Blog - Page 54 of 318 - John H Armstrong

The True Greatness of a Friend Who Loved Christian Ecumenism Deeply

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:15:15-05:00August 20th, 2013|Categories: ACT 3, Friendship, Missional-Ecumenism, Personal, Protestantism, Roman Catholicism, Unity of the Church|

My good friend Jeff Gros (1938-2013) moved to Chicago in 2011. He became an adjunct professor at Catholic Theological Union and Dean of the Institute for Catholic Ecumenical Leadership. He also became a consultant to the Office of Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs of the Archdiocese of Chicago, led at that time by another good friend, Sister Joan McGuire, O.P. (I came to know Sister Joan via my work in ecumenism with the archdiocese and the Cardinal George dialogue in March of 2011.) At the time Jeff moved to Chicago he lived across the street from Catholic Theological Union and from this place introduced me to many of his Catholic friends. When Jeff moved he did not know that he would very soon be diagnosed with a potentially fatal cancer. He fought the disease with courage and accepted it prayerfully with profound grace.

Tributes of all sorts have appeared in honor of Jeffrey Gros since his passing on August 12. America, a prominent Catholic magazine, included a wonderful tribute to Jeff, and Jean Bethke Elshtain, in their August 14 […]

The Amazing Life of Brother Jeffrey Gros – A Profile in Missional-Ecumenism

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:15:16-05:00August 19th, 2013|Categories: American Evangelicalism, Missional Church, Personal, Protestantism, Roman Catholicism, Unity of the Church|

The recent passing of Jeff Gros touched me quite deeply. I am thankful that I was able to be present for his funeral service last Saturday at Lewis University in Romeoville, Illinois. The Mass of Resurrection, preceded by a vigil with a time of personal sharing about Jeff’s life, was profoundly Christocentric. Jeff had clearly arranged much of the service before his passing.

Dr. Jeffrey Gros, FSC, was known to all who met him as Brother Jeffrey Gros. To his closest friends, however, he was simply Jeff. I had the joy of knowing Jeff as a close friend. I met him more than a decade ago in Birmingham, Alabama. Our mutual friend, Dr. Timothy George, invited us to share a platform together at a conference on ecumenism hosted by Beeson Divinity School. I had first learned of Jeff from his prolific writing on Christian unity. He edited and authored eighteen books and 310 articles. (None of us is quite sure just how many book reviews he wrote but there were many hundreds for sure.) Jeff was always reading […]

We Must Equip Servants of the Gospel

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:15:16-05:00August 16th, 2013|Categories: Discipleship, Gospel/Good News, Leadership, Missional Church, Missional-Ecumenism, The Church, The Future|

God’s “mission” is to lead the church to corporately spread the good news of the kingdom of Jesus through both deed and word. Seminaries that understand this goal will seek to adjust their curriculum and goals accordingly. Simply put both Northern and Biblical, two seminaries I have looked at the past few days, believe that they exist to gather and send leaders for the mission of Christ in North America. How do they actually attempt to do this?

I could look at a number of other seminaries as well. Some are stronger at one aspect, say the academic preparation of the mind, while others are better at spiritual formation. Some are strong in understanding mission yet very often their faculty might not be able to translate this understanding to students in personal ways that take time and friendship/mentorship. Seminaries from both the mainline Protestant, and the more evangelical Protestant, tradition are beginning to finally awaken to the right questions. Sometimes this happens because of a considerable decrease of students that forces change and sometimes it happens because they have proactively grasped the theology of missional church. Either […]

What Is CityONE Network?

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:15:16-05:00August 14th, 2013|Categories: Uncategorized|

One of the partner ministries of the ACT3 Network is CityONE Network. God willing I will be working with my friend David Hickman to find and train leaders, to begin new CityONE ministries in cities across America. Our goal is to reach out with the good news of the kingdom to Generation Y, the most unchurched generation in our lifetime. Please visit the CityONE site and pray for (and support) this important work. If you have questions contact me or David Hickman directly.

Seminaries – The “Seed Beds” Of Missional Transformation?

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:15:16-05:00August 14th, 2013|Categories: American Evangelicalism, Biblical Theology, Church History, Church Tradition, Discipleship, Leadership, Missional Church, Missional-Ecumenism, Protestantism, The Church|

The root meaning of the word seminary is “seed bed.” This metaphor helps me grasp what a good seminary is and what it should seek to become as times change and the church faces new challenges to the kingdom of God. Seminaries exist to serve the church and, by extension, the world. They exist for mission.

The first seminaries were created during the Middle Ages to mature young men for the priesthood. Much as tender seedlings were grown in a nursery until they were ready to be transplanted seminaries sought to prepare leaders for the church of that time. During the Protestant Reformation emphasis on the priesthood of all believers brought profound changes to the educational models of the time. Changes were relatively modest until the twentieth century. More changes than ever came about following World War II. The “new” world was open to the gospel in a way not previously experienced and travel made it possible for people to study all over the world. Seminaries in America changed in a number of ways, especially as women began […]

Blogs, Social Media and ACT3

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:15:16-05:00August 13th, 2013|Categories: ACT 3, Personal|

When I began to write my blogs eight years ago I had very little idea about what I was starting. I was not even sure that I would continue to write these posts for any length of time. Since then there have been a number of times when I was ready to give it up. (I think everyone who is honest will admit the same thing, especially about this kind of writing!)

