November 1991

John M. Fowler

Dick Tibbits

The toughest, most complex issues for a minister often involve sexuality. Strong emotional drives can easily alter one's reasoning, making it difficult to sort out needs, desires, and even know right from wrong. Ma/at offers direct, open dialogue on a variety of subjects related to human sexuality. I found her question-and-answer style straight forward and informative. The author organizes her questions into six major categories. The first has to do with communicating… Continue reading...

William H. Shea

Basically concerned with postbiblical interpretation and how it developed, this book begins with the biblical narrative about Joseph. Kugel touches briefly on the story's content from the Bible and then focuses on what postbiblical sources did with this narrative. He also analyzes the story of Joseph's bones being carried to Canaan for burial. Kugel explains the evolving relationships of literary sources and how people elaborated on them over a course of time.… Continue reading...

Kristen Johnson Ingram

Written for pastors who counsel, the author sees pastoral counseling as a form of psychotherapy in which relationship is the essence of counseling. Dayringer holds up Jesus as the minister's ideal counselor, who does not emphasize external behavior but seeks to know the inner person. He proposes that pastor-counselee relationships be marked by nine prerequisites. Pastoral counselors should: (1) have responded to divine calling; (2) be given built-in authority… Continue reading...

Marie Spangler

A book like Laura is long overdue. In an age when the media bombards us with horror stories of rape and missing persons, we need the kind of information contained in this book. The author, a pastor's wife, describes her experience as a rape victim and that of others. More than a book on rape, the book contains valuable information on child abuse, incest, and battered wives. Sisk gives advice to victims on how to cope, listing agencies, books, and places they may… Continue reading...

Victor Elliot

Has the Episcopal Church's search for a better way to deploy its clergy been the answer to everyone's prayers? In 1969 the church replaced the ''old buddy network'' method of negotiating a new pastorate with the Clergy Deployment Board and its computer clergy data bank. The authors, after retirement from parish ministry, took a two-year trek around the United States, armed with a tape recorder and a word processor. They came back with a 220-page book full of stories… Continue reading...

Angela Elwell Hunt

Youth Evangelism is a readable how-to book for anyone who wishes to work with young people and lead them to the gospel. Relying heavily on Youth for Christ material (Veerman is their national campus life director), the book explains how adults can meet, relate to, understand, and reach today's youth. If you've felt an inward yearning to work with teenagers but didn't feel con fident in your abilities, this book will prepare you for the world of adoles cents. Continue reading...

G. Tom Carter

Kauffman tells of his search for a better way to establish a base for financing the educational and religious work of the church. The author has worked in the financial area for seven different denominations. In Managers With God, he outlines the stewardship principles that he found successful in his 45-plus years of experience. In the chapter "Creative Vehicles," Kauffman includes excellent material on the techniques of deferred giving. This book can be an effective… Continue reading...