New Pastor, New Parish
New Pastor, New Parish

Author: James G. Cobb

Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers

Published: 2005-03-21

Total Pages: 95

ISBN-13: 1597521264

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When a newly called pastor enters a congregation, the first weeks and months are times of careful navigation and many hidden land mines. This veteran pastor shares his stories and insights with others who begin this ministerial journey. A delightful book, this volume is a must readÓ for seminarians and all pastors who enter a new call. The reader will find helpful hints and wonderful appendices to help a pastor through such a perilous time. Issues around entryÓ set the tone for one's tenure. This is a book for clergy gatherings, conferences, peer groups, and workshops with helpful questions for reflection after each chapter.

An Episcopal Dictionary of the Church
An Episcopal Dictionary of the Church

Author: Robert Boak Slocum

Publisher: Church Publishing, Inc.

Published: 2000-01-01

Total Pages: 591

ISBN-13: 0898697018

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A comprehensive, quick reference for all Episcopalians, both lay and ordained. This thoroughly researched, highly readable resource contains more than 3,000 clearly entries about the history, structure, liturgy, and theology of the Episcopal Church—and the larger Christian church worldwide. The editors have also provided a helpful bibliography of key reference works and additional background materials. “This tool belongs on the shelf of just about anyone who cares for, works in or with, or even wonders about the Episcopal Church.”—The Episcopal New Yorker

The New Parish
The New Parish

Author: Paul Sparks

Publisher: InterVarsity Press

Published: 2014-04-04

Total Pages: 212

ISBN-13: 0830895965

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Headlines rage with big stories about big churches. But tucked away in neighborhoods throughout North America is a profound work of hope quietly unfolding as the gospel takes root in the context of a place. The future of the church is local, connected to the struggles of the people and even to the land itself.

New Church, New Altar
New Church, New Altar

Author: Paul Turner

Publisher: Liturgical Press

Published: 2021-09-27

Total Pages: 192

ISBN-13: 0814666604

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2022 Catholic Media Association honorable mention in liturgy The dedication of a new church or altar is a rare event that too few Catholic faithful and clergy are privileged to experience. When it happens, people have questions about the history, spirituality, and practical aspects of this amazing liturgy. This book by pastor and liturgical scholar, Fr. Paul Turner, will especially aid parish leadership in celebrating this rite with greater understanding. In addition to the dedication of a new parish church, this book covers all of the other instances from this part of the Roman Pontifical: Laying the foundation stone, dedicating a church already in use, dedicating a new altar inside an older church, blessing a church to be used as a chapel or oratory, blessing an altar for a similar purpose, and the blessing of a chalice and paten. Essential for any serious student of the liturgy and helpful to those planning any of these celebrations, New Church, New Altar will expand the reader’s appreciation of these unusual liturgies so beautifully reformed after the Second Vatican

Part-Time is Plenty
Part-Time is Plenty

Author: G. Jeffrey MacDonald

Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press

Published: 2020-04-07

Total Pages: 182

ISBN-13: 1611649935

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Churches experiencing numerical and financial decline may dread the day when they can no longer afford a full-time pastor. Freeing up funds that would go to a full-time salary sure would help the budgetmaybe even enough to turn things aroundbut is it even possible to run effective ministries with just a half- or quarter-time professional? Journalist and part-time pastor Jeffrey MacDonald says yeschurches can grow more vibrant than ever, tapping into latent energy and undiscovered gifts, revitalizing worship, and engaging in more effective ministry with the community.Readers get a much-needed playbook forhelping congregations to thrive with a part-time ministry model. They learn to see the model in a new light: to stop viewing part-time as a problem to be eradicated and to instead embrace it as a divine gift that facilitates a higher level of lay engagement, responsibility, playfulness, and creativity.

A Pastor's Toolbox
A Pastor's Toolbox

Author: Paul A. Holmes

Publisher: Liturgical Press

Published: 2014-01-28

Total Pages: 192

ISBN-13: 0814638333

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Today’s parish leaders are expected to be holy and prayerful spiritual guides, great preachers and compassionate confessors, but also to make important decisions in key areas like finance, budgeting, hiring and firing, fundraising, risk management, relationship-building, and more—often with virtually no transition or training. And with all the requisite education in philosophy and theology they must provide future pastors, in addition to formation in priestly spirituality and pastoral care, seminaries can do little to prepare priests to deal with the difficult temporal issues pastors face. A Pastor’s Toolbox is designed to help fill that void. It is loaded with valuable information, insights, and practical tools that pastors need in order to begin handling the complexities of parish management in the twenty-first century.The book is an outgrowth of The Toolbox for Pastoral Management, a nationally recognized joint project of The National Leadership Roundtable on Church Management and Seton Hall University. The Leadership Roundtable is a nonprofit organization of Catholic lay leaders, religious, and clergy working together to promote excellence and best practices in the management, finances, communications, and human resources development of the Catholic Church in the U.S. through the greater incorporation of the expertise of the laity. Learn more at www.TheLeadershipRoundtable.org.

Surviving Ministry
Surviving Ministry

Author: Michael E. Osborne

Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers

Published: 2016-05-06

Total Pages: 126

ISBN-13: 1498280293

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Being a pastor has its rewards and pleasures. But churches can be unsafe places. They are filled with broken, imperfect people. Many ministers of the gospel walk into a church naive about the potential hazards of their vocation. They are vulnerable to difficult people, unresolved conflict, incompatible visions, hidden agendas, mission drift, and sin--their own and that of others. Other pastors feel trapped in a ministry hurricane and don't know what to do. They feel like failures. They're thinking about leaving the ministry. They are looking for help and hope--not from an "expert" detached from the real world of ministry--but from someone who has suffered through church hurricanes and lived to share the story. Moreover, they need to know they are not alone. Surviving Ministry: How to Weather the Storms of Church Leadership includes the author's own story as well as true stories from other pastors who have been in the eye of the hurricane. Discouraged ministers looking for biblical, practical, gospel-centered advice for storm proofing their churches, homes, and hearts have found a friend. Surviving Ministry will equip them to stay resilient before, during, and after seasons of difficulty.

Broken and Blessed
Broken and Blessed

Author: Fr. Josh Johnson

Publisher: Ascension Press

Published: 2018-08-27

Total Pages: 148

ISBN-13: 1945179678

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Only 2 in 10 Americans under 30 believe attending a church is important or worthwhile. Well over half of young adults raised in the Church have dropped out with many having a strong anti-Church stance, many even believing the Church does more harm than good.Fr. Josh Johnson was one of these people. In Broken and Blessed he tackles the harsh realities facing the Church in the 21st century. With charity and courage he speaks to his own generation of Catholic “Millennials,” who often feel their needs and concerns are not being addressed by the Church, or who simply do not believe the Catholic Faith has any relevance to their lives. Using his own experiences, both as a former struggling young Catholic and as a priest, Fr. Josh offers an inspiring witness of how he came to know God, rather than just knowing about him—and presents practical ways for us to truly know God as well. Broken and Blessed: Addresses head-on Millennials’ most pressing issues with the Catholic Faith Presents powerful and inspiring stories from Fr. Josh’s own faith journey Shows how one can truly encounter Jesus in a personal way Offers practical insights on how to overcome habitual sins Discusses the nature of prayer, as well as the challenges to prayer and how to overcome them