One of the Academy of Parish Clergy's "Top 10 Books of 2013 for Parish Ministry" When is the last time you asked yourself hard questions about why you were pursuing certain relationships in your ministry? Could it be that the end game for many of us is not relationship per se but loyalty, adherence, even submission? The sheep in our flock become the means to our end: pastoring becomes less about the people of God and more about maintenance of the status quo-and, if we are willing to recognize it, the elevation of our pastoral status. Here practical theologian Andy Root dissects relational ministry as we have come to understand it and searches for the seed of a more wholesome, more pastoral understanding of the relationships for which God has prepared the church: the place where, when two or more are gathered in his name, Christ is present.
"If you are a pastor wearied by the tempations to produce and hungry for simple connection with others (simple pastoring), you will find a friend here."
Winn Collier, Religious Herald, November 25, 2013
"Most pastors and ministry leaders will affirm that relationships are at the heart of ministry. Root's concern, however, is that relationships have become the tool of ministry--simply a means to earn the loyalty of people to our programs or our brand of Jesus to our ministries grow. Thus, building relationship ministries becomes a strategy rather than a sincere effort to connect with people. . . . Root's concern is important and discussion-worthy, so recommend this book to pastors, group leaders, and key ministry leaders."
David Mundt, CBA Retailers + Resources, July 2013
"It is not often you find a work that is so full of practical relational insight, while maintaining theological depth. Root's work doesn't offer anything shockingly novel, but it is a theologically rich call to refocus on the relational side of ministry."
Andrew E. Stoddard, Leadership Journal, Winter 2014
