On one of my summer holiday Sundays this year, I went to church. Actually that is quite unusual for me, for more often than not the places where we go for holiday are not in easy reach of a church where the language is known to us. However, since we ...
In the seven year period 1998-2005, half a million people stopped going to church in England, but in the longer period (nine years) 1989 to 1998, 1 million stopped. So in this latest period we have seen fewer stop than might have been expected. It appears that we are pulling ...
I can still remember him saying it. It seemed mildly amusing at the time. “And the ninth beatitude is ‘blessed are the balanced for they are right.’” I thought it clever enough to repeat on a few occasions. It only struck me a few years ago how exegetically outrageous it ...
A Churchless Faith (SPCK: 2002) is a popular notion, a catchy title for a book and the lived reality of a growing number of committed Christian people. But it is in fact fundamentally and theologically an oxymoron. Five years after interviewing church leavers for the book Churchless Faith we went ...
This article argues that a social model of the Trinity provides a rich resource that speaks to the relationship between emerging and established church. To make this argument, a practical theology methodology is used. This allows reflection on lived ministry experience today, specifically the development of a multi-congregational model at ...
Jane is well-known for her skill as a piano player and arranger of music, (which she does semi-professionally); Kevin played football to a high standard at amateur level; Jason is a primary school teacher whose work a recent Ofsted inspection at his school described as “outstanding”; Millie is a well-organised ...
Some friends came to visit recently. Dave and Cathy (not their real names) started their own business in the back bedroom of their home, but recently took the big decision to move out into rented office space. I asked them why they had done this, especially since it had such ...
The following article represents one church’s approach to corporate prayer. We recognize that not all churches would want to travel this particular route, but we publish the story to provoke readers into reflection on their own prayer habits and those of the churches they lead. Ed. In setting a new ...
Three recent events caused me to reflect on the connection between performance skills and the leading of worship. First was a conversation with a friend, an Anglo-Catholic priest with a true heart for evangelism, who spent most of his working life as a professional actor before being ordained. Over dinner, ...
This is an unusual item for Ministry Today. It is the report of a ‘staff college’ for Baptist senior ministers (and a few Anglicans) at Mulberry House 26-30 June 2006, attended by our Chairman. We publish it because we believe it has relevance to churches of all sizes and raises ...
Let’s be honest: Elinor’s death was and is a tragedy. She was only in her early 60s. By rights she should have had many more years to live. But she didn’t. She died on the afternoon of Friday 1st September. Let’s not pfaff around with all this sentimental nonsense that ...
IVP has established a great reputation for its dictionaries. Its latest biblical dictionary, The Dictionary of the Old Testament: Historical Books (IVP, Leicester 2006; 1060pp; £32.99 hardback; ISBN 0978 1 84474 094 9) edited by Bill T Arnold and H G M Williamson, is a superb production and an absolute ...
You are reading Issue 38 of Ministry Today, published in November 2006.
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