The growing climate crisis hangs like a dark shadow over our collective planetary future. We can hear the rumblings of the storm, and its winds have already begun to pick up and blow things around in our present world. The global scientific community has said that 1.5 C above pre-industrial levels is the maximum global […]
Merging Our Missional Silos: A Redemptive Opportunity in the Climate Crisis Read More »
What would it mean for the church to intercept the becoming of cities and turn them toward the joy of communion? How might this alternative trajectory in the spiritual-material life of cities interact with ecological systems to cultivate shared wellbeing for all members of creation? Could the urban minister–as community organizer, community developer, prophetic dreamer
My first church was Northside Chapel in Paterson, NJ. I spent two years there, and then the Lord moved me back to Grand Rapids, MI, which we in the Christian Reformed Church tend to view as “the Holy City.” I ended up at a church that was a merger between two churches. One was a
Opening Up the Gift of the City Read More »
In Jeremiah 32, the prophet Jeremiah enters into a land deal with his cousin Hanamel in one of the worst real estate markets imaginable. Does his prophetic economic activity open up new horizons of possibilities for Christian disciples today in the face of urban blight and seemingly dead economic potential in many urban neighborhoods?
Restoring Shalom in the Citadels of Dead Capital: The Church and Vacant Land Read More »
Many individuals and groups are asking how to get a ministry cluster going. This case study will offer a step-by-step approach, with this proviso: This is a basic template, not a blueprint. There is no need to copy this in total. Each cluster will have its own unique character, or DNA. Yet, what you will read here is a common methodology that appears to be working.
Seeking Synergy: 8 Steps to Forming a Ministry Cluster Read More »
The gentri-church, rising on the new wave of young urbanites, is the brightest hope the city has seen in more than a half century. Will it be up to the challenge?
Church-based community organizations often struggle with navigating partnerships in their communities, as they sit at the pluralistic community “table” in order to serve the poor and faithfully proclaim the gospel without compromising their Christian witness. What community issues can Christian organizations agree to work on with others in the community in order to bring honor to God’s kingdom? How exactly will they bear witness to the gospel so as not to be seen merely as one group among many committed to social transformation? This study offers some theological guidelines.
Bringing Shalom to the Community Table: Community Development as an Act of Ministry Read More »
Most well-to-do North American Christians have a misunderstanding of poverty, as well as of themselves in relation to the poor, and therefore apply misguided solutions that end up hurting rather than helping already desperate situations, in spite of their good intentions. Here is a book that seeks to help the church, especially the well-to-do North American church, gain a better understanding of poverty that will lead to better practices of mercy ministry.
Review: When Helping Hurts Read More »
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