By: Deve Persad on November 6, 2014
Despite my deepening interest in philosophy and my great love for mathematics, Rene Descartes famous statement, “I think therefore I am”, comes up short. While it is true that the capacity to think is in itself a fairly reliable sign of life, it is more true that thinking is just the beginning, there is so…
By: Phillip Struckmeyer on November 6, 2014
“Contemporary Social Theory: An Introduction” by Anthony Elliott has become my favorite read for class so far. For some reason when we first received the reading list way back in August (seems like years ago in some ways) I was able to first obtain Elliott’s book and jumped in on the reading race early. Revisiting…
By: Ashley Goad on November 6, 2014
I must admit, my favorite class in Seminary was Christian Ethics. I loved every second of the semester. Though I am not much of a “theory” person, I enjoyed picking apart the philosophers’ thoughts, and putting the principles into practical application. Today I sat at a local coffee shop with a high school student, and…
By: Mary Pandiani on November 5, 2014
Urban Dictionary Definition of Renaissance Woman: She can mix the knowledge of what is considered disparate spheres into a new whole, by using her most unique method of analysis based on her very vast, deep, curiosity and experiences… which led to a very vast & deep knowledge, that she is so anxious to apply to everyday…
By: Miriam Mendez on November 3, 2014
As I read through Edwin Friedman’s book, A Failure of Nerve: Leadership in the Age of the Quick Fix, I was reminded of one of my favorite verses in the New Testament: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”[1] These are words of endurance and perseverance.…
By: Clint Baldwin on November 3, 2014
Friedman’s A Failure of Nerve is just the text needed for further invigorating – rather than truncating – conversation encouraging a robust engagement between a universally interconnected moral coding (however, nuanced) and civic participation. Of course, reading anything related to “universal” puts a lot of peoples’ radar on high alert with warning sirens flashing and resounding in…
By: Len Hjalmarson on November 1, 2014
hey all, I see you have been reading McGrath! Fun stuff eh? I’ve tended to see the engagement we have as three way — a trialogue with the gospel, church, and world (culture and our experience in the world). But it seems to me that one of the things we are learning is that we…
By: rhbaker275 on October 31, 2014
The assigned task of reading Edwin H. Friedman’s book, A Failure of Nerve: Leadership in an Age of Quick Fix, was for a moment a daunting task. I began as usual by perusing the table of contents and scanning through the chapter headings and sub-headings. Nothing different here although a few words jumped out creating…
By: Stefania Tarasut on October 31, 2014
I first read Edwin Friedman’s book, A failure of Nerve: Leadership in the Age of the Quick Fix, in the fall of 2009. I didn’t realize just how much I learned from this book until I picked it up again. His thoughts on self-differentiation changed the way that I lead and interact with people in…
By: Bill Dobrenen on October 31, 2014
I was in an academic department meeting this week. These are meetings that I endure rather than enjoy. I even find myself taking notes in code sometimes: WAIH (Why am I here?); WISSA (Why is she speaking so much?); O & O (One and on); LHM (Lord have mercy). Our department chair is a…
By: Telile Fikru Badecha on October 31, 2014
In his book Leadership in the Age of the Quick Fix: A Failure of Nerve, Edwin H Friedman presents unprecedented insight on leadership from his great wealth of experience working as a pulpit rabbi, organizational consultant, and family therapist. Friedman uncovers the failure of leadership affecting America’s civilization today, which he refers to as a…
By: Michael Badriaki on October 31, 2014
A few months ago I watched Bob Schieffer’s interview on “Face of the Nation” with former US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright. Albright summed up the world’s current condition by saying “the world is a mess.” Madam Secretary is right. Her interview focused on the conflict between Ukraine and Russia and the Gaza and Israel…
By: Carol McLaughlin on October 31, 2014
There once was a dreamer that dreamed a dream. This dream occurred several times over the years. Sometimes the setting varied, but there was always a common element. There was water present. At times this meant the setting was a coastal town and other times the water was something to be crossed. In either situation…
By: Mitch Arbelaez on October 31, 2014
So many good books so little time. Again, another great author. Another great book. A Failure of Nerve: Leadership in the Age of the Quick Fix by Edwin H. Friedman is one of those books that I will continue to return to in order to be reminded that good leadership cannot be synthesized down to…
By: Richard Volzke on October 31, 2014
How many times have you heard the phrase “lets just all get along”? This is a common saying or theme that many businesses and church leaders are propagating. It seems that the art of leadership is has given way to allowing everyone to have equal say and vote in the workplace. While it is important…
By: Ashley Goad on October 30, 2014
Edwin H. Friedman wrote one of the frankest, no-nonsense books I have ever read. A Failure of Nerve: Leadership in the Age of the Quick Fix caused me to wrinkle my forehead, squint my eyes, and stare off into space for minutes at a time as I pondered his thoughts. I was reminded of real…
By: Dawnel Volzke on October 30, 2014
Alister E. McGrath’s Christian Theology: An Introduction provides an overview of the history and development of Christian theology. He traces the development of theology through history, by sectioning it off a chunk at a time. I appreciate his approach as “there is no need to read every chapter in this book, nor need you read…
By: Brian Yost on October 30, 2014
I thoroughly enjoyed reading Christian Theology: An Introduction by Alister E. McGrath. This is a great book for both the novice as well as the scholar. McGrath “assumes that its readers know nothing about Christian theology.”[1] He thus creates a tool that can be placed in the hand of a student, but at the same…
By: Travis Biglow on October 30, 2014
The Quadrilateral of Christian Theology October 30, 2014 The renewal of my love for Theology has come full circle again. Studying Christian Theology this week has renewed my interest and pointed me to a point of theology that I believe is timeless in its nature, the quadrilateral. Before I get into that I…
By: John Woodward on October 30, 2014
In our information inundated, computerized world, there is the strong temptation to find quick-fixes, easy answers, new techniques, and advice from a plethora of experts ready to solve whatever issues or problems you might have. For this reason, my heart goes out the legions of small church pastors and the mothers of over-active children who…
