Product Description
Luther Lee, D.D. (1800-1889), one of the founders of Wesleyan Methodism, was a nineteenth-century reformer and an ordained minister in the Methodist Episcopal Church. Lee is known to most Methodist historians as a Methodist Episcopal minister who deserted the church that had brought him to spiritual birth and ordination. Wesleyan Methodist church historians know him as the first president of their denomination, an editor of their periodical, and unfortunately, a traitor who betrayed and then subsequently walked away from the church he had helped to establish. His significance to American history has not heretofore been observed. This volume explores Lee's life, his politics, and his theology. One of the author's particular foci is the extent to which Lee affected the antislavery movement. Paul L. Kaufman places Lee within the broad context of nineteenth-century reformism as he battled the "gag rule" of the Methodist Episcopal bishops, and then shaped the Wesleyan Methodist Connection while he served on the highest levels of Garrison's American AntiSlavery Society. Of interest to students and teachers of Methodism, American history, and the abolitionist movement. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Excellent purchase and timely delivery
The book seller was quick in mailing my order, took every precaution to ensure the book arrived in excellent condition and in a timely manner. The book, "The Book of Discipline" is what I ordered and it is as I ordered. ... Read more

Product Description
Asserting that the "return to Wesley" that is represented in the Quadrilateral is "intellectually wrongheaded,"William J. Abraham argues that the Quadrilateral is not, and should not be, United Methodist doctrine.Abraham's lively treatise makes a provocative appeal for a reasoned exploration of the significance of the UMC's doctrinal identity.He reveals how churches have faced incompatible doctrinal proposals within their midst and examines the specific issues facing the United Methodist church as a whole. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Doctrine and Practice
Abraham's book has already proven prophetic and continues to point toward future difficulities in UMC polity and practice.What purpose is there for a Book of Discipline, if it can generally be ignored with impunity?The underlying problem may be that very few UMC clergy and laity are familiar with Methodist Discipline.It absolutely contains doctrines and creeds, despite the naysayers.

Abraham calls for a reawakening to the UMC Book of Discipline and the propagation of knowledge about it.Without fundamental Christian doctrine, the UMC begins to look like the Peace Corps or a Masonic Lodge.The UMC is so much more than a proponent of social justice and rituals.We should not lessen the significance of the Incarnation, or Scriptural teachings.

As a result of the factions found in the UMC, we are seen by the public as a congregation of people who can believe anything.Abraham points us back to the Book of Discipline and shows that if we are to remain a connectional church, then we simply must afford more consideration to the rules upon which we have agreed.

I like this book.It is short, easy to read, and hits home in a direct and forceful way. We have had quite enough of the much abused Outlerian quadrilateral.Let's revisit our creeds. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

The How and Why of Youth Ministry
This handbook has a wealth of practical information for adults who workwith youth in local churches.It not only includes many ideas on how toorganize and structure your ministry with youth, but reminds us why we takethe time to assist youth in their faith journeys.Chapter Four has anespecially helpful "Web of Discipleship" which guides you inevaluating your youth in relationship to their Christian development.Thenit goes on to describe how to relate to and work with youth in each area ofthe web.Other chapters include leadership issues, check-lists forretreats, having a vision, and many other practical areas.This book isuseful for the beginner, the experienced, and everyone in-between!Ihighly recommend it to you! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Don't forget the subtitle!
The United Methodist Hymnal is, in my opinion, one of the best worship resources you can own.It contains hundreds and hundreds of hymns, far more than many other hymnals that I own or have used.But this is more than a Hymnal: it contains Prayers, liturgies, Scripture selections (including 100 of the Psalms) affirmations of Faith and Creeds and so much more.The subtitle is "The Book of United Methodist Worship" and that is exactly what this is: a very useful worship book.You will find it useful not only in public worship but in private prayer and devotion as well.The indexes are very useful as well - you can look up songs, hymns, prayers, and chants, by title, or by subject, by tune name, or even by scripture references.The prayers and liturgies reflect some of the best of English language and are very much in keeping with the "Common Prayer Book" tradition of the Anglican Church out of which the Methodist movement was born.The collection of hymns is wonderful!There are so many and they are fairly diverse: traditional hymns; modern ecumincal ('catholic') hymns; some 'ethnic' hymns; and more good ole' evangeical 'revival' hymns than you can shake a stick at.Of course all of the hymns, prayers, Creeds and liturgies are thick with theology and are useful for anyone who wants to get a feel for Christianity as it is practiced by Methodists as well.This is a wonderful resource for public and private worship and I can't say enough about it!Every Methodist ought to have one - right next to his Bible.

joyful to use
We use the hymnal frequently in our Sunday School Class.The words to hymns are great read out loud, there are also prayers and responsive readings which are very useful

An important compendium
Most of the pieces in this book a pretty hard to dance to, but the lyrics are good. ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description
This book describes and examines the Wesleyan attitude toward and programs with the poor from the time of John Wesley to the present.The chapters consist of revised versions of ten presentations given at a major symposium on "The Wesleys and the Poor: The Legacy and Development of Methodist Attitudes Toward Poverty, 1730-1999,"in October 1999 at Southern Methodist University.The contributors represent the best of current thinking on a broad spectrum of concerns, including historical, theological, musical, institutional, and pastoral issues related to poverty and the church in the Wesleyan heritage. ... Read more

