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Beyond Megachurch Myths
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Book Synopsis Beyond Megachurch Myths by : Scott Thumma
Download or read book Beyond Megachurch Myths written by Scott Thumma and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2007-08-10 with total page 276 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Drawing on extensive, broad-based, and well-designed research, as well as stories and anecdotes, Beyond Megachurch Myths dispels popluar myths about megachurches while highlighting the diversity within the megachurch phenomenon. Defining a megachurch as a Protestant church that averages at least 2000 total attendees in their weekend services, Scott Thumma and Dave Travis reveal what these churches are and are not, why they are thriving, what their members say about their experiences, and why they have many valuable lessons to teach smaller churches.
Download or read book Gay Religion written by Scott Thumma and published by Rowman Altamira. This book was released on 2004-12-10 with total page 471 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Conflicts over homosexuality and gay rights threaten to break apart denominations, if not North American society. These heated theological and political debates have, as well, obscured the fact that many gays and lesbians are religiously active individuals. Gay Religion is the first book to give a straightforward presentation of the spiritual lives, practices and expressions of gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgender. Drawing from a wide range of religious traditions, new and established scholars explore the range of gay religious expression in denominations, sects, and even outside recognized religious institutions. The essays ask what these religious innovations mean to the continually evolving religious environment of North America. With its helpful section introductions and an appendix providing profiles of organizations involved, Gay Religion is a unique and compelling resource for anyone interested in homosexuality and American religion.
Book Synopsis Sensational Devotion by : Jill Stevenson
Download or read book Sensational Devotion written by Jill Stevenson and published by University of Michigan Press. This book was released on 2013-04-15 with total page 329 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Sensational Devotion, Jill Stevenson examines a range of evangelical performances, including contemporary Passion plays, biblical theme parks, Holy Land re-creations, creationist museums, and megachurches, to understand how they serve their evangelical audiences while shaping larger cultural and national dialogues. Such performative media support specific theologies and core beliefs by creating sensual, live experiences for believers, but the accessible, familiar forms they take and the pop culture motifs they employ also attract nonbelievers willing to “try out” these genres, even if only for curiosity’s sake. This familiarity not only helps these performances achieve their goals, but it also enables them to contribute to public dialogue about the role of religious faith in America. Stevenson shows how these genres are significant and influential cultural products that utilize sophisticated tactics in order to reach large audiences comprised of firm believers, extreme skeptics, and those in between. Using historical research coupled with personal visits to these various venues, the author not only critically examines these spaces and events within their specific religious, cultural, and national contexts, but also places them within a longer devotional tradition in order to suggest how they cultivate religious belief by generating vivid, sensual, affectively oriented, and individualized experiences.
Book Synopsis The Worship Mall by : Bryan D. Spinks
Download or read book The Worship Mall written by Bryan D. Spinks and published by Church Publishing, Inc.. This book was released on 2011-02-01 with total page 273 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Religion today is in competition with the leisure and entertainment industries. Gen Y, the postmodern generation, is open to spirituality; but most of todays young adults have not been born into faith communities where they feel any lasting allegiance. Studies suggest that for the young, belief in God is an optional matter, a virtual consumer choice. As a result, different trends in worship and worship styles are offered by different churches to suit lifestyles, attitudes, and personal taste.
Download or read book High on God written by James K. Wellman and published by . This book was released on 2020 with total page 353 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: High on God offers a fascinating study of the rise of megachurches and the reasons that these churches have conquered the American church market. The authors reveal the emotional and social dynamics that pull thousands of people into megachurches and keep them there.
Book Synopsis Megachurches and Social Engagement by : Mark J. Cartledge
Download or read book Megachurches and Social Engagement written by Mark J. Cartledge and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2019-06-07 with total page 405 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book is the first detailed academic study of megachurches in the UK. In particular, it explores the nature and significance of social engagement by megachurches in the context of London. The research contains empirical case studies of two Anglican and three African diaspora Pentecostal churches. As well as exploring the range of social engagement activities provided by these churches, the study offers explanations in term of theological motivations and the influence of globalisation. Subsequently, the book outlines the importance of the findings for the relationship between church and society in the contemporary context, addressing the implications for social policy and practice. The book advances discussions in public theology, megachurch studies, Pentecostal and Charismatic studies and ecclesiology.
Book Synopsis Handbook of Megachurches by : Stephen J. Hunt
Download or read book Handbook of Megachurches written by Stephen J. Hunt and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2019-11-26 with total page 362 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The megachurch is an exceptional recent religious trend, certainly within Christian spheres. Spreading from the USA, megachurches now reached reach different global contexts. The edited volume Handbook of Megachurches offers a comprehensive account of the subject from various academic perspectives.
