Books published by Abingdon Press

Designed for use with the One journal and video (DVD or Mp4), The Leader Guide helps leaders facilitate a small group using Onecurriculum. It contains instructions on how to use the interactivejournal and video in each session, as well as additional teachingcontent from the author.

No figure in history has received more attention, and been less understood, than Jesus of Nazareth. Too much of what has been written recently portrays Jesus as a vaguely kind and friendly person whose message sometimes pleases but never challenges us, whose presence might comfort but never completes us. That Jesus, in other words, looks a lot like we do, just with better manners. Meeting that Jesus for the first time, the reader is tempted to ask "e;"e;Why all the fuss? What here is worth devoting my life to?"e;"e;Very little about that Jesus is worth it, says Will Willimon. Yet there is another Jesus, the mysterious preacher from Nazareth who continues to invite men and women to claim the true meaning of their lives by giving their lives away in service to God and others. This Jesus continues to fascinate and compel us, in spite of all the attempts to domesticate his message and put distance between us and the call to follow. In his radical teachings, his self-sacrificial death, and his liberating life beyond death, this Jesus teaches and shows us the true meaning and purpose of our own lives.

Do Christians bring a unique, scriptural understanding of social justice to bear on the ills of society? Would such an understanding reshape the way Christians engage and partner with others working to create a more just world?

We are not all the same. The time has come for us to honestly name the ways we are different and similar so that we can serve together in unity, grace and trust. Women in ministry experience unique challenges in their church settings which continue to hinder their vocational, professional, and personal success. Women in ministry need a trusted and comprehensive resource not only to be able to survive but to thrive in their places of call. She provides theoretical, theological, and practical frameworks and strategies for flourishing as a woman in ministry and engages critical reflection on the practice of ministry in light of current feminist theory, biblical interpretation, and experience. Covering everything from biblical arguments for and against women in the church to what not to wear, this book offers background information and tools for negotiating the many and varied issues that woman in ministry face, including leadership, the authority and office of the clergy, and structures and power in the church. A trusted and comprehensive resource for women in ministry, equipping them to thrive in their places of call, and for the men who serve alongside them."e;For women in ministry, one 'a-ha' moment after another spills from the pages of this book. Decades after ordination opened for women in mainline churches, the struggle for acceptance and equality goes on. This is an important book which narrates the deep costs of sexism and imagines a new form of women's leadership rooted and grounded in authentic love and genuine hospitality. In telling the truth about persistent sexism in the church, Karoline Lewis, paradoxically, blesses her readers with hope. This hope emerges in naming the challenges for women leaders and then pointing the way forward."e; - Leanne Van Dyk, President and Professor of Theology, Columbia Theological Seminary, Decatur, GA

We live in a wired world where 24/7 digital connectivity is increasingly the norm. Christian megachurch communities often embrace this reality wholeheartedly while more traditional churches often seem hesitant and overwhelmed by the need for an interactive website, a Facebook page and a twitter feed. This book accepts digital connectivity as our reality, but presents a vision of how faith communities can utilize technology to better be the body of Christ to those who are hurting while also helping followers of Christ think critically about the limits of our digital attachments. This book begins with a conversion story of a non-cell phone owning, non-Facebook using religion professor judgmental of the ability of digital tools to enhance relationships. A stage IV cancer diagnosis later, in the midst of being held up by virtual communities of support, a conversion occurs: this religion professor benefits in embodied ways from virtual sources and wants to convert others to the reality that the body of Christ can and does exist virtually and makes embodied difference in the lives of those who are hurting. The book neither uncritically embraces nor rejects the constant digital connectivity present in our lives. Rather it calls on the church to a) recognize ways in which digital social networks already enact the virtual body of Christ; b) tap into and expand how Christ is being experienced virtually; c) embrace thoughtfully the material effects of our new augmented reality, and c) influence utilization of technology that minimizes distraction and maximizes attentiveness toward God and the world God loves.

The devastating earthquake is just two years past, but the city of San Francisco is still trying to recover. Destruction of this magnitude is not so easy to overcome-and neither are the past regrets shadowing Elizabeth King's hopeful future.Hoping to right her wrongs, Elizabeth dedicates herself to helping girls rescued from slavery in Chinatown brothels, even if it means putting her own life at risk to sneak through the gloomy alleys and rooftops where dangers lurk.Putting her life on the line for a worthy cause is admirable. But opening her heart is even more terrifying. So when Elizabeth meets attorney, Charles McKinleya man who dreams of reforming San Francisco's crooked politicsElizabeth begins to doubt: Can she maintain her pretense and hide her past? Or will her secret jeopardize both their futures?

