Theology That Bites Back
The Johnstons had been members of the church for fifteen years before the pastor or any of the elders suspected that there was trouble in the marriage. And that suspicion arose because of an overheard conversation in the parking lot—one of the elders’ wives was looking for a dropped baby bottle in the back of …
Murray was a solid citizen. He had been a member of the church for thirty years, and had been married to Denise for forty. They had gone through a massive doctrinal shift ten years into their marriage, had come to understand the doctrines of grace more fully, and had been part of the community life …
Two pastors, friends from seminary, were having their monthly visit over lunch. They ministered on opposite sides of the same city and were in the same denomination, and both found it helpful. On this visit, Martin brought up his most recent pastoral challenge, which was the sad drift of a young woman in his congregation …
Faith Memorial was an older, established church, and so it was kind of surprising to everyone when they found themselves in the midst of a controversy. That occurred because one of the assistant pastors had been speaking at a city council hearing about the expansion of a parking lot at a mall near his home, …
Jon was an older bachelor, although still in his thirties, who had been part of the church since he graduated from college. He had always been reclusive, and almost never had people over to his apartment. In years past he had attended worship regularly, but over the previous three years that attendance had grown increasingly …
Peter was a tall, intelligent and gregarious member of the church. He was a family man, and his family also seemed pretty interested and engaged in the life of the community. He was always there on the premises when expected, but when it came to theology he was never one for questions. He always looked …
Hank and his wife Suzanne were one of the most active couples in the church. They were leaders in their home-schooling circle, and had been instrumental in getting many parents in the congregation to take their educational responsibilities seriously. In addition to being charismatic and hard-working, they were attractive people, and their young family would …
Jack was in many ways an ideal parishioner. He was married, gainfully employed, and with two young children in upper elementary school. He was happily married, and conscientious in church attendance. In addition to this, he was the kind of church member who would diligently seek out pastoral counsel. If he had a situation with …
