Hi Tom, I know a couple of congregations who have found Bill Loader's book "Dear Kim, this is what I believe" an excellent starting point for reading and reflection.
The whole book is now available for free download at http://wwwstaff.murdoch.edu.au/~loader/DearKim.htm. It's slightly revised from the now out-of-print published edition. (and some chapters are available in French also, just in case some of the congregations in the Mid-Lachlan Mission Area are more comfortable with that...) Cheryl __________________________________ Cheryl Lawrie Children and Families Coordinator Uniting Church in Australia, Synod of Victoria and Tasmania http://cecm.victas.uca.org.au Phone +61 3 9852 7433 Fax +61 3 9852 7483 On Monday, October 13, 2003 9:13 AM, Tom Stuart [SMTP:[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > I think one of the things that we have learned through this debate about > homosexuality is the theological and biblical illiteracy of our > congregations. It is what I have experienced across the Mid-Lachlan Mission > Area, and I notice a reference to it in a resolution of the NSW Synod. > > > > It is not a new realisation that the easy reading material that fills so > much of our Christian Bookshops is the Christian version of "get rich quick" > crap. Most of it seems to be some version of "providence theology". > > The vast majority of people in the congregations where I minister find the > more serious theological material inaccessible. It is too hard. > > I am wondering what books people have found that are easy to read but draw > on the rich tradition of faith that is concerned about the priorities of > Jesus ministry, opening the grace of God to everyone, a priority to the > poor, subverting domination systems, and finding hope in the hopeless. > These may be in the form of novels, or parables, children's books, videos, > faith sharing books. I feel I need to provide some guidance in selection of > reading material around here so that I don't spend all my time battling on > Sunday with all the garbage that genuinely committed Christians have been > reading through the week!! > > I'm sure these books are out there. > > > > Tom > > > > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > www.milman.uniting.com.au > > Ph: 6862 5502 Mobile: 0427 625 502 > > 14 Bushman St > > Parkes NSW 2870 > > > > 'Comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable'. > > I prefer to die living than to live dying! > > "War is a poor chisel with which to carve out the future." - Martin Luther > King, Jr > > > > > > _____ > > I've stopped 187 spam messages. You can too! > One month FREE spam protection at www.cloudmark.com > <http://www.cloudmark.com/spamnet?v1> > <http://www.cloudmark.com/spamnet?v1> Cloudmark SpamNet - Join the fight > against spam! > > > > > > << File: ATT00005.html >> << File: image001.gif >> << File: sanitizer.log >> ------------------------------------------------------ - You are subscribed to the mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] - To unsubscribe, email [EMAIL PROTECTED] and put in the message body 'unsubscribe insights-l' (ell, not one (1)) See: http://nsw.uca.org.au/insights-l-information.htm ------------------------------------------------------