A History of Preaching brings together narrative history and primary sources to provide the most comprehensive guide available to the story of the church's ministry of proclamation. Bringing together an impressive array of familiar and lesser-known figures, Edwards paints a detailed, compelling picture of what it has meant to preach the gospel. Pastors, scholars, and students of homiletics will find here many opportunities to enrich their understanding and practice of preaching. Ecumenical in scope, fair-minded in presentation, appreciative of the contributions that all the branches of the church have made to the story of what it means to develop, deliver, and listen to a sermon, A History of Preaching will be the definitive resource for anyone who wishes to preach or to understand preaching's role in living out the gospel. Volume 2 contains primary source material on preaching drawn from the entire scope of the church's twenty centuries. The author has written an introduction to each selection, placing it in its historical context and pointing to its particular contribution. Each chapter in Volume 2 is geared to its companion chapter in Volume 1's narrative history. Volume 1, available separately as 9781501833779, contains Edwards's magisterial retelling of the story of Christian preaching's development from its Hellenistic and Jewish roots in the New Testament, through the late-twentieth century's discontent with outdated forms and emphasis on new modes of preaching such as narrative. Along the way the author introduces us to the complexities and contributions of preachers, both with whom we are already acquainted, and to whom we will be introduced here for the first time. Origen, Chrysostom, Augustine, Bernard, Aquinas, Luther, Calvin, Wesley, Edwards, Rauschenbusch, Barth; all of their distinctive contributions receive careful attention. Yet lesser-known figures and developments also appear, from the ninth-century reform of preaching championed by Hrabanus Maurus, to the reference books developed in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries by the mendicant orders to assist their members' preaching, to Howell Harris and Daniel Rowlands, preachers of the eighteenth-century Welsh revival, to Helen Kenyon, speaking as a layperson at the 1950 Yale Beecher lectures about the view of preaching from the pew. "...'This work is expected to be the standard text on preaching for the next 30 years, ' says Ann K. Riggs, who staffs the NCC's Faith and Order Commission. Author Edwards, former professor of preaching at Seabury-Western Theological Seminary, is co-moderator of the commission, which studies church-uniting and church-dividing issues. 'A History of Preaching is ecumenical in scope and will be relevant in all our churches; we all participate in this field, ' says Riggs...." from EcuLink, Number 65, Winter 2004-2005 published by the National Council of Churches

They are simple phrases. They sound Christian--like something you might find in the Bible. We''ve all heard these words. Maybe we''ve said them. They capture some element of truth, yet they miss the point in important ways.

If you were to ask ten people, Who started Christianity? you might hear ten voices giving the same quick response: Jesus. But those ten people would be wrong. Jesus wasn''t a Christian. Jesus lived and died as a Jew. Understanding the Jewishness of Jesus is the secret to knowing him better and understanding his message in the twenty-first century.

Pennel offers an indispensable guide for clergy and laity serving people in grief that includes practical tips with prayers, readings, and services. (Church Life)

In our media-saturated world, images and messages about appearance, love, and romance bombard teenagers daily. These often unrealistic and unhealthy representations of the normal teen life can be confusing to teenagers as they attempt to follow Christ. Inside Out challenges the values of the world and affirms that our real value begins in understanding that we have a God who loves us. Over the course of the study, teenagers will learn to see themselves and how they live as a reflection of the spiritual life happening deep inside their hearts and minds. This study isn't designed to give answers about holiness, forgiveness, humility, and giving thanks as much as it is designed to challenge youth to resolve to develop those character traits from the deepest part of their beings and outward into the world. The Groove: Inside Out Student Journal will challenge youth to consider their own core character and learn to make choices that are consistent with their faith. The Groove Bible study series invites teens to learn the essentials of their faith, own their story, and engage the world in serving Jesus. Each topical study consists of four weekly sessions that are easy to lead and relate to life issues teens face. With up to 48 weeks available, Groove is great for Sunday and mid-week gatherings for both large and small groups as well as retreats. The student journal contains session-specific questions, background information, and daily devotions for each session.

The life of the Christian is marked by disciplines, practices, and commitments that help shape the foundation of our faith. So how do we help youth encounter and choose to embrace some of these practices as they move into a faith that they claim as their own? The Life is a four-week study designed to help youth consider spiritual practices and what those practices can mean in their lives. Each week, they will consider the practices of being committed to a church family, of prayer, of giving, and of sharing their faith with others. The ideas and lessons are reinforced with exercises and daily devotions, found in the Groove: The Life Student Journal, designed to help them reflect and apply these disciplines in their own lives. The Groove Bible study series invites teens to learn the essentials of their faith, own their story, and engage the world in serving Jesus. Each topical study consists of four weekly sessions that are easy to lead and relate to life issues teens face. With up to 48 weeks available, Groove is great for Sunday and mid-week gatherings for both large and small groups as well as retreats.The student journal contains session-specific questions, background information, and daily devotions for each session.

When beliefs, attitudes, and values line up with actions there is character. Helping teenagers grow in Christlike character is no easy task. How do we help teenagers follow Jesus and take on his character? It takes practice and the commitment of their church family to support, encourage, and celebrate the "wins" with them along this exciting journey of growth. Character is a four-week Bible study designed to help teens develop Christ-like behavior in their daily lives. Teenagers will consider the ideas of truth, how they use their words, how they view their possessions, and what it is to be a person of integrity. The study is reinforced with daily devotions and exercises found in the Groove: Character Student Journal. Helping youth embrace character and the practice of growing their spiritual lives independent from group study can be a powerful combination. The Groove Bible study series invites teens to learn the essentials of their faith, own their story, and engage the world in serving Jesus. Each topical study consists of four weekly sessions that are easy to lead and relate to life issues teens face. With up to 48 weeks available, Groove is great for Sunday and mid-week gatherings for both large and small groups as well as retreats.The student journal contains session-specific questions, background information, and daily devotions for each session.