Book Synopsis Megachurch Accountability in Missions: by : Jinbong Kim
Download or read book Megachurch Accountability in Missions: written by Jinbong Kim and published by William Carey Publishing. This book was released on 1993-06-01 with total page 387 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Megachurches are of relatively recent vintage. Their numerical strength invests them with social and financial power. To whom, if anyone, however, are megachurches accountable? What role do they play as innovators in missions? How have their enormous influence and financial strength been harnessed? What lessons can be learned? What course corrections ought to be made? Over the course of a week, the third meeting of the Korean Global Mission Leadership Forum (KGMLF), held in Korea in 2015, addressed these and related questions. Combining the insights of a rich mix of Korean and international megachurch leaders and scholars, Megachurch Accountability in Missions: Korean and Global Case Studies offers analysis, critique, and positive recommendations for future megachurch engagement in mission.
Book Synopsis Ten Dumb Things Smart Christians Believe by : Larry Osborne
Download or read book Ten Dumb Things Smart Christians Believe written by Larry Osborne and published by Multnomah. This book was released on 2009-04-14 with total page 226 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this delightfully personal and practical book, respected Bible teacher Larry Osborne confronts ten widely held beliefs that are both dumb and dangerous. People don’t set out to build their faith upon myths and spiritual urban legends. But somehow such falsehoods keep showing up in the way that many Christians think about life and God. These goofy ideas and beliefs are assumed by millions to be rock-solid truth... until life proves they’re not. The sad result is often a spiritual disaster: confusion, feelings of betrayal, a distrust of Scripture, loss of faith, anger toward both the church and God. But it doesn’t have to be so. Respected Bible teacher Larry Osborne confronts ten widely held beliefs that are both dumb and dangerous, including: • Faith can fix anything • God brings good luck • Forgiving means forgetting • Everything happens for a reason • A godly home guarantees good kids Get ready to be shocked, relieved, and inspired in the pages of Ten Dumb Things Smart Christians Believe. Because the truth is meant to set us free—not hurt us.
Book Synopsis Sacred Subdivisions by : Justin G. Wilford
Download or read book Sacred Subdivisions written by Justin G. Wilford and published by NYU Press. This book was released on 2012-01-01 with total page 234 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In an era where church attendance has reached an all-time low, recent polling has shown that Americans are becoming less formally religious and more promiscuous in their religious commitments. Within both mainline and evangelical Christianity in America, it is common to hear of secularizing pressures and increasing competition from nonreligious sources. Yet there is a kind of religious institution that has enjoyed great popularity over the past thirty years: the evangelical megachurch. Evangelical megachurches not only continue to grow in number, but also in cultural, political, and economic influence. To appreciate their appeal is to understand not only how they are innovating, but more crucially, where their innovation is taking place. In this groundbreaking and interdisciplinary study, Justin G. Wilford argues that the success of the megachurch is hinged upon its use of space: its location on the post-suburban fringe of large cities, its fragmented, dispersed structure, and its focus on individualized spaces of intimacy such as small group meetings in homes, which help to interpret suburban life as religiously meaningful and create a sense of belonging. Based on original fieldwork at Rick Warren's Saddleback Church, one of the largest and most influential megachurches in America,Sacred Subdivisionsexplains how evangelical megachurches thrive by transforming mundane secular spaces into arenas of religious significance.
Download or read book Blessed written by Kate Bowler and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2013 with total page 350 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Gospels -- Faith -- Wealth -- Health -- Victory -- American blessing -- Megachurch table -- Naming names.
Download or read book Soul Winners written by David Clary and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2022-09-15 with total page 290 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: American evangelicals have always been innovators. They reimagined what a church could be, whether it was a humble tent in a rural field or a high-tech urban megachurch. They embraced new forms of media to spread their message to the masses. They thrived in a fiercely competitive religious marketplace. In Soul Winners, journalist David Clary argues that this entrepreneurial spirit has indelibly shaped evangelical ministries and their worldview. For generations, evangelical leaders have partnered with tycoons to pay for their churches, crusades, and campuses. In turn, evangelicals adopted the pro-business, anti-government values of their conservative benefactors. White evangelicals evolved into the Republican Party’s most loyal voting bloc. The close relationship between business and evangelicals has produced the growth-oriented megachurches that dot the nation’s landscape. Pastors such as Rick Warren used market research and management theory to create their “seeker-sensitive” churches. Televangelists and “prosperity gospel” preachers, most notably Joel Osteen, tell their audiences that faith will be rewarded in this world as well as in the kingdom to come. Clary’s narrative approach brings to life colorful characters such as the ballplayer-turned-preacher Billy Sunday, who condemned the “godless social service nonsense” of liberal churches, and Billy Graham, who brought evangelicalism into the highest precincts of business and politics. Soul Winners offers a fresh, balanced perspective on evangelicals and the consequences of their enduring influence on American life.
