What is “Jewish Spirituality”? How do I make it part of my life?Today’s foremost spiritual leaders share their ideas and experience.Whether you are just curious, intently searching for greater personal meaning, or actively seeking ideas, information, practices and inspiration to enrich your spiritual life, The Jewish Lights Spirituality Handbook is the ideal companion for your journey as it explores:Awakening the Possibilities:...

How can my congregation transform itself? How can we re-dedicate ourselves to learning?Improving spiritual connection in our communities takes work! Combining expert advice and experience garnered from congregations throughout North America, Becoming a Congregation of Learners shows us how transformative change is possible. A complete resource full of ideas, information and support, this is a guide for those of us involved in, or interested in, energizing ...

How can my congregation become more vital?How can we both honor the past and embrace the future?“[The Self-Renewing Congregation] calls for ‘renewal’…from within, not without—a renewal that begins with institutional self-reflection, proceeds through a process of self-engagement, and ends with self-generated innovations that can deepen the synagogue congregation as a sacred community. The core of this book offers any congregation seeking this path a ...

Improving spiritual connection in our communities takes work! Combining expert advice and experience garnered from congregations throughout North America, Becoming a Congregation of Learners shows us how transformative change is possible. A complete resource full of ideas, information and support, this is a guide for those of us involved in, or interested in, energizing our spiritual communities.

Combining expert advice and experience garnered from congregations throughout North America, The Self-Renewing Congregation shows us how transformative change is possible. A complete resource full of ideas, information, and support, this is a guide for those of us involved in, or interested in, energizing our spiritual communities.

Sacred Strategies is about eight synagogues that reached out and helped people connect to Jewish life in a new way—congregations that had gone from commonplace to extraordinary. Over a period of two years, researchers Aron, Cohen, Hoffman, and Kelman interviewed 175 synagogue leaders and a selection of congregants (ranging from intensely committed to largely inactive). They found these congregations shared six traits: sacred purpose, holistic ethos, participatory culture, meaningful engage...

All local churches experience a predictable life cycle of growth and decline. But if a church is on a downward trend, how can it turn around? Taking Your Church to the Next Level explains the impact of age and size on churches and outlines the improvements that must be made at each point for a church to remain fruitful and faithful to its mission. McIntosh deftly describes the cycles of fruitfulness and the importance of continual improvement to diminish destructive forces that ke...

Small groups are a great place to connect with other churchgoers, but many wonder, is this all there is? Is sitting in a living room, talking about a book or watching a video the extent of what we can do together? Isn't being a Christian community about something more than this?Pastor and author Scott Boren thinks so. In this latest release from missional thinktank Allelon, Boren gives leaders and members of small groups the tools they need to make an impact on their communities. B...

How to transform the model of twentieth-century Jewish institutions into twenty-first-century relational communities offering meaning and purpose, belonging and blessing."What really matters is that we care about the people we seek to engage. When we genuinely care about people, we will not only welcome them; we will listen to their stories, we will share ours, and we will join together to build a Jewish community that enriches our lives."—from the Introduct...

According to many studies, the average church-attending young person is more likely to not stay, than to remain. Before They Say Goodbye is a proactive project to help parents, leaders, and pastors prepare their youth do deal with many of the challenges of faith which are causing this trend. David Sawler discusses many of the reasons why so many have said they are leaving or have left. However, this book is not intended to just state obvious problems. Instead this is a book of stories, advice...

Help sustain the Jewish traditions legacy of community leadership by building strong leaders today.Great Jewish leadership has helped us survive slavery, guided us to the Promised Land, given us hope through exile and oppression, helped us enjoy membership in a nation of overachievers, and given birth to the State of Israel. Great Jewish leadership generates vision and, as a result, followers. It inspires us and helps us to stretch higher, see farther, and reach deeper.from ...

From an international church starter and pastor, a resource guide for anyone organizing a congregation as part of the organic church movement.Neil Cole's best-selling book Organic Church described the fastest growing segment of contemporary Christianity—the so-called organic church. Now in this next-step book, he answers questions about how to deal with theological and organizational issues that come up. He talks about issues such has what to do with finan...