The current quandary that the Roman Catholic Church finds itself in right now is what Brother Louis DeThomasis calls "a crisis of confidence" in this insightful, provocative, and hopeful new book. He points to the way of unraveling the quandary by returning the church's historic belief in tradition- "the lived experience of the faithful" - as a source of ongoing revelation and renewal. This is not an attack by someone intent on bringing down the church but rather a wake-up call for the chu...

Pope Francis has called upon Catholics to use what he calls "the grammar of simplicity" when talking with one another and with others outside the church. In this groundbreaking work, Brother Louis De Thomasis and Sr. Cynthia Nienhaus use the grammar of simplicity to describe the current schism happening in the Catholic Church worldwide and offer solutions for how to heal it. Using the grammar of simplicity found in The Message: Catholic/Ecumenical Edition, they demonstrate that Jesus was a...

The word but was used by Jesus often to clarify to his disciples his teaching was different from the conventional wisdom of the time: "But I say to you..." This was never more true when he was speaking about how the disciples (right up to today) were to act toward one another and toward those outside the group. Louis DeThomasis, a well-respected De La Salle Christian Brother and President Emeritus of St. Mary's University of Minnesota, uses this method of Jesus to look at the Catholic Chur...

A church in deep debt with attendance down by the thousands. A college that had lapsed into a coma, its buildings in shambles, its faculty demoralized, its enrollment at rock bottom. A university facing lawsuits, scandal, and near-bankruptcy. Each situation involved different financial needs, different lost dreams, different personal wounds. But they each had one thing in common: each needed a leader who could restore hope, vision, and viability.Dr. Mark Rutland has led three insti...

“These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also.” That was the startled cry, circa 50 AD, from a hastily assembled mob in Thessalonica. These men who have turned the world upside: their description of Paul and Silas. Holy vandals on the loose, anointed marauders running amok, men out ransacking Roman cities with the gospel. You’d think they were heralding the arrival of Barbarian hordes, fierce Berserkers descending on poorly fortified villages, not two hungry men with...

'An unputdownable book which deals with life in the Church and politics in a more than readable way.' Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'a really worthwhile read.' Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'a liberating story for all Christian women.' Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐First published in 2014 and set in an imagined future - Archbishop is a fascinating novel for our times today.The Church of England is on its knees. Yet one woman is mak...

A tried-and-true classic in dynamic ministry growth, church building, and discipleship momentum.From professional church-planters Dave and Jon Ferguson comes the anchor book in the Exponential Series—envisioning new and practical methods of building churches, communities, and organizations on the cornerstone of Christ.Many of today's Christians consider the missional challenge of Jesus—feed the hungry, comfort the lonely, bring people to God's Word...

The development of meaningful relationships, where every member carries a significant sense of belonging, is central to what it means to be the church. So why do many Christians feel disappointed and disillusioned with their efforts to experience authentic community? Despite the best efforts of pastors, small group leaders, and faithful lay persons, church too often is a place of loneliness rather than connection. In this revised and updated version of his best-selling book, Randy Frazee s...

In the book of Ephesians, the church is revealed as the assembly, the household, the Body of Christ, and the new man. The church as the Body of Christ needs Christ as its life, whereas the Church as the new man, the highest aspect of the church, needs Christ as its person. According to Colossians 3:10-11, Christ is all and in all in the new man; thus, in the new man, there is no room for natural persons, culture, status, or ethics. In the new man there is only one person—Christ.

Among followers of Jesus, great is often the enemy of good.The drive to be great—to be a success by the standards of the world—often crowds out the qualities of goodness, virtue, and faithfulness that should define the central focus of Christian leadership. In the culture of today’s church, successful leadership is often judged by what works, while persistent faithfulness takes a back seat. If a ministry doesn’t produce results, it is dropped. If people don’t respond, we m...

Christmas is coming—break out the eggnog and candy canes! But for church communicators, this isn’t always a season of peace on earth and goodwill toward men. Christmas often means pulling out all the stops—adorable pageants, packed pews, beloved music. Not to mention planning it all on a very limited budget.For many communicators, planning your Christmas services often starts too late and never seems to end. Just when you think you’ve unraveled that last knot of Christmas lights, s...

For over a quarter of a century the problem of losing church members has progressively increased. Today the situation is so bad that less than one-third of the members in some churches attend worship services. Church leaders are crying for help.In an effort to help church leaders, the Billy Graham School of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary conducted a massive research project involving nearly 287 churches. The most revealing aspect of the study was that the higher expectations pla...