Andy Rowell | Church Leadership Conversations

Director of Youth Ministries position at Blacknall Presbyterian Church in Durham, NC

Related update April 13, 2008
It was announced today at Blacknall, that my wife, Amy Rowell, will be the new Director of Children's Ministry (20 hours per week) starting May 5th.  Amy has a BA in Christian Education and Psychology from Taylor University and an M.Div. from Regent College.  She worked as a director of children's ministry at Granville Chapel in Vancouver, British Columbia from 1999-2002 and served as a professor of Christian Educational Ministries at Taylor University from 2005-2007.  Amy and I hope that Blacknall finds a great Director of Youth Ministries.  See below.  

Original Post April 6, 2008

There is a full-time youth ministries position open at Blacknall Presbyterian Church, the evangelically-minded PCUSA congregation, where Amy and I are members.  They are only taking applications until April 30, 2008 so forward this to people who are interested right away.  I have placed the official job position announcement at the bottom of this blog post.

June 1, 2008 UPDATE: The deadline has been extended.  See new job description below. 

Why Blacknall would be a great place to serve.
I have listed four reasons below about why Blacknall is a great church.  Maybe I can help persuade some great people to apply.   Below my reasons I have posted the official announcement and details. 

1. It is a theologically strong congregation. Blacknall is a very evangelical PCUSA congregation.  The PCUSA denomination is more liberal on the whole than the Presbyterian Church of America but at Blacknall, Scripture is taken very seriously.  Music and sermons are theologically rich.  Long-time Senior Pastor Allan Poole is a Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary graduate who regularly takes summer courses at my alma mater Regent College in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.  Allan teaches a course called "The Pastor's Vocation" at Duke Divinity School with Dean Greg Jones and Dr. Susan Jones.  A couple of Duke Divinity School faculty, a number of theology and biblical studies doctoral students at Duke, and a few parachurch staff attend Blacknall.  The congregation also has high degree of involvement in ministries of social justice and missions.
2. It is a growing congregation.  They have had great growth in the number of youth involved and so they have made the decision to increase their staff in youth ministry.  According to the 2006 PCUSA online statistics, Blacknall's worship attendance was 535 then.  It is probably about the same or larger now. 
3. It is has a great location right by Duke.  Blacknall is situated one block from Duke University, next door to the cheapest (and some say the best) burritos in town at Cosmic Cantina, across the street from the trendy Whole Foods, and just off 9th Street (a great little strip of coffee shops and restaurants).
4. It has a family atmosphere.  Though with an attendance over 500 Blacknall is getting large, it still has a family feel.  One example of this is that congregation members are given the opportunity to stand up and share prayer requests with the rest of the congregation before the Prayers of Thanksgiving and Intercession in the worship service.  The congregation has a mix of older and younger people.  Worship services have a mix of traditional liturgical elements such as the Lord's prayer and Nicene/Apostle's Creed but are otherwise quite informal.  The pastor wears a tie and blazer but unlike many other PCUSA congregations, not a robe.   The congregation dresses informally.  The church permits both infant baptisms and baby dedications - many PCUSA churches just have infant baptisms.  This demonstrates the number of people who attend Blacknall from free church backgrounds. 
   

The official posting from the April 6, 2008 Blacknall bulletin:
Director of Youth Ministries Job Announcement - Blacknall Memorial Presbyterian Church is seeking qualified candidates for a full-time Director of Youth Ministries position to provide successful leadership and vision for middle and high school students.  This individual will have primary programming and ministry responsibilities for all aspects of the high school ministry, work with an existing part-time middle school staff position, develop a comprehensive vision and sequence for Christian growth, and provide direction and leadership for this important relational ministry.  For more information, please contact Artie Kamiya, Search Committee Chair (919-818-6486). Closing Date: April 30.

The official posting from the June 15, 2008 Blacknall bulletin:
Director of Youth Ministries Job Announcement - Blacknall Memorial Presbyterian Church is seeking qualified candidates for a full-time Director of Youth Ministries position to provide (1) a programmatic ministry to our high school students, (2) work with the existing part-time middle school staff position, and (3) provide overall direction to the middle and high school youth programs.  This individual will be responsible for supporting a committed cadre of approximately 20 adult volunteer youth leaders, developing a comprehensive vision and sequence for Christian growth for approximately 75 middle/high school youth, making curriculum decisions for Sunday morning and Sunday evening youth groups, and providing direct service for this important relational ministry.  For more complete information (job description and qualifications), please contact Artie Kamiya, Search Committee Chair (919-818-6486); artie@greatactivities.net Applications will be accepted through July 15, 2008.