Then Facebook and Twitter developed and I began to use them as well. Now I blog, at least four times a week or more, and I also post on Facebook and Twitter almost daily. While I find this medium to be fraught with dangers of both mind and heart I also find that they can be used for great good. I remain, for now at least, a committed blogger and also a user of the more popular forms of social media.

Yesterday I met with several people in Atlanta who I first “met” via the social media and my Internet blogging/writing. These are unique times when I […]

The Missional Paradigm and Effective Seminary Education

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:15:16-05:00August 12th, 2013|Categories: American Evangelicalism, Culture, Discipleship, Kingdom of God, Leadership, Missional Church, Missional-Ecumenism, Pastoral Renewal, Renewal, The Christian Minister/Ministry, The Church, The Future|

Last week I wrote several blogs on the state of theological education in North America. I suggested that seminaries need to adjust their mission to the rapidly changing context of the church in twenty-first century America. I further suggested that we need to teach theology and mission as integrated topics, not as separate or unrelated academic disciplines.

This story, told by Pastor Tim Ackley, demonstrates in a simple, compelling manner the value of getting a solid missional education. As you will readily see Tim received this kind of education at Biblical Theological Seminary in suburban Philadelphia. I have taught as an adjunct at Biblical Seminary and served on the seminary’s board. Biblical’s creative and effective educational experience is one that I wholeheartedly commend to anyone looking for a good missional model. You will get a strong, clear sense of the difference a clear vision of purpose can make on a pastor who is passionate about Christ’s kingdom and mission.

The Missional-Ecumenical Paradigm and Training Future Leaders

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:15:16-05:00August 8th, 2013|Categories: Uncategorized|

I raised several questions on Monday about the future of seminary education in North America. The hard facts behind my question are not in serious debate:

Seminary enrollment, on the whole, is in decline. This is especially true if you consider the data in view of the degree given to most students who are preparing to become pastors; i.e., the M.Div.
Many seminaries now face serious problems, both financially and institutionally. If student tuition, to give but one example, must carry the burden of institutional survival then they will likely fail.
A number of profoundly good questions are being asked about traditional forms of education. Can they deliver what they actually promise? Is this really the best way to prepare leaders for the Christian church in the twenty-first century?
How do seminaries recruit students and, much more importantly, how do they decide the most important question of all: “Who should attend our school and thus be prepared for church leadership?” If money plays such a huge role in this entire process then is the fly in the ointment not obvious?

I believe […]

The Significant Decrease of White Americans and the Future of the Church

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:15:16-05:00August 7th, 2013|Categories: American Evangelicalism, Culture, Current Affairs, Discipleship, Evangelism, Missional Church, Missional-Ecumenism, Renewal, The Church, The Future|

Bloomberg News, in a June 12 report in their online edition, notes:

The U.S. continued its transformation into a majority-minority nation last year, with Census Bureau data showing non-Hispanic whites making up the lowest percentage of the population in American history. (The Census Bureau counts what we traditionally call Caucasians to be non-Hispanic whites.)

The estimates released on June 12 capture several milestones in the country’s demographic makeup. For the first time in more than a century, deaths outpaced births among white Americans. Almost half, 49.9 percent, of the nation’s children younger than 5 were minorities as of July 1. And the nation’s total minority population grew 21 times faster than whites. When I read that first sentence I had to stop and carefully read it again. As it settled in I began to think about the church in America before I thought of anything else. (I am a minister of the gospel, and a trained missiologist, thus I care deeply about the future of the church in America.) Read this very slowly: For the […]

Ethnography – Developing the Pastoral Skill of Mission

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:15:17-05:00August 6th, 2013|Categories: American Evangelicalism, Culture, Current Affairs, Discipleship, Emergent Church, Evangelism, Kingdom of God, Missional Church, Missional-Ecumenism, Renewal, The Church, The Future|

Yesterday, I noted that Dr. Robert Price, associate professor of evangelism and urban ministry at Northern Seminary in Lombard (IL), says, “Ethnography is the pastoral skill of mission. Leaders need to be ‘participant observers,’ to get inside the story of the context, from whence we proclaim the gospel.” When I read this quote it grabbed my interest and then made me pause and ask, “What is ethnography?”

Ethnography is a qualitative form of research aimed at exploring cultural phenomena. The resulting field study, or a case report, reflects the knowledge and the system of meanings in the lives of a cultural group. Ethnography is a means by which we can represent graphically, and in writing, the culture of a particular people. It is rooted in empirical data gathered from human societies and cultures and is rooted in the discipline of anthropology. It has become popular in the social sciences in general, and in sociology and communication studies more specifically. It is the outgrowth of what we call the “soft sciences.” The goal of ethnography is to reflexively respond […]