Avery Dulles, Models of the Church. Image/Doubleday, 1987. Referenced in: Ecclesiologies Congregational Culture, Church Identity LifeandLeadership.com Summary Theology of Mission and Ministry. sociology (congregational culture, identity) of the church. It is often used as a tool for understanding five prominent congregational identities, though its purpose is much broader in scope. Models of the Church makes
Jason E. Vickers, Minding the Good Ground: A Theology for Church Renewal. Baylor University Press, 2011. Referenced in: Church Leadership Foundations, Church Dynamics, Research From the Publisher Declining memberships. Pastoral scandals. A fear of secularism and the New Atheism. Christians are worried about the church’s future. Despite such despair, Jason Vickers believes the church also
Stanley Hauerwas and William H. Willimon, Resident Aliens: A Provocative Christian Assessment of Culture and Ministry for People Who Know that Something is Wrong. Abingdon, 1989. Referenced in: Theology of Mission, Proposals and Formulations – Missio Dei LifeandLeadership.com Summary While this is not one of the more recent missional theologies, it was one of the
Darrell Guder, Editor, Missional Church: A Vision for the Sending of the Church in North America. Eerdmans, 1998. Referenced in: Ecclesiology, Contextualized Missional Philosophy LifeandLeadership.com Summary Relative to the missional movement, this collection of essays is regarded as the book that started it all. It is another of several volumes published by Eerdmans in association
Anthony B. Robinson, What’s Theology Got to Do with It?: Convictions, Vitality, and the Church. Alban Institute, 2006. Referenced in: Pastoral Theology LifeandLeadership.com Summary This is a very popular book on “practical” theology among mainline Protestants. Even beyond those circles, Robinson popularized (though he did not introduce) terms such as “centered set” vs. “bounded set”
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together: The Classic Exploration of Christian Community. Harper, 1978. Referenced in: Ecclesiology Pastoral Theology LifeandLeadership.com Summary It is hard to overstate the influence of this book as an expression of the meaning of Christian community. Virtually all responsible works on pastoral theology, missiology, or ecclesiology written since Bonhoeffer either reference him directly
Robert E. Webber, The Younger Evangelicals: Facing the Challenges of the New World (Baker Books, 2002). Referenced in: Ecclesiologies – Comparative Generational Issues Missional Philosophy LifeandLeadership.com Summary See the essay for definitions. Webber is a comparative ecclesiology, drawing a distinction between three different eras/types of evangelicals. Summary: Webber describes three different eras/types of evangelicals. The
Barbara Brown Taylor, Speaking of Sin: The Lost Language of Salvation. Cowley Publications, 2001. Referenced in: Ecclesiologies LifeandLeadership.com Summary Theology of Mission and Ministry. Summary: Speaking of Sin is not an ecclesiology per se, but it is related. Barbara Brown Taylor is one of the most respected and quoted Christian authors in America. This short
Aubrey Malphurs, A New Kind of Church: Understanding Models of Ministry for the 21st Century. Baker, 2007. Referenced in: Ecclesiologies LifeandLeadership.com Summary Theology of Mission and Ministry. Summary: A New Kind of Church is an excellent example of contextualized ecclesiology, exploring God’s intent for the church into a specific cultural setting, in our case Western
Rodney Clapp, A Peculiar People: The Church as Culture in a Post-Christian Society. InterVarsity Press, 1996. Referenced in: Ecclesiologies LifeandLeadership.com Summary Theology of Mission and Ministry. Summary: A Peculiar People is an excellent example of contextualized ecclesiology, exploring God’s intent for the church into a specific cultural setting, in our case Western society generally and