Youth and Children's Ministry Positions Open

My friend Rob Rienow, Family Pastor at Wheaton Bible Church in Wheaton, IL, has asked me to spread the world about some positions that they have open in youth and children's ministry.  They are particularly looking for people who are interested in a home centered approach to youth and children's ministry.  He has invited me to post his letter on the blog. 

Rob is an outstanding leader, supervisor and speaker.  He has been at Wheaton Bible for fifteen years.  You can learn more about him and his philosophy at his Visionary Parenting site or by listening to WBC sermons.   

Wheaton Bible Church is the church where I grew up and my mom still attends there.  It has about 2200 people in attendance.  They are currently building a new facility.

I have posted previously about How to Search for a Christian Ministry Position

Letter from Rob Rienow

Dear friends,

I wanted you to know that Wheaton Bible Church is currently looking three major positions in our Children's and Youth Ministries. I thought that you might be able to help!

We are committed to finding people who are already familiar with and committed to a theology of ministry that puts parents first in the discipleship process. We need people who believe their primary job as youth and children's ministers is to inspire and equip families become centers. Ben Freudenberg calls this "home centered, church supported" discipleship. That is what we are after as we move into the future at Wheaton Bible Church.

Here are the three positions that we are looking for right now:

1. Elementary Director - serving on the larger Childrens and Family team, supporting the parents of our elementary school kids - 400 kids with their families.
2. High School Pastor - serving on the larger Student and Family team, supporting the parents of our high schoolers - 350 students with their families.
3. Girls Discipleship Director - serving on the larger Student and Family team, supporting the parents of our teen (both hs and jr) girls - 225 girls with their families.

If you are interested in any additional information about these positions, or you know potential candidates that you can send my way, I would be grateful for your help. Feel free to email me back, or direct potential candidates to email me their resume at rrienow@wheatonbible.org

God's Love,

Rob Rienow
Family Pastor
Wheaton Bible Church
www.wheatonbible.org
www.visionaryparenting.com

How to Lead An Impressive Bible Study

I have a friend who is trying to get a pastoral position at a church.  He needs to lead a Bible study with the board of elders for 60 minutes as part of his job interview.  Below is the advice I gave him.   

Dear __________,

This year I have graded hundreds of Bible studies. 

I have seen three problems over and over again.

1. The leader doesn't understand the flow of Life-Bible-Life and does all Bible study questions. 

2. It goes super long and so you are never get to discussing how this relates to life.  Often the leader is a bit afraid of talking about the nitty gritty so this adds to the frequency of the lengthening of the Bible study portion. 

3. No one talks because the leader doesn't ask good open questions. 

For the flow of their Bible Study, I encourage my students to use Thomas Groome's Shared Christian Praxis Five Movements from his books Christian Religious Education and Sharing Faith. 

Here's my free-wheeling description of it. 

I hope it gives you some ideas as to the structure of your time.

1. 5 minutes. Easy activity - quote, news story, movie clip, personal story, survey, etc about the topic.  Then gently ask them for what they think about the topic "off the top of their heads."  Or better yet, ask what other people typically think about the topic.  Let this be fairly light.  Ease them into it.  E.g. "What do your coworkers think about spirituality?  What are some of the spiritual movies of the last few years?  (Sixth Sense, Chronicles of Narnia, The Passion, The Village, Da Vinci Code, Superman Returns).  Why do people say they are spiritual?"  Or, "What superheros do you remember growing up?  Have you enjoyed any of the movies about superheros (X Men, Superman, Spiderman, Batman, etc.).  What is the appeal of those movies? (the triumph of good over evil; interesting talents)"   

2. 5 minutes. Engage a little of discussion about the importance of the issue.  What are the consequences if people think that about this topic?  What if everybody did that?   Why do people typically have that view of the subject?  Where do you think those ideas come from?  E.g. "How do children learn about spirituality?  What happens if children get confused views of spirituality? (Columbine? Confused by predators on the internet?)  What efforts do public schools do at teaching ethics and values? (No drunk driving, no cheating, etc.)"

