The Personal M.Div
A couple of days ago I posted about the Personal MBA here. I later posted it to Resonate's mailing list and we have been having some discussion on what would be the forty books that we would chose for a Personal MDiv. The personal MBA list had some criteria.
- Valuable Content - the book has to contain a lot of useful, practical information on how business works, how you can add value, and why the material in the book is important.
- Acceptable Time Commitment - no 1,000 page books here, although there are a few (good) textbooks in the mix for the more technical topics (accounting, finance, real estate). You should be able to get the key points of each book in a few hours, or by reading the chapter introductions and summaries of the textbooks.
- Reference Value - is this book going to be one you pick back up when you need information? How does the book re-read? Is this a book that is worth keeping for many years?
- Alves, The Poet, the Warrior, the Prophet
- Beck, Ulrich, Risk Society
- Brownson, Stormfront: The Good News of God
- Brueggemann, The Prophetic Imagination
- Brueggemann, Finally Comes the Poet
- Brueggemann, Cadences of Home
- Capra, The Turning Point
- Detweiler, A Matrix of Meanings: Finding God in Pop Culture
- Friedmann, Thomas, The World is Flat
- Frost and Hirsch, The Shaping of Things to Come
- Gleick, Chaos
- Grenz, A Postmodern Primer
- Grenz, Theology for the Community of God
- Guder et al, Missional Church
- Hock, Dee The Art of Chaordic Leadership
- McLaren and Sweet: Church in Emerging Culture
- McLaren, A Generous Orthodoxy
- McLaren, The Last Word and the Word After That
- McNeal, The Present Future
- Miller, The Millennium Matrix
- Myers, The Search to Belong
- Newbigin, Foolishness to the Greeks
- Pagit, Reimagining Spiritual Formation
- Quinn, Deep Change
- Senge, The Fifth Dimension
- Simson, Houses That Change the World
- Sweet, Postmodern Pilgrims
- Walsh & Keesmaat, Colossians Remixed
- Webber, The Younger Evangelicals
- Wheatley, A Simpler Way
- Wheatley, Leadership and the New Science
- Wheatley, Finding Our Way
- Willard, The Post Evangelical
- Spirituality and Community
- Bonhoeffer, Life Together
- Nouwen, Henri. Lifesigns
- Nouwen, Henri. Reaching Out
- Palmer, Let Your Life Speak
- Rohr, Richard. Everything Belongs
- Vanier, Jean. Becoming Human
- Willard, Dallas. Renovation of the Heart
- Willard, Dallas. The Spirit of the Disciplines
- Carson, D.A. Conversant with the Emerging Church
- Oden, Thomas. John Wesley's Scriptural Christianity
- Maddux, Randy. Responsible Grace
- Crabb, Larry. Connecting
- Fee, Gordon. Reading the Bible for All It's Worth
- Adam, AKA. Postmodern Biblical Interpretation
- Dryden, Ken. The Game
- Kinsella, Warren. Kicking Ass in Canadian Politics
- Morgenthaller, Sally. Worship Evangelism
- Lamott, Anne. Travelling Mercies
- Lamott, Anne. Plan B
- Hall, Christopher. Reading Scripture With the Church Fathers
- Hall, Christopher. Learning Theology with the Church Fathers
- McGrath, Alister. Christian Theology
- Clendenin, Dan. Eastern Orthodox Christianity: A Western Perspective
- Campolo, Tony. Speaking My Mind
- Early Christian Writings: The Apostolic Fathers (Penguin Classics)
- Holmes, Michael. The Apostolic Fathers: Greek Texts and English Translations
- Eusebius, The History of the Church : From Christ to Constantine
- Adams, Michael. Fire and Ice
- Sweet, Len. Summoned to Lead
- Wallis, Jim. God's Politics
- Peterson, Eugene The Contemplative Pastor
- Nouwen, Henri The Way of the Heart
- Smith, Martin The Word is Very Near You.
- Dermot Lane's "The Experience of God: An Invitation to Do Theology"
- Jerry Cook & Stanley Baldwin's "Love, Acceptance & Forgiveness"
- Henry Chadwick's "The Early Church"
- Kelly's "Early Christian Doctrines"
- Graham Cooke's "Developing Your Prophetic Gifting"
- Cloud and Townsend, How People Grow
- Bosch, David J. Transforming Mission: Paradigm Shifts In Theology of Mission. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1991.
- Bonhoeffer, Dietrich. The Cost of Discipleship. R. H. Fuller trans. New York: Touchstone, 1959, 1995.
