On a beautiful fall Sunday against the backdrop of the Front Range of the Rockies, I was standing on our church grounds with a cup of coffee in my hand. Worship had ended and people were gathered in our grassy…
Read MoreA Profound Sense of Mission: One Man’s Call to Work in the World
Robert “Bob” McLean is someone who knows what it’s like to be powerfully called to work in the secular world. An Alban Institute board member and retired real estate broker, author, and the driving force behind a number of initiatives…
Read MoreRabbinic Transition: A Time of Trial and Testing
The story of Abraham has much to teach the rabbi assuming the leadership of a congregation. Rabbinic tradition teaches that Abraham was subjected to 10 trials. God’s call to Abraham to “go forth” was not without its challenges, and Abraham…
Read MoreRe-Centering Congregational Life around Members’ Daily Missions
Rather than a single “vocation” or calling to some specific work or task in Christ’s name, experience has led me to see that each person has many vocations or tasks and that they are in constant change. We need to…
Read MoreA Profound Sense of Mission: One Man's Call to Work in the World
Robert “Bob” McLean is someone who knows what it’s like to be powerfully called to work in the secular world. An Alban Institute board member and retired real estate broker, author, and the driving force behind a number of initiatives…
Read MoreLooking Forward: Theological Education, Young Adults, and the 21st-Century Church
Many young clergy believe they have something valuable to offer the church, in particular, insights into what is needed to attract young people to the church, to support them once they are there, and to support those who are ultimately…
Read MoreCalled to Life, Called to Love
Today, as many members of congregations seek deeper meaning in their lives and, more specifically, in their work, it is becoming increasingly important for pastors to be able to communicate in meaningful ways about vocation. To do so may require…
Read MoreAnswering in Unison: How Six Congregations Supported the Called
The Alban Institute has been interested for some time in the connections that exist between active participation in a congregation and what people do in the world. Specifically, we wanted to know how participation in a congregation assists people in…
Read MoreThe Practice of Sermon Listening
Preaching is usually thought of as something ministers do, but what would happen if we turned things around and considered preaching to be something listeners do? If we were to re-think preaching as the center of a unique form of…
Read MoreThe Faces of Change: Six Congregations’ Stories of Innovation
As history’s greatest writers and philosophers have told us for centuries, nothing endures but change. Life is change. Change is the nature of the universe. That congregations are changing should therefore come as little surprise. But how they are changing…
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