3. 15 minutes. What does the Scripture say about this topic? Your four sentence background summary.  Then read the text - ask for volunteer(s).  Have three people read if you think there are three main sections of the passage.  Give people a copy of the text to mark up (NRSV, NIV, ESV, TNIV).  It will typically take people some time to get a handle on the passage so you want to faciliate them diving in and discovering it.  Have people pair up and share.  Ask, what are you think are the most important words? Or what do you think is the most important sentence?  Open questions are especially good.  Paraphrase your favorite sentence.  What questions do you have?  It is much easier for most people to share with a partner rather than the whole group and it facilitates them getting into the Scriptures themselves.  Then have some people (if they are willing) share with the whole group some of the main insights they had shared with their partner.  Hopefully through these questions you are guiding people to the main point of the passage with maybe a couple of subpoints.  When the light goes on and people get that you want to move on. Your summary statement: What I am hearing is . . . What I was thinking about this earlier, this is how I would summarize it.  Then . . . ok, we have begun to talk about it but let's talk a bit more . . . what does this mean? 

4. 10 minutes. So what?  How does this insights from Scripture relate to what we see on TV?  How does this insight from the Scriptures affect our coworkers?  What might be different about their lives if they knew this?  How might our church be different if we knew this?  What does this text remind you of?  Who in your life could really use this lesson?  If  . . . is what this passage is teaching, what is one thing that this affects in daily life?  Take 60 seconds and draw a picture or symbol of something and share it with your partner.  E.g. At the beginning of our discussion we talked about kids and how they learn ethics and morals in our culture - from TV and superheros and worse.  What does our text have to say about that issue today?  Anything? 

5. 10 minutes.  What is the new thought for you today?  What do you plan on contemplating the rest of this week?  What part might you memorize?  What attitude might this change?  How will you act differently this week?  Give them a small piece of paper with the text for the day, date and room for them to draw or write anything they like.  Give them 2 minutes to think, or draw or pray.  End by saying . . . what are some things that we can pray about . . . anything . . . how can we pray for all of us concerning this . . . what are other side comments have we brought up tonight that we can bring to the Lord in prayer.  Have short prayer. 

45 minutes scheduled.  If you go over a little somewhere that's ok if the discussion is hot.  Aim to end at 4 minutes early (56 minutes total).

I often try to pair down the flow of the whole lesson to about 8 questions and print them out for people and that is for 1 1/2 hours.  You will probably be able to discuss about 6 questions I'd say in an hour. 

I hope that might give you a vision or at least some fresh ideas for the time. 

andy

Update: my friend thinks he did well though he didn't take my advice!  Oh well. 

How to Search for a Christian Ministry Job

This is a letter that I wrote to senior Christian Educational Ministries majors and minors at Taylor University but I think it is applicable to almost anyone searching for a Christian ministry position.

Dear Senior Christian Educational Ministries Capstone Folks and some other CE Senior Minors in my classes,

I have been talking with a number of you and told you that I would email you a list of job-search websites. I have listed them at the bottom of this email. I think ChurchStaffing.com, Willow Creek Association's Exchange, and Youth Specialties's Job Bank are the most important. Here is what they are useful for: they give you an idea of the kind of positions that are out there.

Why Ministry Job Search Websites are Mostly Useless:

But I have got to tell you: hardly anyone gets a job by getting a position listed on an internet job site. I can hardly think of anyone that has actually gotten a position that way. (I have married two couples who met on the internet. I think that it is more likely to find a spouse than a job by searching on the internet). Before JR Kerr was hired, the teaching pastor position at North Way was listed for a long time at ChurchStaffing.com . . . but that is not how JR got the job. Someone on staff at North Way had met him and invited him to come down and meet with the senior pastor and just talk and see if there might be a fit . . . and there was.

So I have written more below about a better way to search for a ministry position.

How employers actually look for people to hire:

As Richard Bolles says in What Color is Your Parachute, most employers search for people in the following way. (I'm paraphrasing from memory here. Bolles actually gives the statistics). First, people hiring look at the people who are already part of the organization and see if any of them could fill the position. In the church, they look at volunteers from the church or someone who is working in another position in the church who might be reassigned. Second, they think of other people they know (in other churches, parachurch organizations, friends, relatives, acquaintances, etc.) Third, they ask trusted friends if they know of anyone who would be good. Fourth, they will post the position internally. They will post the position description in the bulletin and maybe on their website. Fifth, they will post the position opening more broadly. They may post it on Youth Specialties, ChurchStaffing.com, Willow Creek Association, a denominational site, Taylor's Career Development office, a local Christian newspaper or email Taylor CE profs. Sixth (and almost never for ministry ads), they may post the position in the newspaper want-ads.

