A Game-Changer for Churches: The Know Your Beliefs Report Church Answers has created a new tool for determining what the members of your congregation believe. Pastors and other church leaders can no longer assume that their congregations subscribe to orthodox beliefs as a number of recent surveys show that large numbers of American Christans are heterodox if not heretical in their beliefs. Syncretism, the blending of Christian beliefs and practices with non-Christian beliefs ad practices, is also on the rise. Optimistic Denominationalism Tim Challies offers an interesting perspective for vi ..read more

Doing More Together The way churches are affiliated has changed over the past 20 years. We used to identify churches according to their denominational affiliation; now we are more likely to find a church that affiliates with a network in the place of or in addition to a denomination. To understand how we got to this place, we need to wind back the clock to the late 1990s when two parallel trends emerged, danced around each other and finally intertwined. The church could increase resilience in survivors Communities can enhance resilience with supportive measures such as deliberate action to ..read more

Hiking, disc golf, flower arranging: UMC initiative connects people around non-church interests 'Fresh Expressions' is a denominational initiative intended to connect people who may not be interested in church but are interested in learning a new skill or making new friends. How evangelicals promoted, then abandoned environmental stewardship Rising temperatures made 2023 earth’s hottest year on record. Climate scientists say human activity increases heat-trapping gasses that contribute to weather-related disasters, which in 2022 forced more than 3 million Americans from their homes and cost ..read more

Welcome to Sundays at All Hallows. This Sunday is the Fourth Sunday of Easter, also known as Good Shepherd Sunday. The Gospel readings for this Sunday are traditionally taken from the “I am the Good Shepherd” discourse in the Gospel of John. Today's message looks at one way that we can search the Scriptures by looking for God's grace in every passage that we read. Readings: 1 John 3:16–24; John 10:11-18 Message: Looking for Grace in All the Right Places Link: https://allhallowsmurray.blogspot.com/2024/04/sundays-at-all-hallows-sunday-april-21.html Please feel free to share this link wit ..read more

Christianity's global centre has shifted, conference hears The Global Christian Forum's (GCF) fourth global gathering kicked off in Accra, Ghana, with an emphasis on major demographic shifts in global Christianity. With the theme That the world may know, the event held from April 16 to 20 brought together 240 participants from 60 different countries representing all major Christian traditions. Learning from Farmers: Innovation for Churches What are churches to do in this increasingly secular era? We can mourn the bygone era of high attendance and moan about how things are not like they used ..read more

The Blessing of Constraints Early in the pandemic, a friend recommended the book A Beautiful Constraint to me—a book for marketplace leaders that encourages them not to think like a victim when an unforeseen constraint happens, and not even to think like a neutralizer who simply works around the constraint, but to think like a transformer and view the constraint as a gift. The book helped me ask the question: “How can the pandemic actually help us launch new congregations?” Near Chicago, a Lutheran church finds new life at the YMCA A struggling Lutheran church has found new life by giving i ..read more

Welcome to Thursday evenings at All Hallows. Christians are called to make a difference in the world, in their community and in the wider world. They are called to be salt, light, and yeast. Reading: 1 Thessalonians 5:11-18 Message: Are Christians known by their love for one another? Link: https://allhallowsmurray.blogspot.com/2024/04/thursday-evenings-at-all-hallows_18.html Please feel free to share this link with anyone who may be interested. If you are new to Thursday Evenings at All Hallows, you may find these directions helpful: -When you open the link to a video in a new tab, ch ..read more

Ryan Burge explains ‘casual dechurching’ The majority of Americans leaving the church do so for rather humdrum reasons, sociologist of religion Ryan Burge said during a recent episode of the “CBF Podcast.” This phenomenon is known as “casual dechurching” and is typically overlooked because it’s not as headline-grabbing as disputes over gender and politics, said Burge, a political science professor at Eastern Illinois University known for his books and surveys tracking U.S. religious trends. Finding the gospel amid a ‘churchgoing bust’ In a recent Atlantic essay titled “The True Cost of the ..read more

What Will It Take to Turn Around Your Church? What will it take to turn around your church? It’s time to evaluate your priorities, inspire your team, equip the church, and set the course. ‘Weaponizing’ Clergy Disciplinary Canons for Ideological Purposes In late 2023, at least four Episcopal priests faced or were threatened with serious disciplinary charges related to their participation in a discussion group for theologically conservative Christians. The priests have separately told TLC that they believe they were targeted by a progressive activist seeking to drive conservatives out of the ..read more

Gen Z and the Draw to Serious Faith Young people who visit a church expect to experience, well, whatever church is. The strangeness is the appeal. Now that fewer people have any family background in church, no one hears a worship band cover an Imagine Dragons song and thinks, “Wow! This isn’t my Grandma’s church!”—in part because Grandma is in her 60s and never darkened the door either. For Ministry Success, Leverage Strengths and Recruit for Weaknesses Here’s one simple strategy for increasing longevity in ministry: Leverage your strengths and recruit for your weaknesses. Why Is Everyone ..read more