Book Synopsis Thomas Merton and the Individual Witness by : David E Oberson
Download or read book Thomas Merton and the Individual Witness written by David E Oberson and published by Lutterworth Press. This book was released on 2024-09-26 with total page 139 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Thomas Merton proclaimed, over sixty years ago, that we were living in a post-Christian world. Since then, in an increasingly secular society where the influence of the institutional church is under doubt, Thomas Merton's reflections are more salient than ever. David Oberon's discussion and analysis brings this mystic, monk and spiritual leader's view of the opportunities presented to Christians by cultural changes to the forefront, focussing on how the individual's witness can take precedence. Oberon situates the reader in the current cultural context, and handles Merton's work with care and clarity. He illuminates Thomas Merton's unique view of his own society, which credibly speaks to our present, aiding Christians in navigating a post-Christian, post-truth world.
Book Synopsis Sexual Misconduct and the Future of Mega-Churches by : Glenn L. Starks
Download or read book Sexual Misconduct and the Future of Mega-Churches written by Glenn L. Starks and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2013-03-07 with total page 177 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Why have multiple mega-church leaders—Ted Haggard and Bishop Eddie Long, for example—committed acts of sexual misconduct? This book discusses the reasons in depth and examines how these acts are impacting the future of megachurches. Mega-churches—churches with congregations that number in the thousands of worshippers—are growing in popularity in America and around the world. Shockingly, a growing number of megachurch leaders have committed acts of sexual misconduct. While these scandalous crimes have received much attention through the media, literature that examines the topic in detail has been lacking. This book examines the various aspects of sexual misconduct by megachurch leaders, providing a comprehensive review of the topic that discusses the direct and indirect reasons for these crimes. The book provides unbiased, factual coverage of megachurch sexual abuse cases, covering issues surrounding the victims in specific cases, the role of the church, and notable ministers, such as Ted Haggard of New Life Church, Colorado Springs, CO; Bishop Eddie Long of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, Lithonia, GA; and Joe Barron of Prestonwood Baptist Church, Dallas, TX. The author also discusses how these incidences have impacted societal perceptions of religion, and large churches, and religious organizations, and provides recommendations to curb future cases of sexual abuse within megachurches.
Download or read book Babel Church written by Li Ma and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2021-03-16 with total page 176 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Assisted by a diverse mass media industry, American evangelicalism has been long plagued by consumerism, entrepreneurism, and social engineering. Churches and movements that carry the name of Christ have become projects of ambition and scandals in the public eye. Without fixing its dysfunctions, these ministry models have expanded to other parts of the world, reaping similar fruits of corruption, prejudice, and abuses. The alarm call of #MeToo and #ChurchToo movements since 2017 made it more urgent for the global body of Christ to inspect its pathological patterns. What kind of response does the #MeToo movement require of our public theology and leadership ethics? Sociologist Li Ma invites us to re-engage with biblical exegesis while being attentive to new mandates of God revealed from #MeToo. A creative Ellulian integration of sociological analysis and theology, Babel Church incisively reveals why American evangelicalism and its global projects have succumbed to the temptations of worldly power at the expense of vulnerable members in the body of Christ.
Book Synopsis Megachurches in Africa by : Babatunde A. Adedibu
Download or read book Megachurches in Africa written by Babatunde A. Adedibu and published by African Books Collective. This book was released on 2024-10-04 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Six chapters include: A General Overview of Professional Ethics; The Legal Profession and the Kenyan System; Advocate-Client Relationship; Unqualified Persons Acting as Advocates; Remuneration of Advocates; Professional Misconduct and offenses by Advocates.
Book Synopsis Baby Boomers and Beyond by : Amy Hanson
Download or read book Baby Boomers and Beyond written by Amy Hanson and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2010-06-29 with total page 230 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How ministry leaders can help older adults be a vital part of Christian community With the explosion of the older adult population, this important book explores the opportunities and challenges that this presents for the Christian community. Amy Hanson challenges us to let go of many old stereotypes regarding aging and embrace a new paradigm that sees older adults as active, healthy and capable of making significant contributions. Debunks the myths of aging that keep us from fully embracing the potential of people in life's second half Offers suggestions on how to re-invent ministry with older adults Focuses on unleashing older adults to serve and make an impact on churches and congregations A volume in the Leadership Network series The author shows church leaders how they can unleash the power of the baby boomer population to strengthen their congregations.