A week after the September 11 terrorist attacks, I had lunch with some of my students at Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria. As part of their program, first-year students are required to visit churches in the area. Over lunch that day,…
Read MoreThe Leading Edge: Leadership for a New Religious America
People lead in many ways. Harvard Professor Diana L. Eck leads by teaching and writing great books. In A New Religious America: How a “Christian Country” Has Become the World’s Most Religiously Diverse Nation (Harper, 2001), Eck leads readers into…
Read MoreAsk Alban: Following a Beloved Pastor
Q: I recently accepted a call to serve a congregation that is losing its much-loved minister of many years. How should I approach my new pastorate in the wake of this pastor? A: There are several things that you can…
Read MoreSeasons of Joy and Sacrifice
For the past few years I have taught a course on the theology and meaning of call at Andover-Newton Theological School. I always emphasize to my students that a healthy call involves both joy and sacrifice—something I have learned from…
Read MoreComing Full Circle: Starting Over at Retirement
For a number of months I wondered how I would know when it was time to retire. I took a couple of months off two summers before I did retire, hoping that an extended vacation and time for reflection would…
Read MoreA Theology of Money: The Apostle Paul’s Advice on Long-Term Dividends
At 8:45 A.M. on Tuesday, September 11, John and Michael were having their daily phone conversation about derivatives and investments. Michael was speaking from the World Trade Center where he worked as a bond trader, and John was speaking from…
Read MoreA Leadership Story: Alban Institute President James P. Wind Sees Hope in the Midst of Crisis
Not too long ago I stood in Explorers Hall of the National Geographic Society’s headquarters in Washington, D.C., staring at the James Caird, a 22-foot whaleboat. Eighty-five years ago, six men sailed this boat 800 miles across open, brutally cold,…
Read MoreThe Leadership We Need: Negotiating Up, Not Down
Perhaps, when Abraham sought to save Sodom by interceding on behalf of the city, his attempt was rooted in the Hebrew tradition of trusting in the presence of 50 righteous men to provide salvation. But he was not assured that…
Read MoreMoney Type and Giving: A Financial Counselor Discusses Stewardship
How do we, as Christians, bring the concepts of faith and money into harmony? And do we need to? For me the answer is yes. Absolutely. Let me share how I created more comfort for myself regarding money. Because most…
Read MoreNew Life for Dry Bones: Leadership in the African American Church
The prophet Ezekiel tells of a vision in which he is sent into a valley of bones by the Lord. The dry bones symbolize the people’s despondency in their time of exile, and God asks Ezekiel, “Can these bones live?”…
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