How to find out about good positions:

The point is that if you wait for positions to be posted publicly on the internet or in the newspaper, a lot of the good ones will be already gone! But if you call someone in the church leadership and tell them about what you are interested in and ask them if they can give you any advice, you may be one of the first people who gets considered. People cannot resist being asked for advice. We all feel honored to give advice! The person you ask may have just been to a pastor's prayer meeting and hear that First Baptist down the street is looking for a Youth Pastor. Pray for God to be moving ahead of your phone call or email!

So, I would encourage you to contact churches and especially people that you respect and like. Probably if you like them, you will probably like the ministry positions they know about. If they are megachurch, they will know of other megachurch positions. If they are emerging church, they will know of other emerging positions. If they are a great youth pastor, they will know the other great youth pastors in the area. Just tell them what you are looking for and ask them if they have any advice for you and ask them if there is anyone else they recommend talking to.

Better than talking on the phone with them is meeting with them in person. They will see how charming you are and seeing you in person will inspire them to really think how they can help you! Email them or phone them and say this: "From all I hear about you, I feel like I could really learn a lot from you. Is there any way I could drive to where you work and take you out to lunch or to Starbucks someday and hear about what it is like to do ministry to youth in the inner-city? I think that is what I'm interested in and I would love to just get any advice you can give me. I'm a senior so I'm thinking about what I want to do next. If that's not possible to meet with you, is there a good time I could call you?"

Tell your relatives, friends in the area you are interested in, your home church pastor, pastor at Taylor, cousins, other students . . . everyone and let them know what you are looking for. "I'm interested in doing college ministry in a church, do you know of any positions open like that? Or do you know any really cool people that do college ministry in a church who I could ask for advice?" This will help you get leads and in the process you will learn what you are really interested in and what you're not interested in. For example, Cousin Billy will tell you he has a college ministry position open at his church in Arizona and after some soul-searching you may realize that Arizona is too far away from your jr-at-Taylor-fiance.

I think in the end, if you work hard like this, you will probably get a few options to choose from and you will probably make a better decision rather than just taking the first job that comes along.

The most important thing to look for:

I really think the most important thing is for you to be under an immediate supervisor who you admire and have respect for their ministry skills. If you spend time with them and realize that they don't seem to know what they are doing, are a terrible speaker, are not very relational, etc. but you are still tempted to go there because the position looks cool, I would think twice before going there. You want to think: "This is really someone I could learn from." Not that they are necessarily going to be your special mentor / guru / father figure, but for most people your immediate supervisor makes the difference between ministry being miserable or a joy. If you have a supervisor who believes in you and is wise in ministry, you can get through the learning curves and stresses of ministry.

Know what you are looking for but also keep an open mind:

It is good to try to articulate what you are really interested in - for example, leading worship and working with sr. high students, etc. If you just say, "I'm looking for a job" they won't remember you when a youth pastor / worship leader position comes up. But if you tell them specificallly what you are interested in, they will remember you! But also be a little open-minded and flexible about what you might enjoy doing. My wife Amy thought she wanted to do women's ministry but ended up loving children's ministry because essentially she ended up encouraging, praying for, counseling, nurturing, equipping and empowering volunteers - much like she had hoped to do in women's ministry.

How to find out what you are interested in:

If you are not sure what you want to do, ask permission to shadow someone for a day or most of a day. I give you permission to skip a day of classes to do it (or do it on a Sunday)! Again, the person you shadow will get to know you a bit and will probably be able to think of some other leads for you to check out. After that day, you will probably be able to say: I totally want to do do what that guy does. Or, I think I'd like to shadow someone from children's ministry and see if I like that a bit better.

Don't get stereotyped as a secretary:

I would not encourage you to take an "administrative assistant" position. Some of you are good at administration and like it but that doesn't mean you need "administration" in your title. You will do administration in every position (answer email, return calls, organize events, etc.) but a secretary position means that you need to sit at your desk and answer the phone no matter what. For example, if someone in the youth group comes in to your office crying, you want to be able to spend time with them and care for them. If you are in a secretarial position, that is not your job. They will be ok with it once but will be unhappy if that is a pattern. If you are in a ministry position, you will be expected to care for people! Make sure you take a ministry position because you will learn more and you are trained for that! I had a Taylor CE grad friend who took a youth pastor secretary position and the people always looked at her that way even though she could have done a better job than the youth pastor!

