Models of the Church

Author: Avery Dulles
Publisher: Image
ISBN: 0385505450
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 290

Book Description
There is today a dramatic reexamination of structure, authority, dogma -- indeed, every aspect of the life of the Church is held up to scrutiny. Welcoming this as a sign of vitality, Avery Dulles has carefully studied the writings of contemporary Protestant and Catholic ecclesiologists and sifted out six major approaches, or "models," through which the Church's character can be understood: as Institution, Mystical Communion, Sacrament, Herald, Servant, and, in a recent addition to the book, as Community of Disciples. A balanced theology, he concludes, must incorporate the major affirmations of each. "The method of models or types," observes Cardinal Dulles, "can have great value in helping people to get beyond the limitations of their own particular outlook and to enter into fruitful conversation with others... Such conversation is obviously essential if ecumenism is to get beyond its present impasses." This new edition includes a new Appendix and Preface by the author.

Deacons

Author: Henry Webb
Publisher: B&H Publishing Group
ISBN: 1433668947
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 122

Book Description
After nineteen years in print and over 200,000 copies sold, Broadman & Holman is publishing an updated edition of Deacons: Servant Models in the Church. Henry Webb deals with every aspect of the roles and offices of deacons in the church, including the deacon's marriage, wife, children, family life, conduct, priorities, and other pertinent aspects of deacons as role models of servant leadership in the church.

A New Kind of Church

Author: Aubrey Malphurs
Publisher: Baker Books
ISBN: 1441200525
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 208

Book Description
There is no shortage of books these days on new ways of "doing church." New church models have been both warmly embraced and roundly criticized. What are church leaders and others concerned about the state of the church to make of all this? Does the Bible prescribe a standard model for doing church? Or is there freedom within certain guidelines? In A New Kind of Church, respected church consultant Aubrey Malphurs addresses these important questions and suggests that there is room for new ways of doing ministry while being true to Scripture. In the process, he offers a theological and interpretive framework for evaluating any church model, new or old. He also offers suggestions for implementing change in the local church.

Five Models of Spiritual Direction in the Early Church

Author: George E. Demacopoulos
Publisher: University of Notre Dame Pess
ISBN: 0268063087
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 288

Book Description
In late antiquity the rising number of ascetics who joined the priesthood faced a pastoral dilemma. Should they follow a traditional, demonstrably administrative, approach to pastoral care, emphasizing doctrinal instruction, the care of the poor, and the celebration of the sacraments? Or should they bring to the parish the ascetic models of spiritual direction, characterized by a more personal spiritual father/spiritual disciple relationship? Five Models of Spiritual Direction in the Early Church explores the struggles of five clerics (Athanasius, Gregory Nazianzen, Augustine of Hippo, John Cassian, and Pope Gregory I) to reconcile their ascetic idealism with the reality of pastoral responsibility. Through a close reading of Greek and Latin texts, George E. Demacopoulos explores each pastor's criteria for ordination, his supervision of subordinate clergy, and his methods of spiritual direction. He argues that the evolution in spiritual direction that occurred during this period reflected and informed broader developments in religious practices. Demacopoulos describes the way in which these authors shaped the medieval pastoral traditions of the East and the West. Each of the five struggled to balance the tension between his ascetic idealism and the realities of the lay church. Each offered distinct (and at times very different) solutions to that tension. The diversity among their models of spiritual direction demonstrates both the complexity of the problem and the variable nature of early Christianity. Scholars and students of late antiquity, the history of Christianity, and historical theology will find a great deal of interest in Five Models of Spiritual Direction in the Early Church. The book will also appeal to those who are actively engaged in Christian ministry.

Models of Revelation

Author: Avery Dulles
Publisher: Doubleday Books
ISBN:
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 368

Book Description

Models of the Eucharist, Second Edition

Author: Irwin, Kevin W.
Publisher: Paulist Press
ISBN: 1587688859
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 426

Book Description
In this book, updated with the texts of the third edition of the Roman Missal, Kevin Irwin reflects on the jewel in the crown of Catholicism—the celebration of the Eucharist. His book—theological, pastoral, and contemporary—is essentially concerned with issues about the Eucharist that face us today, decades after the truly historic and unprecedented revisions that took after the Second Vatican Council. Some of these concerns are the result of unforeseen developments about the Eucharist resulting from other factors, for example the decline in numbers of clergy, which has led in some places to Sunday celebrations without the Mass. Other concerns arise from a lack of proper catechesis about the Mass and a keen desire to understand why and how the Eucharist is at the center of Catholic life. In addition to being expressly theological, this book is also expressly pastoral in that it is a reflection on the life lived by the church as it enacts the Eucharist and seeks to live out what the Eucharist celebrates. The book is aimed at the audience of educated Catholics who seek a deeper appreciation of what the Eucharist is and who want to appropriate that understanding in the way they live their lives. This book will be of particular interest to pastoral ministers, both those present and those in training, and the communities of faith whom they serve.

Models of God

Author: Sallie McFague
Publisher: Fortress Press
ISBN: 9781451418019
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 240

Book Description
In this award-winning text, theologian Sallie McFague challenges Christians' usual speech about God as a kind of monarch. She probes instead three other possible metaphors for God as mother, lover, and friend.

Simple Church

Author: Thom S. Rainer
Publisher: B&H Publishing Group
ISBN: 0805447997
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 296

Book Description
Now in paperback, this multi-awarded national best seller shares a clear message from case studies of 400 North American congregations: church is done best when it's kept simple.

One New People

Author: Manuel Ortiz
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
ISBN: 9780830818822
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 164

Book Description
Manuel Ortiz urges us not just to put aside our differences but to celebrate and embrace them--to use them in a way that draws us closer to each other and closer to God.

One Assembly

Author: Jonathan Leeman
Publisher: Crossway
ISBN: 1433559625
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 118

Book Description
Many churches are switching to the multisite or multiservice models to manage crowded sanctuaries due to growing attendance. This solution seems sensible in the short term, but too often churches adopt this model without taking into consideration what the Bible says about it. Illuminating the importance of physical togetherness as a way to protect the gospel, this book argues that maintaining a single assembly best embodies the unity the church possesses in Jesus Christ. Jonathan Leeman considers a series of biblical, theological, and pastoral arguments that ask us to stop and examine intuitions or assumptions about what a church is. He reorients our minds to a biblical definition of church, offering examples of churches that have thrived with a single service at a single site and compelling alternatives for those looking to solve the complications that come with a growing church.