It's good to see a fellow theoblog mentioning work. (Book Review: Work Excellence) Work is the elephant in the Church's parlor. Most Christians spend most of their time at work, yet, rarely does one hear a sermon preached at church on the subject of work, nor are hymns relating to work sung, nor do churches equip their members very well for the working world. When work is mentioned it is usually in the context of a teaching on tithing or perhaps local evangelism. Work is for witnessing to co workers or for generating more money for church coffers. If work does have spiritual value, it seems its only for certain types like, the helping professions, nursing, teaching, etc. Money professions are full of worldly pitfalls. Worst of all is politics!
Here are some excellent books on work.
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For easy reading. By Wally Kroeker |
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A little more advanced.
Kirkland is a Car Dealer. "We spend most of our lives at work––teaching, cleaning, filing, building, and managing. Yet often Christians feel as if our "nine to five" employment possesses little relevance to their Sunday morning rituals. Nothing should be further from the truth. The everyday work of a Christian is our opportunity to serve and worship the Creator. With the proper perspective, work can be seen as a blessing from God. In Where’s God on Monday? the authors challenge their readers to reconnect the fragments of their "work" and "church" lives to uncover one life, sacred and productive." A lot more advanced. The Other Six Days: Vocation, Work, and Ministry in Biblical Perspective Stevens is a Professor in Marketplace Theology at Regent College. "Throughout history the church has been composed of two types of people—those who “do” ministry and those to whom it is “done.” In this provocative book R. Paul Stevens shows that the clergy-laity division has no basis in the New Testament and challenges all Christians to rediscover what it means to live daily as God’s people. Exploring the theological, structural, and cultural reasons for treating laypeople as the objects of ministry, Stevens argues against the idea of clericalism. All Christians are called to live in faith, hope, and love, and to do God’s work in the church and world. This biblical perspective has serious implications for the existing attitudes and practices of many churches as well as for our understanding of ministry. Stevens shows that the task of churches today is to equip people for ministry in their homes, workplaces, and neighborhoods. Written by a scholar and pastor well known as an active advocate for the whole people of God, this thought-provoking book—made even more useful with the inclusion of case studies and study questions at the end of each chapter—offers inspiring reading for anyone interested in what the Christian life holds for the other six days of the week. |
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Work in the Spirit: Toward a Theology of Work by Miroslav Volf Volf is a Professor of Theology at Yale Divinity School. Since the rise of modern industrial society, work has come to pervade and rule the lives of men and women. Although there have been many popular books and church documents on the Christian understanding of work, this is the first scholarly effort to articulate a developed Protestant theology of work. In Work in the Spirit, Miroslav Volf interprets work from a new perspective - in terms of the doctrine of the Holy Spirit. He exhaustively explores the nature of work in both capitalist and socialist societies and considers a variety of work, including industrial, agricultural, medical, political, and artistic work. Examining the importance of alienation in work in industrial and information societies (particularly in the relation of workers to management and technology), he analyzes various forms of such alienation, and elucidates the character of humane work. On the basis of the "pneumatological" theology of work that he develops, Volf rejects the traditional Protestant understanding of work as vocation, and takes the concept of charisma as the cornerstone for his theological reflection on work. He denies that one is "called" to do a particular work irrespective of one's inclinations, and asserts, instead, that it is our privilege to do the kind of work for which God's spirit has gifted us. All human work done in accordance with the will of God, Volf argues, is cooperation with God in the preservation and transformation of the world. For a longer review click here. |
