A Church of the Poor

A Church of the Poor
Author: Sedmak, Clemens
Publisher: Orbis Books
Total Pages: 272
Release: 2016-12-15
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1608336727

Using resources ranging from scripture to Catholic social teaching to the early Church Fathers, the author examines how Pope Francis's emphasis on the Church of the Poor is calling us to a new epistemic practice, involving an understanding of orthodoxy as discipleship, and discipleship as a new way of getting to know and understand the world.

Rich Church, Poor Church

Rich Church, Poor Church
Author: J. Clif Christopher
Publisher: Abingdon Press
Total Pages: 122
Release: 2012
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 142674336X

What is the bottom line at your church?

Becoming Whole

Becoming Whole
Author: Brian Fikkert
Publisher: Moody Publishers
Total Pages: 327
Release: 2019-03-05
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0802481035

Western Civilization is wealthier, but it isn’t happier. We are the richest people ever to walk the face of the earth, but according to research, we aren’t becoming happier. Families and communities are increasingly fragmented, loneliness is skyrocketing, and physical and mental health are on the decline. Our unprecedented wealth doesn’t seem to be doing us much good. Yet, when we try to help poor people at home or abroad, our implicit assumption is that the goal is to help them to become like us. "If they would just do things our way, they’d be fine!" But even when they seem to pursue our path, they too find that the American Dream doesn’t work for them. What if we have the wrong idea altogether? What if the molds we are using to help poor people don’t actually fit any of us? What if the goal isn’t to turn other countries into the United States or to turn America’s impoverished communities into its affluent suburbs? In Becoming Whole (building on the best-selling When Helping Hurts), Brian Fikkert and Kelly M. Kapic look at the true sources of brokenness and poverty and uncover the surprising pathways to human flourishing, for poor and non-poor alike. Exposing the misconceptions of both Western Civilization and the Western church about the nature of God, human beings, and the world, they redefine success and offer new ways of achieving that success. Through biblical insights, scientific research, and practical experience, they show you how the good news of the kingdom of God reshapes our lives and our poverty alleviation ministries, moving everybody involved towards wholeness.

The Church Building as a Sacred Place

The Church Building as a Sacred Place
Author: Duncan Stroik
Publisher: Liturgy Training Publications
Total Pages: 194
Release: 2012
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1595250379

This collection of twenty-three essays by Duncan Stroik shows the development and consistency of his architectural vision. Packed with informative essays and over 170 photographs, this collection clearly articulates the Church’s architectural tradition.

A Church for the Poor

A Church for the Poor
Author: Martin Charlesworth
Publisher: David C Cook
Total Pages: 167
Release: 2017-07-10
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0830772596

Motivated by genuine concern, dedicated volunteers responded to the call to action and millions of pounds have been invested to support those most in need. However, the culture of many churches fails to attract those they are helping to the very faith that motivates this compassion. Even when people from poorer or working class backgrounds start on a journey of faith, many churches struggle to create an inclusive environment where they can feel welcomed and at home. With biblical insight and practical examples A Church for the Poor, by Martin Charlesworth and Natalie Williams, presents a vision of the church as a place where people from all sections of society can find a home and play a part. It is a call to rethink our traditions and transform the church to reach the poor in Britain today.

Blessed are the Poor?

Blessed are the Poor?
Author: Laurie Green
Publisher: SCM Press
Total Pages: 236
Release: 2015-06-30
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 033405365X

Listening intently to what the poor have to say is Laurie Green’s way into a new study of Jesus’ most famous Beatitude – Blessed are the Poor. Combining years of pavement level experience with informed biblical analysis he sets out for us how the perspective of the poor opens us up to new biblical and theological insights. These issue in a radical rethink about mission and what it means to be Church in a post-secular society. The book introduces us to Britain’s poorest housing estates and uses the radical edge of contextual theology to present a prophetic challenge to each one of us, and to a Church which is reluctant to respond seriously to the challenges of the Beatitudes.

