Fortress Press

The Effective Pastor: A Guide to Successful Ministry

Louis W. Bloede (Author)

This highly practical step-by-step look at the life and role of the pastor is helpful for newly ordained clergy as well as the experienced pastor looking for...

The Pastor as Moral Guide

Rebekah L. Miles (Author)

Adultery, divorce, racism, teen pregnancy, white-collar crime, living wills—these are among the many complex moral issues that Christians face and for...

The Pastor: A Spirituality

Gordon W. Lathrop (Author)

Renowned liturgical theologian Gordon Lathrop has composed a rich, meditative, and explicitly ecumenical spirituality for working pastors - whatever and...

The Pastor: Readings From the Patristic Period

Philip L Culbertson (Author), Bradford Shippee (Author)

The Right Road: Life Choices for Clergy

Gwen Wagstrom Halaas M.D. (Author)

Many clergy are in startlingly bad health. Not only do they regularly report depression, stress, and serious family and financial problems, they also exhibit...

The Skilled Pastor: Counseling as the Practice of Theology

Charles W. Taylor (Author)

A splendid volume detailing the specific skills necessary for sound pastoral guidance in various situations. The author integrates theological reflection...

Transforming Leadership: New Vision for a Church in Mission

Norma Cook Everist (Author), Craig L. Nessan (Author)

Transforming Leadership sets forth the core values and leadership practices that can bring fundamental transformation to the life of the local church. Based on...

Understanding and Dismantling Racism: The Twenty-First Century Challenge to White America

Joseph Barndt (Author)

More than 15 years have passed since Joe Barndt wrote his influential and widely acclaimed Dismantling Racism (1991, Augsburg Books). He has now written a...

When the Center Does Not Hold: Leading in an Age of Polarization

David R. Brubaker (Author), Everett Brubaker (Contributor), Carolyn Yoder (Contributor), Teresa J. Haase (Contributor)

Over the past forty years, polarization has permeated nearly every level of American life, including the intimate spheres of faith and interpersonal relationships. In When the Center Does Not Hold, David R. Brubaker, with contributions by colleagues Everett Brubaker, Carolyn Yoder, and Teresa Haase, offers relevant, practical mentorship on navigating polarized environments, equipping leaders to both manage themselves and effectively lead others in highly polarized and anxious systems. In this book, readers will find hope.

Why Churches Need to Talk about Sexuality: Lessons Learned from Hard Conversations about Sex, Gender, Identity, and the Bible

Mark Wingfield (Author), David P. Gushee (Foreword by)

Journalist and pastor Mark Wingfield describes how the congregation he serves undertook a study of how churches respond to the inclusion of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender members. Why Churches Need to Talk about Sexuality is for congregational leaders and others who want to understand the debates about human sexuality and who desire to follow a process to discuss the topic and make decisions about how congregations and individuals will respond to these issues.

Unraveling Religious Leadership: Power, Authority, and Decoloniality

Kristina Lizardy-Hajbi (Author)

Unraveling Religious Leadership invites readers to reconsider foundational assumptions in Christian communities. Drawing upon decolonial frameworks and realities beyond white, eurowestern, modern ideals of who leaders are and what they do, this work pulls on the threads of colonialism and empire to create new possibilities for religious leaders.

ReEngaging ELCA Social Teaching on Abortion

Caryn D. Riswold (Author)

Riswold calls us to think together about the ELCA’s 1991 social statement on abortion. Our social, political, and legal context has changed drastically since this statement was written, but one thing remains the same: we as Lutherans are called to compassionate community. Riswold’s engaging prose invites readers into thoughtful conversation.

ReEngaging ELCA Social Teaching on The Church in Society

James M. Childs Jr. (Author), Roger A. Willer (Foreword by)

Childs contextualizes this foundational statement, helping us think creatively about how we are called to be the church today. Grounded in scripture and Lutheran theology, he charts the history of Lutheran public witness, deftly connecting it with our present. How are we guided to speak today? Exploring this book will spark generative conversation.

Preaching the Gospel of Justice: Good News in Community

Jennifer L. Ackerman (Author)

The call to holistic preaching has many dimensions. Are we called to preach the good news of God's grace? Advocate for justice? Is preaching worship? A prophetic act? "Yes," Ackerman answers--to all of the above. Through personal stories, biblical examples, and concrete advice, readers will learn how to join gospel and justice in community.

Women Called to Catholic Priesthood: From Ecclesial Challenge to Spiritual Renewal

Sharon Henderson Callahan (Author), Jeanette Rodriguez (Author), Christine Schenk CSJ (Foreword by)

Callahan and Rodriguez explore the contexts, calls, journeys, spirituality, and theology of women called to priesthood in the Roman Catholic church in this compelling and carefully crafted ethnographic work. The authors encourage readers to thoughtfully engage the ecclesial challenges and spiritual renewal uncovered in these womenpriests' stories.

Picking Up the Pieces: Leadership after Empire

Kathleen McShane (Author), Elan Babchuck (Author)

Kathleen McShane and Elan Babchuck argue that empire-inspired leadership models hollow out faith institutions and exhaust their leaders. In Picking Up the Pieces, the authors offer a leadership model based on the conviction that power shared is power multiplied. The book offers a hopeful, practical, and sustainable way forward for all God's people.

Youth Ministry as Peace Education: Overcoming Silence, Transforming Violence

Elizabeth W. Corrie (Author)

Youth Ministry as Peace Education offers clergy, students, and practitioners a new approach to youth ministry--to equip young people to transform violence and oppression as part of their Christian vocation. In this theologically robust and pedagogically innovative and tested resource, Elizabeth W. Corrie shows that youth, like all of us, are meant to work to establish God's shalom--peace, justice, and well-being--on earth as it is in heaven.

Youth Beyond the Developmental Lens: Being over Becoming

Wesley W. Ellis (Author)

Wesley Ellis exposes the harmful impact of developmental psychology in youth ministry, proposing a theological anthropology that frees us for deeper relationship with young people. Propelled by the conviction that we must see youth as beings rather than becomings, Ellis reorients us toward relational inclusion and away from rigid developmentalism.

Stuck: Why Clergy Are Alienated from Their Calling, Congregation, and Career ... and What to Do about It

Todd W. Ferguson (Author), Josh Packard (Author)

This book lets pastors who feel stuck know that they're not alone or crazy, and it's not their fault. It helps congregations better support their clergy. And it joins in the conversation about reshaping seminary training and professional development.

The Nones: Where They Came From, Who They Are, and Where They Are Going, Second Edition

Ryan P. Burge (Author)

In The Nones: Where They Came From, Who They Are, and Where They Are Going, Second Edition, Ryan P. Burge gives readers a nuanced, accurate, and meaningful look at the growing number of Americans who say they have no religious affiliation. This second edition includes substantial updates.