“Whenever I see a Manyano woman, I see a woman who has the world in her hands and has the power to make things change because of the power that is prayer”. - Stella Shumbe

“As a Manyano, you listen to painful journeys and experiences of people … They talk about abuse at home, unemployment, children who are reckless and all the sensitive things you can think of … We come together to share our pain and struggles.’ - Nobuntu Madwe

Lihle Ngcobozi, herself the progeny of three generations of Manyano women, takes an original, fresh look at the meaning of the Manyano. Between male-dominated struggle narratives and Western feminist misreadings, this church-based women's organisation has become a mere footnote to history.

Long overlooked as the juggernaut of black women’s organising that it has been and continues to be, the Manyano has immense historical and cultural meaning in black communities across the country. To this day, it is still evolving to meet the changing needs of black South Africans. Here, the Manyano women speak for themselves, in an African feminist meditation rendered by one of their own.

Keeping Religious Institutions Secure explores the unique vulnerabilities that churches, synagogues, and mosques face in regards to security, making them attractive to criminals who see them as easy targets. The text illustrates why all places of worship should think about security and the types of breaches that can drive people away. The book focuses on the most frequent security concerns experienced by houses of worship, including embezzlement, vandalism, assault, hate crime, and in rare cases, an active shooter-and how to help prevent them from occurring. Beginning with an overview of the basic security concepts and principles that can enhance the security of any religious facility, it then delves deeply into the particular security concerns of houses of worship, including the use of volunteers, protecting religious leaders, ensuring safety for children and teens, interacting with local law enforcement, handling the media, and much more.

Occupy Religion introduces readers to the growing role of religion in the Occupy Movement and asks provocative questions about how people of faith can work for social justice. From the temperance movement to the Civil Rights movement, churches have played key roles in important social movements, and Occupy Religion shows this role is no less critical today.

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.

As religions grow and evolve, they adapt to their current circumstances, with new ideologies often deviating dramatically from their roots. The variety of religious institutions in modern society necessitates a focus on diversity and inclusiveness in the interactions between organizations of different religions, cultures, and viewpoints. Gender and Diversity Issues in Religious-Based Institutions and Organizations elucidates the impact of gender identity and race within religious-based institutions and organizations. Policymakers, academicians, researchers, government officials, and religious leaders will find this text useful in furthering their research related to inclusiveness and diversity in their respective roles. This essential reference source builds on the available literature on gender and diversity issues in religious-based settings and contexts with chapters relating to race relations in the Churches of Christ, the role of women in religious movements in Latin America, gay-straight alliances at religious-based colleges and universities, and lessons and insights for religious institutions and faculty.

In the fall of 2007, the author thought he would head south for the winter with his RV and find a nice place to take a vacation from the cold. He had done volunteer work in the past and thought he might visit a couple of orphanages he had heard about from friends of his and see if he could be of assistance. It wasn't long before he was deeply involved with a group of fifty children 24-7 playing dad to many, and sharing in some events that were incredibly funny, and too many times heartbreaking. Reading this story will give you a feel for the politics, the reality of corrupt churches and the politics played with unfortunate children in that country we all know so little about south of the border. After returning for three winters to the southern Sonoran Desert to be with the huge family he had become a part of, bizarre events and political moves by the churches involved and the government bring the completely true story to a climax.