- Boyd, Gregory A. God At War: The Bible and Spiritual Conflict. 395 ed. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1997.
- Boyd, Gregory A., and Paul R. Eddy. Across The Spectrum: Understanding Issues in Evangelical Theology. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2002.
- Callahan, Kennon L. Effective Church Leadership: Building on the Twelve Keys. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1990
- Clapp, Rodney. A Peculiar People: The Church As Culture in a Post-Christian Society. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1996.
- Dyrness, William A. Learning About Theology From the Third World. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1990.
- Elmer, Duane. Cross-Cultural Conflict: Building Relationships For Effective Ministry. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1993.
- Emerson, Michael, and Christian Smith. Divided By Faith: Evangelical Religion And the Problem of Race in America. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000.
- Fee, Gordon D. God's Empowering Presence: The Holy Spirit in the Letters of Paul. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1994. (NOTE: ch 1-2m 12-16 only; exegetical notes good for future reference)
- Foster, Richard. Celebration of the Disciplines: The Path to Spiritual Growth. New York: Harper, 1978, 1998 .
- Goldingay, John. Old Testament Theology: Israel's Gospel. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2003.
- Grenz, Stanley J., and John R. Franke. Beyond Foundationalism: Shaping Theology In a Postmodern Context. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2001.
- Jenkins, Philip. The Next Christendom: The Coming of Global Christianity. New York: Oxford University Press, 2002.
- Lee, Jung Young. Marginality: The Key to Multicultural Theology. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 1995.
- Lewis, C. S. Mere Christianity. New York: Macmillan Publishing, 1952, 1995.
- McNeal, Reggie. The Present Future: Six Tough Questions for the
Church. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2003. - Mulholland, M. Robert. Invitation To a Journey: A Road Map for Spiritual Formation. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1993.
- Newbigin, Leslie. The Gospel in a Pluralist Society. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans, 1989.
- Noll, Mark A. A History of Christianity in the United States and Canada. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans, 1992.
- Nouwen, Henri J. M. Reaching Out: The Three Movements of the Spiritual Life. New York: Doubleday, 1975.
- Nouwen, Henri J. M. In the Name of Jesus: Reflections On Christian Leadership. New York: Crossroad Publishing, 1989.
- Ortiz, Manuel, and Susan S. Baker, eds. The Urban Face of Mission: Ministering the Gospel in a Diverse and Changing World. Phillipsburg, NJ: P & R Pub., 2002.
- Peterson, Eugene. Under the Unpredictable Plant an Exploration in Vocational Holiness. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans, 1992.
- Plantinga, Jr., Cornelius. Not The Way It's Supposed to Be: A Breviary of Sin. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans, 1995.
- Scazzero, Peter. The Emotionally Healthy Church: A Strategy for Discipleship That Actually Changes Lives. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2003.
- Smith, Gordon T. Beginning Well: Christian Conversion & Authentic Transformation. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2001.
- Tennent, Timothy T. Christianity At The Religious Roundtable: Evangelicalism in Conversation With Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2002.
- Volf, Miroslav. Exclusion And Embrace: A Theological Exploration of Identity, Otherness, and Reconciliation. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1996.
- Wink, Walter. Engaging The Powers: Discernment and Resistance in a World of Domination. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 1992.
- Wright, N. T. The New Testament and the People of God. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 1992. (Parts III-V only)
- Wright, N. T. Jesus And the Victory of God. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 1996.
- Wright, N. T. What Saint Paul Really Said: Was Paul Of Tarsus the Real Founder of Christianity?. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans, 1997.
- Zimmermann, Jens. Recovering Theological Hermeneutics: An Incarnational-Trinitarian Theory of Interpretation. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2004.
- Dillard, The Annie Dillard Reader
- Edwards, The Divine Romance
- Pinnock, Flame of Love
- Yancey, Soul Survivor
- Barth, Church Dogmatics: A Selection
- Barth, Evangelical Theology
- Chittister, Joan. The Rule of St. Benedict: Insight for the Ages
- Peterson, Peterson: Take and Read: Spiritual Reading: An Annotated List
- McDonnell Thomas P. : Thomas Merton Reader
- Oden, Thomas. The Living God, The Word of Life, Life in the Spirit - Systematic Theology
- Oden, Thomas. After Modernity... What?
