Pastoral Care
In our latest blog, the Rev. Sandy Webb talks about how he finds the principles of effective pastoral fundraising to be the same as the principles of effective pastoral care.
Paul Klitzke shares a vlog tour of ECF Vital Practices
In our latest blog, Michael Carney writes about ways that the Art Empowers youth program at St. Elizabeth’s on the Ute reservation in Utah successfully modified its programming to accommodate pandemic precautions.
In our latest blog, Nicole Foster gives us seven steps to take to strengthen our spiritual life during this time of pandemic. Which will you try?
What does vacation time mean during these days of pandemic? In our latest blog, Annette Buchanan looks at how our work schedules have changed and how our boundaries have blurred.
Patrick Kangrga gives us the conclusion to his blog, Ministering From an Empty Cup: Survey of Faith Formation Professionals and Volunteers, where he does a deep dive into the many comments that people left.
In our latest blog, MaryBeth Ingram wonders whether the recent efforts towards moving to online worship wouldn’t have been better spent following up with parishioners by phone and other more personal means.
You might say that “Those dratted televangelists make a mockery of religion!” Maybe, but they have to have done something right to be around for so long. In our latest blog, Annette Buchanan looks at what we might borrow from…
Ken Mosesian takes stock of our new reality and encourages us as lay and clergy leaders to continue moving forward towards the light, creating virtual resources that will sustain our congregations until we can be physically t…
In A Celebration of Life to Prepare for Death, Lisa Fischbeck explores the bright side of being given enough time to prepare for death. She gives the example of a founding parishioner’s cancer diagnosis and how his family and…
Truth be told, it’s possible to participate in the Sunday morning exchange of greetings and coffee hour fellowship, even the occasional potluck suppers, without ever going deep enough into a conversation with someone to know …
In this hyper-digital, connected-but-disconnected day and age, the church that finds a way to connect people to people so that everyone has someone to walk with them and represent Christ will not only be counter-cultural but …
Annette Buchanan provides 10 suggestions for a process for planning funerals.
When I store the decorations for another year, I’m always faced with a dilemma: What should I do with the Christmas cards? It’s the one time of year that folks send a snail mail card, and even if most have a simple signature,…
Reconciling all people to God in Christ and with one another is a full-time calling and a life’s occupation, and there’s no real time off in these positions, either. We invariably bring this stuff home. “Christianity is a con…
What makes your church a family?
As we prepare for the festive season of Christmas and New Year with family and friends, we are also reminded that for many these are days of great despair.
The Church has a long history of using new technologies and mediums to proclaim the Gospel. Our interactions with Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter should be no different.
Or maybe those encounters are God-moments, reminders that real people are really hurting and hoping out there, and that our presence and our pointing to Christ’s Good News are still very much needed – perhaps now, even more s…