The Practicing Congregation: Imagining a New Old Church

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Summary: A Possible Solution
Review: As one who is trying to help develop a vision for a struggling(dying?) inner city Catholic church, I found Bass' insights very helpful. We are struggling to find ways to enflesh the Gospel in ways that speak to the people in our neighborhoods. I'm finding it involves lots of presence and listening-and huge amounts of waiting on God's plan and timing.And maybe, as the book suggests, delving more into the riches of our tradition.

Though I've often seen myself as somewhat of an iconoclast, I realized, as I read Bass' book, that it has been the intentional taking on of such practices as spiritual direction and the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius that have enlivened my spirit and given me courage and grace to stay the course. I'm now looking at practices that might speak to our people. They may very well be the keys to breathing new life into our congregation.


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Summary: Bass Speaks to the Joy of Intentional Christian Practices
Review: Diana Butler Bass' latest book is the first I have seen that recognizes and celebrates an important new development in American congregations. For years journalists and academics have been talking about Mainline Church decline but that has not been my experience. Since the 1990's I have been involved with congregations experimenting with new ways of being Christians together. The experiments have included different ways of worshiping and using group discernment in vestry (governing board for a congregation) meetings. In several congregations I have seen the celebration of Holy Week take on great significance as the people experience the Easter Story through ritual and worship. This vitality was not found in mega-churches or in old denominations trying to model themselves after seeker-churches. The Spirit is working in liberal-mainline churches across the country as Christians find new ways of making meaning in their lives through intentional, communal engagement with Christian practices. Diana Butler Bass's new book is the first book I have seen that recognizes this new development. Her research and analysis give us new language to talk about what is happening in our churches. New language and new metaphors allow us to speak hopefully about what God is doing in our congregations. Diana is a wonderful writer. This book is more academic than her earlier book, "Strength for the Journey," but her personal and poetic style is still quite evident. I bought five copies of this book to share with people in my church and friends in other churches.

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Summary: Thinking off the page
Review: I actually heard Dr. Butler Bass present this material at a clergy day in my diocese last year. Her work is both insightful and challenging. I especially appreciate her willingness to admit the shortcomings of her theories, not just gloss over them. The three-dimensional grid was particularly helpful, especially for those of us in the lower left quadrant -- progressive emergers. It can seem like a very lonely place indeed!

Kudos to Dr. Butler Bass on clarifying with some of the harder elements of the emerging post-modern church by not fearing to "complexify" the issues.