- GM Hopkins, Poetry and Prose
- TS Eliot, Four Quartets
- Annie Dillard, The Annie Dillard Reader
- Rilke, Letters to a Young Poet
- Augustine, Confessions
- Bernard of Clairvaux, On Loving God
- Merton, New Seeds of Contemplation
- Sachs, Jeffery. The End of Poverty
Labels: church, discipleship, Emergent, leadership, theology
4:37 PM ::
30 Comments:
Jordon--
What is the earliest publication date on this list? Does it seem a bit ahistorical to you? Or did I miss something?
I'm praying for you brother
Kevin
cawleyblog
I can think of 66 books that you forgot to add to the list.
It is a little 20th century. That's why we post it here. Add your own ideas and suggestions!
Not a single book by Francis Schaeffer, yet two by open theist Greg Boyd?
Well, maybe that explains it right there.
thanks for the list
here are some of my suggestions
http://sivinkit.net/archives/cat_books.html
http://www.christianbooksummaries.com/
Just at the tittle suggests, these guys do summaries of christian books. Their choices may not be everyone's cup of tea. However, among their past issues you'll find Sweet's Post Modern Pilgrims (vol 1 #21) and Chesterton's Orthodoxy (vol 1 #11)
Is this list for an M.div in general or emergent studies?
Dryden and Kinsella? How come, Jordon?? I don't get it?
Also, a request - is it possible to alphabetize the whole list together?
Bob Carlton directed me to your list.
I am thinking the "personal M.DIV." does not represent what this list is. It seems heavy on popular texts. A more robust list would 1) have catagories that would assure coverage of important fields of study, and 2) represent genuine classics in the field.
Here are three recommendations for areas I percieve neglected by the current list.
Hermeneutics: Models of Revelation, by Avery Dulles.
Ethics: After Virtue, by Alister Macintyre.
Philosophy: The Self as Agent, and Persons in Relation, by John Macmurray.
Thank you for generating this list. It is helpful to find in one place books others have found helpful.
Something by David Lipscomb, John Huss, Dorothy Day, Clarence Jordon, and/or Lee Camp.
It is a work in progress and will be defined into categories later on. We are just getting suggestions and from there will be refining and editing the list.
It was asked if this was a list for the emerging church M.Div or a general M.Div. Good question. So far the list is a little slanted towards an emerging church M.Div but that's why we are askign for your ideas and suggestions.
Steve Taylor's book - The Out of Bounds Church?" Len Sweet in an e-mail to Steve wrote - "I assigned your book to my doctoral students, and they loved it ... I thought the book was dynamite . . . and glad it exploded in the hearts of my students as well.."
#33 (The Post-Evangelical) is by Dave Tomlinson I think, not Dallas Willard. And thanks for this work. I've been putting together a reading priority list for a while now and this is a HUGE help.
Marcus Borg, "The Heart of Christianity"
Dave Fleming "The Seekers Way"
Two great thinkers and writers.
Must read:
- Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger
Should read:
- American Evangelicalism - Christian Smith
- Sharing the Journey - Roberth Wuthnow
- Sex, Economy, Freedom, and Community - Wendell Berry
- Habits of the Heart - Richard Madsen, Robert Bellah, et al.
- After Christendom? How the Church Is to Behave If Freedom, Justice, and a Christian Nation Are Bad Ideas - Stanley Hauerwas
- Stranger at the Gate - Mel White
Ward, Pete. Liquid Church.
Riddell, Mike. Threshold of the Future.
Synder, Howard. The Community of the King.
Jamieson, Alan. A Churchless Faith.
Creasy Dean, Kenda. Practicing Passion: Youth and the quest for a passionate church.
Myers, Chad. Binding the Strongman.
yep, Dave Tomlinson wrote The Post Evangelical.
Great list, Jordon, and a great idea to do this.
If I could only recommend 5 books from this list, they would be:
- Frost and Hirsch, The Shaping of Things to Come
- Guder et al, Missional Church
- Simson, Houses That Change the World
- Bosch, David J. Transforming Mission: Paradigm Shifts In Theology of Mission
- Newbigin, Leslie. The Gospel in a Pluralist Society
For a specialist emergent track, I would suggest Out of Bounds Church (Steve Taylor) and The Complex Christ (Kester Brewin) and if you could only buy one Brian McLaren book - "The Church on the Other Side" would be the book to buy. However, the bias toward western thinking is still very biased and a few books from Africans, Asians or Latins might be needed. I find the book "Global Missiology for the 21st Century" (William Taylor, ed) is highly useful for its non-western contributions.
