Recently an e-mail arrived in my in-box from a woman in my congregation who wanted to know if anyone had camping gear she could borrow. Within 24 hours she had arranged to borrow the needed equipment and sent out a…
Read MoreThe Church in Exile: Being a Missionary to the Dominant Culture
A colleague of mine at the seminary where I work recently presented a paper on the places in the world where the church had once been a strong and vibrant entity but, for various reasons, had become extinct within a…
Read MoreThe New Connectivity: How Internet Innovations Are Changing the Way We Do Church
It’s no longer news that the Internet has ushered in a digital revolution, reshaping everything from the business landscape to social relationships to personal habits. Our world today is profoundly new. And in these transformations, nothing is sacred. Just as…
Read MoreLeadership as More than Being in Charge
For many congregational leaders, leadership means being out in front with a vision—and expecting to turn around and find people behind them. But what does it mean to be an effective leader today, when “being in charge” seems to be…
Read MoreThe Leading Edge: Taking the Long View
The Beijing Olympics filled late summer with an amazing array of images, none more compelling than Michael Phelps’s winning lunge for the wall in the 100-meter butterfly. His decision to lunge, while Serbia’s Milorad Cavic chose to glide home, made…
Read MoreCongregations Magazine, Fall 2008
Join Alban Now The New Connectivity: How Internet Innovations Are Changing the Way We Do Church Contents INFOCUS: The New Connectivity (Members Only Article)reelance religion writer Andrea Useem examines the latest Internet innovations and how they are changing the…
Read MoreOur Worth Comes from God, Not Money
In many congregations, talking about money is taboo. That we don’t talk about money doesn’t mean we don’t worry about it, though. In fact, most Americans worry about it constantly. Are we saving enough? Will Social Security be there for…
Read MoreKnowing Your Community, Defining Your Mission
Getting to know the community that your congregation will focus on is a critical step in defining your mission. To start, work on getting answers to several key questions: What are the primary issues in your community? How do the…
Read MorePlanning as Holy Conversation
A primary responsibility of leaders is to help the congregation understand where it is going, why such a direction is important, and how to get there. By leaders, we mean not only pastors or rabbis but also congregational members who…
Read MoreVital Congregations as Intentional Communities of Practice
What is a vital congregation? Is it simply a community of fervent conviction and shared belief about who we are, where we came from, why we’re here, and the direction the world is going? Or is congregational vitality to be…
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