Practicing Theology in Youth Ministry
Every other year I have the opportunity to teach our introductory course on youth ministry at Welch College, entitled Philosophy of Youth and Family Ministry. The course is always a wonderful experience, and central to its purposes are laying a theological foundation and developing biblical practice for practical ministry. The summative project in the course is students developing their own philosophies of youth and family ministry....
Cultural Exegesis: A Primer
Karl Barth allegedly quipped that Christians should “do theology with the Bible in one hand, and the newspaper in the other.”[1] His point is that the Christian, in thinking about the truth of God, should understand how God’s truth and today’s world intersect. Theology is fundamentally practical. Yet practical theology can also be a daunting task. While the Bible provides clarity on the things of God, we may struggle to apply these...
Book Review: Faith Formation in a Secular Age
In early 2015, I remember picking up a then recent copy of Youthworker Journal with the headline article reading, “Why Theology Isn’t Enough for Youth Ministry.”[1] The author’s name was familiar: Andrew Root, who had also published youth ministry titles such as The Theological Turn in Youth Ministry and The Relational Pastor.[2] While I had strong reservations about the author’s thesis in the article, I have grown to appreciate...
Moving Beyond the Worship Wars
The worship wars seem far from over. While they don’t occupy the front page of current Christian magazines, and public disputes seem to have decreased, a quick meeting with your local pastor or music minister will show you how prevalent these concerns still are. Congregants have strong stances, and rightfully so. Decades after the rise of contemporary Christian music (CCM), local churches continue to wrestle with how musical style and...
Book Review: Old Testament Exegesis
Douglas Stuart, Old Testament Exegesis: A Handbook for Students and Pastors (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2009). Within the Christian academic community, there are many resources for the aspiring Bible student. A cursory glance at the resource section of a Christian bookstore will show myriad concordances, Bible handbooks, commentaries, Bible translations, and more. Even with these resources, bridging Bible reading and...
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