Helping Without Hurting in Church Benevolence

Helping Without Hurting in Church Benevolence
Author: Steve Corbett
Publisher: Moody Publishers
Total Pages: 165
Release: 2015-09-22
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0802493440

When a low-income person asks your church for help, what do you do next? God is extraordinarily generous, and our churches should be, too. Because poverty is complex, however, helping low-income people often requires going beyond meeting their material needs to holistically addressing the roots of their poverty. But on a practical level, how do you move forward in walking with someone who approaches your church for financial help? From the authors of When Helping Hurts comes Helping Without Hurting in Church Benevolence, a guidebook for church staff, deacons, or volunteers who work with low-income people. Short and to the point, this tool provides foundational principles for poverty alleviation and then addresses practical matters, like: How to structure and focus your benevolence work How to respond to immediate needs while pursuing long-term solutions How to mobilize your church to walk with low-income people With practical stories, forms, and tools for churches to use, Helping Without Hurting in Church Benevolence is an all-in-one guide for church leaders and laypeople who want to help the poor in ways that lead to lasting change.

Church in Hard Places

Church in Hard Places
Author: Mez McConnell
Publisher: Crossway
Total Pages: 122
Release: 2016-01-14
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1433549077

Jesus came to seek and to save the lost, paying particular attention to the downtrodden and the poor. As followers of Jesus, Christians are called to imitate his example and reach out to those who have the least. This book offers biblical guidelines and practical strategies for reaching those on the margins of our society with the gospel of Jesus Christ. The authors—both pastors with years of experience ministering among the poor—set forth helpful “dos” and “don’ts” related to serving in the midst of less-affluent communities. Emphasizing the priority of the gospel as well as the importance of addressing issues of social justice, this volume will help pastors and other church leaders mobilize their people to plant churches and make an impact in “hard places”—in their own communities and around the world.

The Option for the Poor in Christian Theology

The Option for the Poor in Christian Theology
Author: Daniel G. Groody
Publisher: University of Notre Dame Pess
Total Pages: 328
Release: 2007-04-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 026808081X

Since the publication of Gustavo Gutiérrez's 1973 groundbreaking work, A Theology of Liberation, much has been written on liberation theology and its central premise of the preferential option for the poor. Arguably, this has been one of the most important yet controversial theological themes of the twentieth century. As globalization creates greater gaps between the rich and the poor, and as the situation for many of the world’s poor worsens, there is an ever greater need to understand the gift and challenge of Christian faith from the context of the poor and marginalized of our society. This volume draws on the thought of leading international scholars and explores how the Christian tradition can help us understand the theological foundations for the option for the poor. The central focus of the book revolves around the question, How can one live a Christian life in a world of destitution? The contributors are concerned not only with a social, economic, or political understanding of poverty but above all with the option for the poor as a theological concept. While these essays are rooted in a solid grounding of our present “reality,” they look to the past to understand some of the central truths of Christian faith and to the future as a source of Christian hope. Following Gustavo Gutiérrez's essay on the multidimensionality of poverty, Elsa Tamez, Hugh Page, Jr., Brian Daley, and Jon Sobrino identify a central theological premise: poverty is contrary to the will of God. Drawing on scripture, the writings of the early fathers, the witness of Christian martyrs, and contemporary theological reflection, they argue that poverty represents the greatest challenge to Christian faith and discipleship. David Tracy and J. Matthew Ashley carry their reflection forward by examining the option for the poor in light of apocalyptic thought. Virgilio Elizondo, Patrick Kalilombe, María Pilar Aquino, M. Shawn Copeland, and Mary Catherine Hilkert examine the challenges of poverty with respect to culture, Africa, race, and gender. Casiano Floristán and Luis Maldonado explore the relationship between poverty, sacramentality, and popular religiosity. The final two essays by Aloysius Pieris and Michael Signer consider the option for the poor in relationship to other major world religions, particularly an Asian theology of religions and the meaning of care for the poor within Judaism.