Author: The Green Room

Ever heard of a “green room”? It’s the room in a theater where actors and speakers can relax when they’re not on stage….talk to each other about what they really think, fix their makeup, get some coffee, and otherwise prepare for their next moment “on.” Well, this blog is the green room for the faith and work movement, where its leaders can kick off their shoes, grab a cup of coffee or a mug of tea, and talk heart-to-heart about where the movement’s come from, where it’s going, what’s working, and what’s not working. We hope you’ll join the conversation.

EWP Talks on Ethics: What Is Real Flourishing?

Reprinted from the Oikonomia Network. Our collection of EWP Talks on Ethics will help your students explore the way we strive to live as followers of Jesus, and what we hope for – and will work for – when it comes to economic systems and practices. Perhaps the toughest part, these talks will help convey why we want what we do in those areas.…

Building Empathy across Socioeconomic Lines

Reprinted from the Chalmers Center. The key to any effective poverty alleviation is love.  God made the world out of love, and redeems us through his love expressed in Jesus’ sacrifice for our sins. He made us to enjoy loving relationships with him, with ourselves, with others, and with the rest of his creation. Because of this, our work to…

“Just Plain Folk” Are Just Plain Ministry

By Pam Tinsley, reprinted from Living God’s Mission. Dave, David and Al met eight years ago on a music team for an Episcopal Cursillo/Come and See retreat weekend. David was a vocalist and played rhythm guitar; Dave sang and played guitar, banjo and mandolin; and Al played double bass. In addition to contemporary church music, they also shared a love of folk…

Review: Hard Times

By David Gill, reprinted from The 313. In Hard Times, Charles Dickens wrote a short novel that describes the lives of the winners and losers in the fictional “Coketown,” a generic Northern English mill-town. Hard Times was the tenth (and shortest) novel by the author of Great Expectations, Oliver Twist, David Copperfield, A Christmas Carol and other works. First published in 1854, Hard Times describes and critically satirizes the…

Work: Beyond Lesser and Greater to the Gift of God

By David Williamson. This is the third of a series. In their book Make Your Job A Calling, Dik and Duffey address distortions in our approach to work, when we either make it merely a means or treat it as establishing personal value. If our job has some social status, we are ready, and even quick, to tell someone – almost…

To Strike or Not to Strike?

By Ross Hendry, chief executive of CARE; reprinted from the London Institute for Contemporary Christianity. To strike or not to strike? That is not a simple question! Every day brings news of further strikes. Think transport, NHS, Royal Mail, schools and the civil service. Everyone’s impacted. And opinions run hot. It’s tempting to support who you feel most sympathy for. Yet if a…

Global Goodwill, Local Control

Reprinted from the Oikonomia Network. The vision of the Economic Wisdom Project is summarized in twelve “elements” that provide starting points for thoughtful, biblically informed understanding of contemporary opportunities and challenges. For a handy guide to the twelve elements, download this one-page summary, taken from our EWP vision paper “A Christian Vision for Flourishing Communities”: Below is an excerpt from the paper “Twelve Elements of Economic…

Spring Training from the Chalmers Center

Reprinted from the Chalmers Center. Has your church or organization experienced an increase in people asking for financial assistance? As costs have been on the rise this year, often the people hit hardest are those with limited financial resources to begin with. So what should you do when people come to your church or ministry to ask for assistance with…

Commissioned by “The Sacrament” to Be “Sacraments”

By Demi Prentiss, reprinted from Living God’s Mission. For those of us who choose to be partners in baptismal living, we aim to live our lives following Jesus, walking the road he described as The Way. One frame for that style of living is to understand the life we live as abiding in sacrament. I’m not talking about The Sacrament:…

Working on Christmas

By David Williamson. Reading “What Does Christmas Have to Do with Work?”, one of Mark Roberts’ devotionals from the De Pree Center, prompted me to think about those who work especially hard at Christmas. When most of the world cuts back and makes room for the celebration of the holiday! Holiday comes from “holy day,” and some are called by…