Accepting the job:

When you are "candidating" (visiting a church and talking to the church about working there) and negotiating a contract, feel free to talk to me or Phil Collins or another ministry person you respect from another church, to get advice. I think it is good for you to be paid something - hopefully enough to live on (especially if they are asking you to work full-time). Volunteering at a ministry and working a "regular job" elsewhere is ok but you will get a lot more attention and responsibility if the church is paying you and I think you will learn more this way. But I don't think you need to be paid big bucks in your first position. Learn now, earn later.

Let me know if you have more questions.

May the Lord guide each of you into the right position where you can learn, grow spiritually, be fulfilled, work hard and make a difference.

andy

A couple of sites for looking up sample salaries:

• ELCA Youth Ministry Network Salary Survey - You need to get a free login.
• 2006 Leadership Network Salary and Economic Outlook Report - Again you have to get a free login.  This is larger churches so the salaries tend to be higher. 
• You can also buy a book which gives you information about this.  The 2007 Compensation Handbook for Church Staff It is $29.95 or you can download just the section you are interested in for $9.95.
• Many denominations post salary guidelines.  If you find more, list them in the comments. 

Some Ministry Job Search Websites

Christiancareercenter.com
christian-careers.com
ChristianJobs.com
Christianitytoday.com
Churchjobs.net
Churchjobsonline.com
ChurchStaffing.com
Kingdomcareers.com
ministryjobs.com
ministrysearch.com
pastorsearch.net

Bethel Seminary Placement Index
Fuller Theological Seminary - Career Services
Gordon Conwell's MinistryList.com

American Baptist Home Mission American Baptist Personnel
Evangelical Covenant Church Seeking Staff
Evangelical Presybyterian Church Opportunity List
Presbyterian Church USA Opportunity List
Willow Creek Association — The Exchange
Willow Creek Community Church Employment Opportunities

Youth Specialties Job Bank
YouthPastor.com

What can I do with a major or minor in Christian Educational Ministries at Taylor University?

Taylor students (and their parents) often ask: what can I do with a minor or major in Christian Educational Ministries? This is the handout we give them. See below.

To learn more about what courses make up a Christian Educational Ministries major or minor, click here.

If you want to know how to find a Ministry position, see my post about that here. 

If you're curious, I taught two sections of "Teaching and Learning Strategies," two sections of "Program and Curriculum Development" and the "Senior Capstone" course this year. See my earlier posts about the sites we visited in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh and relevant books and articles on ministry in Philadelphia .

My wife Amy has taught three sections of "Personal Foundations for Ministry" and a course entitled "Ministry By Women in the Contemporary Context."

Amy and I are both majored in Christian Educational Ministries at Taylor University and graduated in 1998.

Opportunities for Christian Educational Ministries Majors and Minors

Church (From small to megachurch) – Pastor, Youth Pastor, Associate Pastor, Christian Education Director. Pastor of specialized ministry: children, youth, Jr. high, Sr. high, student ministries, family ministries, college ministry, young adults, next generation, singles, men’s, women’s, adult ministries, pastoral care, worship arts, outreach, missions, evangelism, discipleship, spiritual formation, special needs, small groups, recreational ministries, administration, executive pastor, church planter, etc.

Para Church –Youth For Christ, Young Life, InterVarsity, Campus Crusade, Navigators, etc.

Missions – trainer, linguist, church planter, discipler, evangelist, curriculum developer, house parent, teacher, community development, student mobilizer, short term missions leader, rehabilitation.

Inner City – church planter, youth center director, ministry with youth, community development worker, recreation director, house parent.

Christian Camping – conference, wilderness, director, assistant director, retreat center director

Christian College – resident hall director, student development leader, professor of Christian education, student ministry director, practicum supervisor.

Writing – Sunday school/children, youth, adult curriculum, books, magazine editor, book editor.

Christian high school – Bible teacher, director of missions, coach.

Chaplain – hospital, military

Media Specialist – film, music, video, communications.

Training for some of these positions could be further supplemented by taking courses outside of the Christian Educational Ministries department (Accounting, Biblical Literature, Church Music, Communication – New Media, Early Childhood Education, English Writing, Intercultural Studies / Missions, International Business, International Studies, Management, Physical Education, Psychology, Social Work, or Sociology).

