Resource Search Results

Mark Mulder on Debunking “the Culture of Poverty”

It is important for financially stable churches and Christians to build relationships with those in poverty. But the reason may be different than what you might assume.

Conversation | December 14, 2017

Mika Edmondson on MLK’s Theology of Unearned Suffering

Jesus’s example of laying down his life for others inspired Martin Luther King Jr. and the U.S. civil rights movement. This theology of how to engage undeserved suffering can help congregations deal with pain.

Conversation | October 10, 2017

Reggie Smith on Theology Underlying Sociology

What churches profess and what they do sometimes clash. Sharing stories, sitting with those who suffer, praying, and listening in silence for God can help churches harmonize theology and sociology.

Conversation | September 01, 2017

Responding to Violence in Prayer

On Wednesday, August 9, 2017, before the violent events in Charlottesville, Virginia, someone broke into a church near Waco, Texas, a historically African American congregation, and vandalized the property with hateful graffiti. The pastor of the church is a student at Baylor’s Truett Seminary. At the request of Baylor President Dr. Linda Livingstone, the Office of Spiritual Life at Baylor developed this prayer guide which will be used at community-wide gatherings on Friday, August 18.

Worship Service | August 17, 2017

Why We Need to Know the History of Our Churches

The fact remains that most American Christians remain startlingly ignorant of critical aspects of their church’s history. Learning this history can help us more faithfully know ourselves, love others, and follow Christ.

Article | August 07, 2017

Kiran Young Wimberly on the Celtic Psalms Project

When she moved to Northern Ireland, Kiran Young Wimberly was surprised to discover how few Presbyterians there knew the Irish and Scottish melodies she’d grown to love in the U.S. Her Celtic Psalms project is helping Protestants and Catholics reconnect with their shared heritage.

Conversation | December 01, 2016

Irish Presbyterians on Singing Celtic Psalms

Kiran Young Wimberly and Karen Campbell are musically gifted Presbyterian pastors who have seen how singing Celtic psalms helps bridge communities in troubled places.

Conversation | November 29, 2016

Rejoicing in Lament

Four pastors and scholars discuss wrestling with incurable cancer, cancerous racism and life in Christ. They offer insights into how congregations can follow the lead of the Psalms in practicing candid lament as an essential part of deeply joyful worship.

Conversation | April 22, 2016

Reconciliation, Story Telling, and Music

This workshop looks at how the church can lead by example in diversity and reconciliation through storytelling and music.

Audio | July 01, 2015

Public Worship and the Many Layers of Gospel-Shaped Reconciliation

A plenary session at the 2015 Calvin Symposium on Worship

Video | February 26, 2015

Steve Prince on Visual Art and Justice

Jesus calls us to love our neighbors as ourselves. What does that mean for conversations about injustices, including racism, both in the U.S. and around the world. Steve Prince creates visual art that can help us start talking.

Conversation | December 12, 2014

The Challenging Work of Public Penitence and Reconciliation in Worship

How should worship, justice, and reconciliation be related not just in theory, but in practice?

Audio | February 27, 2014

Love your Neighbors: Practice what’s preached

Acting on sermons about loving your neighbors is easier if you see yourself as able to give, join others in serving, and see your loving service as an act of worship.

Article | Feature Story | August 22, 2012

Preaching the Great Commandment

Do your church’s sermons disciple worshipers to love God and their neighbors with all they have? What does that love look like in your neighborhood?

Feature Story | August 22, 2012

Worship, Forgiveness, and Reconciliation

Forgiveness and reconciliation lie at the heart of the gospel of Jesus. For Jesus, who is our peace, puts to death hostility and enmity. Still, profound hostility is still the defining feature of life for billions of people—the hostility of gunfire and persecution, the hostility of racism and fear, the hostility of family dysfunction and church disunity.

Video | June 17, 2010

Music and Worship Help Heal Northern Ireland

The Presbyterian Church in Ireland is using music and worship to overcome the legacy of "the Trouble" in Northern Ireland. You can apply their insights to political and other differences that divide Christians in your context. A feature story exploring the role of music and worship in healing.

Feature Story | June 19, 2009