Ethics Considered

This is the first in a series of video posts from the authors of Bivocational and Beyond: Educating for Thriving Multivocational Ministry. This book is an edited volume for church leaders and those that teach and support them. Contributors include bivocational pastors and other reflective practitioners as well as theological educators and researchers. The book … Read more

I first issued a call to scholars to reenvision the field of Christian ethics in April 2018. The resulting conversation proved thought-provoking and timely. The high quality of published papers from that collection are inspiring. Yet, the world looks quite different now, three and a half years later. In the face of multiple global pandemics … Read more

The Rev. Dr. George E. Morris, founding director of the World Methodist Evangelism Institute, died last week at the age of 86. I did not know Morris personally, though I learned from his legacy as a scholar and church leader when studying congregational vitality. As a tribute, this post provides a glimpse of his vision … Read more

United Methodists are facing the very real possibility that General Conference will not meet in 2022, as scheduled. David Scott explored the near-term implications of not meeting in 2021, examining denominational division in one post and budgets, boards, and bishops in another. The following discussion is becoming my annual reminder to the people of The … Read more

Every once in a while, I read a book that I think every pastor should read. This review is about one of them. Reclaiming Rural offers a remarkably hopeful and grounded approach to church leadership. Rejecting simplistic narratives of vitality and decline, Allen Stanton provides a deeply Wesleyan approach to evangelism, mission, and community development, … Read more

Why is The United Methodist Church in decline? And what can be done about it? These questions are the focus of a series of articles by David Scott, webmaster of UM&Global. The theme of the series, “The UMC and Institutional Decline,” is complicated. Scott presses his readers to consider the issue from many perspectives. The … Read more

The Rev. Traci West is a giant among scholar-activists in religion. A professor at Drew Theological School, she has devoted her career to addressing violence against women, particularly Black women. And she has greatly informed my own work as a Christian ethicist. If you have ever heard the term “victim-survivor,” you too have been touched … Read more

Two international Latina leaders present “Peace Has a Woman’s Name” (La Paz Tiene Nombre de Mujer), a bilingual forum and discussion on Friday, Oct. 1 at 4:00pm in historic Santee Chapel on the Lancaster Theological Seminary campus. All are welcome. (Face masks are required indoors.) The Rev. Dr. Elizabeth Soto has served the Mennonite Church … Read more

“Don’t ask us to talk about money,” many church leaders say. “Just let us do ministry.” There are few topics that raise such emotion and engender so much silence as money and ministry. Pastors miss an opportunity for ministry, though, if they are not able to narrate their congregational budget in missional terms. The Pennsylvania … Read more

Welcome home, Bishop John Schol! The Eastern Pennsylvania Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church officially welcomed our new bishop during a celebratory service, September 18. Participants gathered at the United Methodist Church of West Chester to join in song, prayer, and communion for a live-streamed service. Diverse leaders throughout the conference offered signs of … Read more