rhetorical and communication scholars to focus on institutions to increase our understanding of the profound role complex organizations play in contemporary life, assess the purpose and significance of communication in pursuit of their missions, and "give a human face to the otherwise institutional voice of corporate suasion." Following Sproule, this book defines a new field called diocesan institutional rhetoric that strives to transform dioceses from structures characterized by closure and adversity into sites of hope-full, response-able, Spirit-led opportunity. Today, rhetorical and communication issues emerge everywhere in American Catholicism. Drawing together relevant literature in Catholic theology, philosophy of communication, and corporate communication scholarship-as well as over twelve years' experience working as a communication professional in a diocesan chancery-this book helps diocesan leaders, scholars, and observers to think differently and more fruitfully about the future of American Catholic ecclesial leadership.