Hey Jordon, thanks for the useful list.
* I would add Gerard Kelly's Retrofuture to the mix. (The church from a distinctively futurist perspective.)
* A great book on chaos and organizations is Richard Pascale, et.al, Surfing the Edge of Chaos.
* Any book that Andrew Jones would write. Actually, I think it is about time he did! The man's a genius.
Its an honor to be listed here with so many of great books. Thanks for the unintended compliment.
Jordon
Your list strikes me as being very lopsided.
1/ Needs more input from non-middle class, non-white, non-males.
2/ Needs more input from the cross-cultural missions community. I noted a few references but…
3/ Apart from Capra, I didn’t recognise a single New Spirituality author in your list. How ministers can develop skills in cultural exegesis without reference to primary source material is a bit of a mystery to me. I’d suggest including reference to influential authors such as Blavatsky, Steiner, Crowley, Gardner, Margot Adler, Starhawk, A E Waite, D T Suzuki, for starters. I’d consider them essential for understanding street level post-modernity in any depth.
4/ I’d also suggest inclusion of works from John Drane, Philip Johnson, Amos Yong.
Alan, I always get a kick out of it when authors thank me for mentioning their book. It was you that wrote a great book to begin with that we find invaluable! Thanks for the note and for writing a book worth being read and re-read.
Just thought of a couple more...
Thwaites, James. The church beyond the congregation.
Thwaites, James. Renegotiating the church contract.
No Barth? No Hauerwas? No Bosch? No Moltmann? No Roxburgh? But what strikes my mostly about this concept is the shallow theological conversation implicit in many of these books combined with the danger of moving away from the conversations and thinking of different generations, genders, ethnic groups, and cultural traditions for one's theological formation that will happen if we only learn in isolation. Heaven help us if we went that way for all of our formation.
Maybe you missed the books listed there by Barth, Roxburgh, Bosch...
I took a broader approach, which ended up being pretty heavy on church history (my background), but learning from the past is what we have since we can't learn from the future while the present keeps us busy...
Also, I realized, though, that I don't have a general hermeneutics text in there, and that I should probably put the Klein/Blomberg/Hubbard intro to Biblical interpretation in there instead. That would mean dropping something, perhaps the Alexander _Xn. Sp'ty_, Eusebius, or Robert Short. Sadly, it's Eusebius, most likely, the ol' blowhard... It's one less early primary source, but there's a good dose of that in the list anyway.
The post w/ my list: http://journalscape.com/guru/2005-07-24-22:35
Hey Jordan,
Where are all the books my Rick Warren, Bill Hybles, George Barna and John Maxwell?
Seems biased in favor of emergent scholarship and in favor of contemporary writings. How can one get an MDiv without reading the primary sources?
St. Augustine, Confessions
Calvin, Institutes
Luther, Bondage of the Will
Luther, Commentary on Galatians
hi, i left a comment on the Resonate Journal site also. i agree with the comments about primary sources and the absence of diversity in the list. most notable is the ommission of anything about the social, cultural, historical setting of the original texts--ugggh, that would be the new testament. also linguistics and literary issues. perhaps clarifying the m.div. as "emerging culture concentration" or something else would resolve much of the criticism.
Hello, as many of you know the M.Div is usually a 90 hour degree, so 40 books for a personal M.Div is a bit truncated. This list of 120+ books is a good start. Might i suggest the traditional categories of study--not unlike the 'pillars' of an MBA--for organizing your list: Bible; Theology; Church History; Doctrine; Homiletics; Discipleship; Formation; Ethics; and Pastoral Care. i also urge you to take seriously your qualifying statement that these books be of "resourse" value if you plan to reduce the list to 40--books like Oden's ST, "Across the spectrum" and McGrath's "Christian Theology Reader." Others might make a collateral or 'formational' reading list. i would add Achtmmeier, Green, Thompson, "Introducing the New Testament"; Dillard, Longman, "An Introduction to the Old Testament"; Davis, Hays, "The Art of Reading Scripture"; Green, Pasquarello, "Narrative Reading, Narrative Preaching"; McGrath, "Historical Theology."
a v. good new book on postmdern hermeneutics is
Faithful Interpretation by A.K.M.Adam
is George Lindbeck's the Nature of Theology on your list? unless I messed it somewhere, I'd add that one.
correction: The post evangelical (your no 33) is by Dave Tomlinson, isn't it? Unless there's another bok by the same name.
good luck!
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