[Dialogue] A renewed church in Minneapolis?

[Janice Ulangca]

Hi Dick Kroeger,

I'm digesting two books about vital churches - telling their stories, identifying their characteristics and describing their journeys.  Diana Butler Bass' 2006 book Christianity for the Rest of Us (the rest of us - not featured in the media as conservatives often are) looks at mainline Protestant churches that describe themselves as moderate to liberal-progressive  where "new things are happening".  Her team studied 10 congregations intensively, and 40 more to provide validating data.  All have found "new vitality - spiritual depth, renewed identity and mission, and often, numerical growth - through an intentional and reflexive engagement with Christian tradition."   This three-year research project, funded by the Lilly Endowment, is a kind of "in search of excellence" that cuts against conventional belief that only conservative churches are growing. She says the encounters with these congregations also contributed much to her own journey.  Among the 40 congregations is Westminster Presbyterian Church in Minneapolis.

Paul Wilkes book Excellent Catholic Parishes (2001) tells the stories of eight outstanding parishes - and how they were brought from business as usual or even back from dying into vitality that is transforming lives. The back of the book has 59 pages of  additional "excellent parishes" listed by state. From that state list, 3 are in Minneapolis.
St. Olaf and St. Joan of Arc are listed, plus St. Stephen's which has "Masses in Spanish and English; ministry for adults with special mental and physical needs; strong social justice and outreach programs, including shelter for homeless men and residence for Native American women recovering from chemical dependency..."  St. Joan's has "television show for generation Xers; retreats four times per year; Faith & Work breakfast series with nationally known speakers..."   These might just be busy parishes - you'd have to see. 

Janice Ulangca
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: KroegerD at aol.com 
  To: dialogue at wedgeblade.net 
  Sent: Monday, March 10, 2008 5:32 PM
  Subject: Re: [Dialogue] Did NOT WORK????


  If there is a "renewed" church in the Minneapolis area, I'd like to know the name.

  Dick Kroeger

  In a message dated 3/10/2008 7:59:25 A.M. Central Daylight Time, rcwmbw at yahoo.com writes:
    Where do we find the "church" (ala Niebuhr) today?  It is seems not to be, with some noteworthy exceptions, the cigar boxes with steeples, and I am "in a church" to use Dick's words.  Randy

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