Description
Available on Kindle!
A Peek Inside–Preface
Churches in the U.S. are grappling with unprecedented change. Financial challenges, globalization, the digital revolution and church-dividing topics are taking a toll on the institution and membership. Americans are increasingly not affiliating themselves with any religion, including one third of adults under 30.
In light of all this, what is the future of the churches? In For Such a Time as This: Young Adults on the Future of the Church, Christian young adults offer an invigorating, new, and timely word on issues such as eco-justice, immigration, interfaith relations, peace and justice, and inclusivity of those on the margins.
Lohre and her contributors — representing a broad spectrum of cultures, races, and Christian traditions — offer a mutual exchange of ideas, experiences, and insights. More than a collection, however, this project is designed for intergenerational study and discussion. It offers a starting place for thinking about and moving towards the future together. Enter in and discover fresh wisdom, fresh thinking, and fresh ideas for the churches in the twenty-first century.
Key features:
• A thought-provoking ecumenical collection that peers into the hearts, minds, and souls of the Millennial generation and their perceptions on the new role of the church
• Balances diverse themes with male and female voices, denominations, and perspectives that encompass a global view
• Invites readers to dialogue intergenerationally and collaboratively
• Divided into two major themes, re-envisioning Christian identity and relationships and renewing hope for the church's witness today and into the future
• End-of-chapter discussion questions for small-group and Bible studies
Reviews
"As Christians in world that is vastly changing, we need the information and insight in this book! In a unique way, Kathryn Lohre invites eleven young Christian leaders to share with us the wisdom that the younger, 20- and 30-something generations bring to the table. There's no need for the younger and older generations to be separated or pitted against one another—each brings vital parts to the full body of Christ." —Taylor and Heather, 20schurch.tumblr.com
"Speaking in their own voices, the authors whom Kathryn Lohre has so ably assembled are clearly Jesus followers who love the church as community but who hold lightly its institutional expressions. Having grown up in post-Christendom America, shaped by a culture whose hallmark is pluralism and diversity, they exhibit a refreshing lack of fear and preoccupation about the future of the church. That frees them to explore fresh incarnational expressions of their faith in service to the crucified and risen Christ. They are self-described 'tinkerers,' accepting the gifts the many forms of the church have to offer, as well as gifts from other religious traditions, even as they find their primary identify or location within one particular communion. There is present among them a fluidity of thought and practice that defies the outdated polarities that defined the experience of church for much of my generation: evangelism-justice, worship and prayer-service and action, and eternal-temporal, to name a few. As you read their essays you will find distinct melodies and rhythms orchestrated in a theological symphony that reflects the fullness and unity of life in the Spirit to the glory of God.
"Even as many of the forms in which the church is clothed today are passing away, we do not live in fear and without hope. We await with anticipation the new forms in which we shall be clothed, knowing the paradox of our faith is that, in suffering with Christ, we are born to new life and to renewed vocation as the body of Christ." —Roy Medley, General Secretary, American Baptist Churches USA, and President, National Council of Churches (2014-15)
"What does God yearn for us? In response to that question and many more, from richly varied experiences, young adults beckon us into intergenerational dialogue. They do so with perspectives on the church that challenge, encourage, call for agitational imagination, and give hope in the God who is making all things new." —Rev. Mark S. Hanson, Former Presiding Bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
"In For Such a Time as This, Kathryn Lohre reaches her goal to bring together "sources of hope—inspiring visions for the future grounded in the practical realities of today." Diverse younger voices yearning for a transformative and imaginative church call upon all generations to journey together in nurturing that church. A compelling invitation into a future that is already at our doorsteps." —Sharon E. Watkins, General Minister and President, Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
Author Bio
Kathryn Mary Lohre is Executive for Ecumenical and Inter-Religious Relations in the office of the presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. From 2012-2013 she served as president of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA, as the first Lutheran and the youngest woman. Previously she served as assistant director of the Pluralism Project at Harvard University, a premier research project on religious diversity in the United States. Kathryn received her Master of Divinity from Harvard Divinity School in 2003. In May 2011, the Graduate Theological Foundation, Mishawaka, IN, conferred an honorary Doctor of Divinity to Kathryn, "in recognition of her contributions to women's interfaith issues and pluralism."