Book, Bath, Table & Time

Here's a shout-out to Dr. Fred Edie, professor of Christian education at Duke Divinity School and director of the Duke Youth Academy for Christian Formation. His new title is now available through Pilgim Press: Book, Bath, Table and Time: Christian Worship as Source and Resource for Youth Ministry. If he weren't currently my professor, with the power of my GPA in his hands, I'd say this book is AWESOME, and you'd believe me--but hopefully you'll believe me anyway. Every youth worker should own a copy. Fred locates the church's youth ministry within the main congregational worship service, where youth encounter the "holy things" of book (scripture), bath (baptism), table (communion), and time (the church year as lived out in daily Christian practice). His thinking on these issues has profoundly influenced me, particularly my understanding of the formative value of liturgy for helping youth live into the story of Jesus.

If you read nothing else this year on youth ministry, read this book. Well, and maybe The God-Hungry Imagination. Read both.