Laura E. Everett: The face of an institution
What does it mean theologically to be the 'face' of a Christian institution? The director of the Massachusetts Council of Churches offers four suggestions.
Theological Reflection
Most Recently Published
Mark Ralls: It’s not a ship; it’s a boat
A family cruise to Alaska left a landlubber pastor confused about seafaring lingo from starboard to port. But on this point he is certain: the church is not a ship; it’s a boat.
Creating the conditions to nurture hope
The current situation facing Christian institutions can evoke fear. Yet we can, and should, recover hope by grounding our work in the hope of the resurrection and new life.
C. Kavin Rowe: Orienting hierarchies toward the good
The New Testament illustrates the wisdom of shaping a hierarchy toward a community’s public witness and the importance of Christian character for leaders.
Anna Marazuela Kim answers: Why does iconoclasm continue to matter?
The history of iconoclasm, or image breaking, reveals much about our continuing and complex relationship to images, giving insight into larger questions concerning the sacred and the profane, materiality and spirituality, religion and modernity, says an art historian.
Putting an end to institutional amnesia
We need to recover and tell the stories of our organizations to see ourselves and our God more clearly.
Marc Brettler: The danger of saying, 'The Bible says...'
The Bible is not a modern work but an ancient anthology of many voices, says a noted Hebrew Bible scholar. So be careful about saying, "The Bible says . . .," because on almost every subject, it has more than one perspective.
Kathryn Reklis: Jonathan Edwards and the afterlife of failure
A feminist scholar finds inspiration in Jonathan Edwards the experimenter, who had no choice but to reach for new language, new methods and new ideas to make the truth of the divine drama come alive for his age.
“Charis-Kairos (The Tears of Christ).” Taken from “The Four Holy Gospels,” illuminated by Makoto Fujimura, © 2011. Used by permission of Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers, Wheaton, Ill.
Theology and the arts
Christians are made in the image of God the creator, destined to create music, poetry, fiction, dance and other works of art. This resource page gathers Faith & Leadership interviews, essays, videos and sermons by artists, writers, theologians and scholars on the subject of Christianity and the arts.
Mark Ralls: God the fuller
God redeems and purifies us, much like the fuller who creates a softer, stronger cloth using caustic chemicals and hard labor. The process isn’t easy, but it is hopeful.