Philadelphia Christian Ministries Bibliography

Since we were visiting Philadelphia Christian ministries I found a number of resources by and about the people we were visiting there. If you are interested in living in Philadelphia, this bibliography would be a great resource for you.

Books

Revolution and Renewal: How Churches Are Saving Our Citiesby Tony Campolo, Bruce Main Westminster John Knox Press (March, 2000)

Churches That Make a Difference: Reaching Your Community With Good News and Good Works (Paperback)by Ronald J. Sider, Philip N. Olson, Heidi Rolland Unruh Baker Books (March, 2002)

Scandal Of The Evangelical Conscience: Why Are Christians Living Just Like The Rest Of The World? by Ronald J. Sider Baker Books (February, 2005)

Good News and Good Works: A Theology for the Whole Gospel (Paperback)by Ronald J. Sider Baker Books (February, 1999)

Urban Ministry: The Kingdom, the City, & the People of God (Hardcover)by Harvie M. Conn, Manuel Ortiz InterVarsity Press (February, 2001)

One New People: Models for Developing a Multiethnic Church (Paperback)by Manuel Ortiz InterVarsity Press (August, 1996)

School(s) for Conversion: 12 Marks of a New Monasticism (Paperback)by Rutba House (Editor) Cascade Books (January, 2005)

If Jesus Were a Senior: Last-Minute Preparations for Postcollege Lifeby Bruce Main Westminster John Knox Press; 1st ed edition (February, 2003)

Articles

The Simple Way – Shane Claiborne Articles:
1.
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2005/009/16.38.html
The New MonasticismA fresh crop of Christian communities is blossoming in blighted urban settings all over America.by Rob Moll
September 2005, Vol. 49, No. 9, Page 38

2. Third chapter of
The Irresistible Revolution: Living as an Ordinary Radicalby Shane Claiborne
Zondervan (February 1, 2006)
http://www.thesimpleway.org/shane/sampler.pdf

Ron Sider Articles:
3.
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2000/111/12.0.html
Ron Sider's Unsettling CrusadeWhy does this man irritate so many people? cover story of the April 27, 1992 issue of Christianity Today

4.
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2005/004/32.70.html
The Evangelical ScandalRon Sider says the movement is riddled with hypocrisy, and that it's time for serious change.Interview by Stan Guthrie
April 2005, Vol. 49, No. 4, Page 70
Andy Crouch Articles:
6.
http://www.culture-makers.com/articles/on_the_journey_to_greatness
On the Journey to Greatness
Jonah, Jeremiah, Jeff, and the impact of faithfulness.
Andy Crouch
7.
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2004/011/12.36.html
The Emergent MystiqueThe 'emerging church' movement has generated a lot of excitement but only a handful of congregations. Is it the wave of the future or a passing fancy?By Andy Crouch
November 2004, Vol. 48, No. 11, Page 36

You might also want to read Brian McLaren’s response at http://www.anewkindofchristian.com/archives/000271.html

You might also want to read Tony Jones’s response http://theoblogy.blogspot.com/2004/10/emergent-mystique.html

See also Andy Crouch’s response to all the blogging: http://theoblogy.blogspot.com/2004/10/andy-crouch-responds.html

8.http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2003/006/31.53.html Rites of PassageSelf-improvement is our culture's most durable religion.By Andy Crouch
June 2003, Vol. 47, No. 6, Page 53

9.
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2005/004/25.98.html
Compliant but ConfusedUnpacking some myths about today's teens.by Andy Crouch
April 2005, Vol. 49, No. 4, Page 98
Manny Ortiz Article:
10.
http://www.wts.edu/publications/articles/ortiz-interview.html
Carl Trueman Interview of Manuel Ortiz
First published in Themelios, the journal of the Religious and Theological Studies Fellowship, January 2004.

Tony Campolo Article:
11.
http://www.ctlibrary.com/8862
The Positive ProphetTony Campolo is a ferocious critic of Christians left and right. Why do people still flock to hear him?Ted OlsenJanuary 1, 2003

12.
http://www.tonycampolo.org/overthetopforjesus.pdf
A booklet on Tony’s ministry. You do not need to read this.

13.
http://www.tonycampolo.org/media.php
Sermons to listen to by Tony Campolo. This is just for fun.

