Features
A pastor’s place: All ministry is local
Family, by Thompson
Love Ran Red, by Chris Tomlin
Solemn Meant Walks, by Solemn Meant Walks
Layered, dense, and driving, this Chicago-based outfit recalls British new wave bands Lush, the Cocteau Twins, and Joy Division. Though her vocals sit low in the mix, singer and songwriter Ami Gloria shows ample confidence. Light also pierces the dark textures, as on “Highway”: “Open your big bark eyes / Upon that big dark highway / I’ll be walking along.”
The Problem with Living in the Moment, by The Grownup Noise
“My Ride’s Almost Here” is a chamber-pop gem à la Nick Drake, but the rock mode of this Boston band works equally well. “The Fight Against Paranoia” rides on tumbling rhythm, and “Try This Again” melds rustic accordion to scratchy, catchy guitar riffs. Paul Hansen’s vocals telegraph literate lyrics, as on “Astronomy as Therapy”: “The further out you go, the less you feel alone / The further out you go, the less you fear alone.” Highly recommended.
Bridge to God
The Whole Night Thru, by Sam Llanas
Those who know Llanas from his time in the BoDeans will recognize his voice: still sharp and tough, yet infused with urgency on the leadoff track “Déjà Vu” and the plaintive rocker “The Best I Can.” On the tender side, “I’m Still Alive” could serve as Llanas’s theme song, given the ups and downs of his former band: “I’m grateful for another day / Another chance to find my way.”
Character traits: A model for learning service and responsibility
Laws of Expeditionary Learning
Read the main article on the Expeditionary Learning model.
Seven Laws of Salem
These educational principles, influential in the development of Expeditionary Learning in the United States, were developed by Kurt Hahn at the Salem Castle School in Germany in about 1930.
1. Provide young people the chance to discover themselves and face challenges.
2. Provide young people with the experience of both victory and defeat.
Truce: Churches engage with gangs in El Salvador
Awake, by Elise Erikson Barrett
On her debut, this Duke Divinity School grad from South Carolina delivers inspired surprises to engage and delight the listener. It’s a safe bet you’ve never heard “Nearer, My God, to Thee” in an acoustic blues setting, or the Police’s “Invisible Sun” arranged for sultry piano and violin. Yet Barrett pulls it together with smoky-sweet vocals. She’s a creative songwriter as well, as on “Nineveh,” a minor-key movie in sound:
Books
The Paradox of Generosity, by Christian Smith and Hilary Davidson
Christian Smith and Hilary Davidson's book is a tale of two ways of life: with generosity and without.
Doing the Math of Mission, by Gil Rendle
Progressive Evangelicals and the Pursuit of Social Justice, by Brantley W. Gasaway
Brantley Gasaway contends that the progressive evangelical movement "stands as strong as ever." Which is to say, not very strong at all.
The Great Reformer, by Austen Ivereigh
Austen Ivereigh's book on Francis has caused some controversy. It's also the most important biography of Jorge Mario Bergoglio yet published.
Proverbs and Ecclesiastes, by Amy Plantinga Pauw
All the reform possible
It’s easy to imagine health-care reform that does more than the ACA. It's almost impossible to see it getting enacted, as Steven Brill's book reminds us.
Departments
Shtetl Revealed | Language of the Village (inset), by Tom Glick
Wearable worship
Assyrians under siege
Threat to affordable care
The path of forgiveness
Breaking better
News
PCUSA changes marriage definition in its constitution
Jean Vanier of L’Arche communities wins Templeton Prize
Vanier said the the $1.7 million prize would expand the international networks he founded for people with intellectual disabilities and their famillies.
Lyle Schaller, leading church consultant, dies at age 91
Cases from apartheid era resurface in South Africa
Zaytuna becomes first accredited Muslim college
Hindu nationalists push education agenda in India’s government
Pakistan Christians riot after churches bombed
Social survey shows drop in religious participation over past two years
Connecting teens to build peace
Ann Kansfield, Reformed pastor, becomes FDNY's first female chaplain
Lectionary
April 26, Fourth Sunday of Easter: Psalm 23
