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One of the most underused, but potentially one of the most transforming, approaches to Christian education formation is the retreat. Often relegated to the area of youth ministry programs (but rarely formatted as a retreat even then) the retreat holds the potential of providing ways of learning and relationship building unavailable in any other type of church education programming. I find that for church leaders and members the first major obstacle to overcome when considering offering retreats is the fear of the unknown (or, “We’ve never done retreats in our church and I don’t think anyone will attend.”).

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I continue to come across the notion, in the literature on leadership, that good leaders motivate others. I’m becoming convinced that that is a wrong notion. I think it’s fine that people “get motivated” out of their own internal, intrinsic, agency. And in fact, few things get done without motivation. But I think it’s a risky notion to believe that it’s the responsibility of the leader in any organization to “motivate” others to action. That runs the risk of quickly tipping into the manipulative if not ultimately, the willful—through coercion (manipulation), seduction (charm), or influence (power). And as I like to remind people, regardless of intentions, it is willfulness that does the harm.

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The following is from the book Myths: Fact and Fiction about Teaching and Learning by Israel Galindo. How well do you know fact from fiction?

Fiction: All truths in science are based on empirical evidence.

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One of the books I recommend most often to my students is Mortimer J. Adler’s classic How To Read A Book. Students who take up my challenge that despite being in graduate school they need to learn to read and so should study Adler’s helpful guide tend to do much better in their studies. In How to Speak and How to Listen (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1983) American philosopher Mortimer Adler offers the same service to oral communication as he did to the printed word. In this book he reviews keys to public speaking and to intentional listening in three sections framed by a prologue and epilogue. These sections encompass the process used in speaking and listening that Adler feels should be incorporated in every “heart-to-hear talk,” personal conversation, and public speeches.

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If I only had the nerve…

I would lead a children’s time where I would tell the children to come to the chancel, as I normally do. Then I would tell them, “You know I really have to use the restroom. I’ll back really soon. Don’t tell anyone I left. I’m sure I won’t miss anything.” Then I would exit.

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Much of what I do by way of “education” takes the form of classroom instruction. It’s a mode of learning that is highly dependent on teacher performance. Part of the dance of the classroom is that balance between teacher performance and student learning. I think too many teachers work too hard at teaching as “performance art” and run the risk of turning learning into a spectator sport. When that happens learning loses its effectiveness. My own rule about effective learning is, “Never work harder than your students.”

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R. Paul Stevens, professor of applied theology at Regents College, Vancouver, BC has provided what should be required reading for seminarians, clergy, and the informed congregational leader. In The Other Six Days: Vocation, Work, and Ministry in Biblical Perspective (Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co, 1999. 289 pages. $24.00. ISBN 0-8028-4800-1) Stevens calls all believers back to a biblical understanding of the nature of calling and ministry. He calls for no less than the dismantling of “clergy” and “lay” theological and ecclesial distinctions of the people of God and offers a vision of the often trite and unrealized blurb printed on church bulletins: “Every member a minister.”

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