Product Description
The question of how one can be both Hispanic and Protestant has perplexed Mexican Americans in Texas ever since Anglo-American Protestants began converting their Mexican Catholic neighbors early in the nineteenth century. Mexican-American Protestants have faced the double challenge of being a religious minority within the larger Mexican-American community and a cultural minority within their Protestant denominations. As they have negotiated and sought to reconcile these two worlds over nearly two centuries, los Protestantes have melded Anglo-American Protestantism with Mexican-American culture to create a truly indigenous, authentic, and empowering faith tradition in the Mexican-American community. This book presents the first comparative history of Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas. Covering a broad sweep from the 1830s to the 1990s, Paul Barton examines how Mexican-American Protestant identities have formed and evolved as los Protestantes interacted with their two very different communities in the barrio and in the Protestant church. He looks at historical trends and events that affected Mexican-American Protestant identity at different periods and discusses why and how shifts in los Protestantes' sense of identity occurred. His research highlights the fact that while Protestantism has traditionally served to assimilate Mexican Americans into the dominant U.S. society, it has also been transformed into a vehicle for expressing and transmitting Hispanic culture and heritage by its Mexican-American adherents. ... Read more

Product Description
8 sessions.This study helps adults understand better the goals and beliefs of the United Methodist Church.This study book includes leader helps, ideal for classes that prefer shared leadership. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Mildly Amusing
Although Robert Martin Walker tries to tear a page from Jeff Foxworthy's famous "You Might Be A Redneck If..." routine, the results are hardly in Foxworthy's laugh-out-loud league.

The problem, really, is that individual churches within the United Methodist Church tend to be extremely diverse in tone and emphasis.Depending on the church, you might find yourself in a hysterically conservative, wildly liberal, or casually moderate congregation.Consequently, it is extremely difficult to find one-liners of the "You Might Be..." variety that will resonate with United Methodists across the board.

For myself, as a member of the United Methodist Church I found this small, short book harmless but only mildly amusing at best.If you actually want an idea of the humor you might encounter at a United Methodist Church, you'd really do better to drop in on a UMC pot-luck dinner.

GFT, Amazon Reviewer

are you talking about me?
I found this book to be amusing, but a number of the jokes about Methodists could easily be applied to many of the mainline Christian denominations.Ah, well, Methodists have never been known for being very funny.

an overpriced pamphlet
I grew up in the Methodist Church, and my parents are life-long devout Methodists. We often joke about "methodizing" and Methodist ways -- so natually, I thought this would be a funny treat for my Mom. I was disappointed -- the book is full of one-liners, most of which present the Methodist church as a liberal, female-friendly, ecumenical organization. Granted, the church has (thank goodness) become must more open-minded over the years, but not to the extent this booklet implies. I could relate only to one or two of the jokes, and even they were lame. I didn't find any of them laugh-out-loud funny. No doubt, the Methodist Church is large and congregations and practices vary from church to church. I'm sure that there are a handful of Methodists out there who might find this funny. However, even though I have attended several Methodist churches over the years, I didn't particularly relate to this, nor did I find it funny. I wouldn't recommend purchasing this little cheaply-produced booklet (which looks like a freebie you could pick up the on the shelves in the narthex, right next to the Upper Rooms -- and it's not even blessed with a nice paper cover or any four-color illustrations) unless having something titled says "You Might Be a Methodist If . . . " is, in & of itself, amusing to you.

Very funny -- but not long enough!
Great one liners. Leaves you wishing the book was longer with more punch lines!

So true!
A clever and fun look at our denomination--every page hit home.As a life-long United Methodist and a PK, I could readily identify with each amusing observation. ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description
Hardcover with gold letters on dark cover; smaller 4 inch by 6 inch size ... Read more

Product Description
This is the body of Christ. This is the blood of Christ."" It's Communion Sunday. The service is a little longer, and the sacrament is observed with gravity. You know it's important, but the wonder is lost. What does it all mean, really? According to the results of a survey, you're not alone. United Methodists have a strong sense of the importance of Holy Communion, but they also lack a meaningful understanding of the theology behind it. Reclaim a richer sacramental life in your congregation through a group study of This Holy Mystery. In 2004, the General Conference of The United Methodist Church adopted an official interpretative document on Holy Communion. (Go here to download a copy.) For the first time in our history, the denomination has an official, comprehensive statement of the practice and theology of the Lords Supper. Now, it's time for congregations to help members understand the observance. ""We believe that study of this document will yield increased appreciation for the sacrament in the worship experience and enable United Methodist people to draw nourishment and strength for their ongoing journeys of faith,"" writes Felton. This Holy Mystery: A United Methodist Understanding of Holy Communion is a study guide of the General Conference approved document. An all-in-one resource, this book is for both participants and leaders. It's divided into seven sessions, providing commentary on the history, practice, and principles of Holy Communion in United Methodist congregations. It also points to implication of the sacrament for ministry and mission. We come to the Table of the Lord seeking to have our spiritual needs met. The benefits include forgiveness, nourishment, healing, transformation, ministry and mission, and eternal life. Renew your appreciation for the divine grace made available through this sacrament. Readers of This Holy Mystery are encouraged to download four articles from Quarterly Review available here. This Holy Mystery: A Study Guide for Children and Youth is now available. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Great resource!
This is a wonderful resource for clergy and laity of the United Methodist Church - extremely helpful for those beginning their ministry, and those who need to need a "refresher" course on sacramental worship.

A Good Selection
An excellent study book for an individual or to teach in a group.A good selection by The United Methodist Conference of 2004 for clergy and laity. ... Read more

Product Description
This title has fewer than 24 printed text pages. The Heroic Women of Early Indiana Methodism: An Address Delivered Before the Indiana Methodist Historical Society is presented here in a high quality paperback edition. This popular classic work by T. A. (Thomas Aiken) Goodwin is in the English language. If you enjoy the works of T. A. (Thomas Aiken) Goodwin then we highly recommend this publication for your book collection. ... Read more