14.
http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/news/local/states/pennsylvania/counties/chester_county/cities_and_neighborhoods/13082755.htm Building ties across cultures A former garage in Kennett Square helps shape friendships among youths of different backgrounds.By Susan WeidenerInquirer Suburban Staff Posted on Sun, Nov. 06, 2005

Other Articles (some you have to pay for online):

Title: Downward Mobility in an Upscale World.Author: Shane ClaibornePublication: The Other Side (Magazine/Journal)Date: November 1, 2000Publisher: The Other SideVolume: 36 Issue: 6 Page: 10

Title: Yeast of the Pharisees.(Room For Grace)Author: Shane ClaibornePublication: The Other Side (Magazine/Journal)Date: July 1, 2004Publisher: The Other SideVolume: 40 Issue: 4 Page: 9(1)

Bruce Main in
Up & Comers, Part 2November 11, 1996 Christianity Today

http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2005/009/17.12.html
A More Demanding FaithChristian history is full of attempts to lead a more radical faith.by David Neff
September 2005, Vol. 49, No. 9, Page 12

http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2096/is_1_55/ai_n13798048
On evangelicals and interfaith cooperation: an interview with Tony Campolo by Shane Claiborne
Cross Currents, Spring, 2005 by Shane Claiborne

Pittsburgh Ministry Sites Visited During Senior Capstone Trip

Pittsburgh:

North Way Community Church – megachurch of 5000 where my friend JR Kerr is teaching pastor. We spend almost every day for 9 days seeing different aspects of this church.

Pittsburgh Fellows - internship program

Pittsburgh Project Saleem Gabril (President of Pittsburgh Project) - neighborhood development

Pittsburgh Leadership Foundation and Pittsburgh Youth Network; John Stahlwert (President of Pittsburgh Leadership Foundation) - drawing city Christian leaders together.

B.J. Woodworth of The Open Door Emergent Church Plant (PCUSA)

Union Project - community center run by Christians

Hot Metal Bridge Emergent Church Plant

In the Blood Tattoo Parlor Newspaper article

World Vision Gifts in Kind - one branch of the biggest Christian organization in the world.

Urban Impact Ed Glover - community development especially ministry to kids using basketball and other means.

Summers Best Two Weeks Camp - huge camp facility about 2 hours from Pittsburgh.

Sam Deep (International Leadership Coach) - business consultant from Christian perspective

Coalition for Christian Outreach (CCO) - outreach to college campuses - known for its training and effectiveness.

Philadelphia Ministry Sites we visited during Senior Christian Ministry Capstone Trip

CrossWorld missions organization where we stayed at guesthouse

Palmer Theological Seminary - formerly known as Eastern Baptist Seminary. Good racial and gender mix where Keener and Sider teach.

Craig Keener - prolific outstanding New Testament scholar and commentary writer. Incredible personal story and expert in New Testament backgrounds. He is currently working on huge book of Acts commentary.

Ron Sider at Evangelicals for Social Action [Well-known evangelical social action advocate]

The Simple Way [urban poor, community living]

Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church (African-American, 5,000 attendance - people wait for an hour to get in. It is that good.)

Tenth Presbyterian Church [megachurch, PCA]

Aaron Messner (Minister of Preaching of 10th Pres). Historically famous church of Barnhouse and Boice in Philadelphia.

Dan Steinfield – Delaware County Christian School and Camp Teekna [huge suburban Christian school, and growing summer camp ministry]

Willowdale Chapel Greg Lafferty [Non-denom, medium-size; former jr. high pastor at Saddleback]

The Garage [Junior High Ministry, Community outreach to youth - especially Hispanic mushroom factory workers' children]

Andy Crouch [Christianity Today writer]

Westminster Theological Seminary [PCA - influenced independent seminary]

Manny Ortiz and Susan Baker at Westminster Theological Seminary - urban ministry experience

UrbanPromise with Bruce Main in Camden, NJ [urban ministry to youth, inner-city school]

Eastern University Tony Campolo EAPE - well known speaker

Scott and Fairlight Collins-Jones of Woodland Presbyterian Church [emergent, PCUSA, medium-size]

Other ministries in Philadelphia which we would have liked to visit:
BuildaBridge International
Campus Crusade Philly Metro- Home
Circle Of Hope Home Page
Covenant Fellowship Church- Welcome
Eastern University Duffy Robbins
Greater Exodus Baptist Church, Online.
liberti
Lutheran Settlement House
Mary Stewart Van Leeuwen
PhillyEmergent
Project H.O.M.E.
The Well - Feasterville, PA