Author Archives: Israel Galindo

About Israel Galindo

Israel Galindo is Coordinator of the Leadership in Ministry program at the Center for Lifelong Learning, Columbia Theological Seminary. Formerly he was Associate Dean for Lifelong Learning at Columbia Theological Seminary and Dean at the Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond.

“The Rules”

Posted on April 21, 2007 by Israel Galindo

Attached is the article notes of a recent presentation titled “The Rules.” The article highlights fifteen “rules” about leadership in the congregational setting. These “derivative rules” are informed by Bowen Family Systems Theory. You can download the article here: galindotherules.pdf … Continue reading →

Posted in bowen family systems theory, second chair | Comments Off on “The Rules”

On metaphors, analogies, and rigid thinking

Posted on April 20, 2007 by Israel Galindo

Three recent conversations reminded me of the importance of moving away from ways of thinking that lead us toward “naïve understanding” and of the necessity of working toward a more critical way of thinking about matters of importance. In one … Continue reading →

Posted in Christian Education, teaching, theology | 1 Comment

Teaching children the Bible

Posted on April 19, 2007 by Israel Galindo

When I was an elementary school principal at a Christian school parents would often ask about the reason for why we required the children to memorize Bible verses (by fourth grade they were memorizing whole chapters as well as a … Continue reading →

Posted in bible, children, Christian Education, teaching | 1 Comment

Shameless self-promotion

Posted on April 18, 2007 by Israel Galindo

An article by Israel Galindo appears in the current issue of Congregations magazine from Alban Institute. The article is titled “What’s Systems Theory Got to Do with It?: Addressing Congregations’ Emotional Processs in Our Preaching.” In it, Galindo says, “The … Continue reading →

Posted in bowen family systems theory, theology, worship | Comments Off on Shameless self-promotion

Suggestions for children’s sermons

Posted on April 15, 2007 by Israel Galindo

I recently visited a church in which a staff member did the “children’s sermon” during the morning worship service. It was all I could do to keep from moaning and cringing. This staff member broke all of the “rules” for … Continue reading →

Posted in children, Christian Education | 1 Comment

Teaching the unteachable

Posted on April 14, 2007 by Israel Galindo

Sometimes I get the nagging suspicion that there may be some things that are “unteachable.” Ironically, those things may be the most important things we want to teach, things like maturity, emotional intelligence, faith, and the usable part of systems … Continue reading →

Posted in bowen family systems theory, children, Christian Education | 1 Comment

First Second chair post

Posted on April 13, 2007 by Israel Galindo

Interestingly enough, we’ve yet to have a “second chair” post on the blog. This is interesting in that most of us in the GRACE group fall under that category. Whether you are a second chair or first chair in your … Continue reading →

Posted in Christian Education, second chair | Comments Off on First Second chair post

First and second order change in systems

Posted on April 12, 2007 by Israel Galindo

In the field of community psychology (yes, there is a field of community psychology), the theory of “logical types” and the concepts of first and second order change can help us understanding some aspects of addressing homeostasis in relationship systems. … Continue reading →

Posted in bowen family systems theory, second chair | Comments Off on First and second order change in systems

Know thyself . . . or not

Posted on April 11, 2007 by Israel Galindo

The idea of self-differentiation has within it the hint of the idea of the necessity to “know thyself.” Evidence of this is the emphases on achieving insight into how we got to be who we are (family of origin work) … Continue reading →

Posted in bowen family systems theory, philosophy, world view | 1 Comment

Hacks and professionals

Posted on April 10, 2007 by Israel Galindo

In his book, A Failure of Nerve, Ed Friedman writes about the tendency of ineffective leaders who exhibit the tendency to seek the “quick fix” and the obsession with methods, techniques, and programs rather than engage in the hard work … Continue reading →

Posted in bowen family systems theory, Christian Education | Comments Off on Hacks and professionals