|
 Bruce
and Carolyn Winfrey Gillette, pastors and co-authors of the revised
Biblical
and Theological Guide, describe how they became involved
in the project.
In the summer of 1987, we attended a week-long seminar on
parenting and family ministries at the beautiful Ghost Ranch
Conference Center in New Mexico. The seminar was filled with
insights on how congregations could minister with and for families.
Michael Popkin was one of the seminar's leaders-our group gave
him an award at the end of the week proclaiming him an "Honorary
Presbyterian Saint" in gratitude for his contributions to
our seminar and his greater work on behalf of parents. That fall
we taught our first Active Parenting program in our church in
Sussex, New Jersey. We found Active Parenting to be a wonderful
way to support parents in our congregation and to reach others
in the community.
This fall our congregation will have several baptisms. Whenever
we have these joyful celebrations, the congregation promises
to help the parents nurture their children in the faith. Churches
need to be involved in family ministries because of the promises
we make at each child's baptism/dedication, because of Jesus'
call for us to love our neighbors, and because families enrich
the lives of congregations. A recent survey of pastors found
that resources for the spiritual formation of children were what
they wanted most. We have found that Active Parenting is a wonderful
resource to help families.
"Baptist,
Congregational, Episcopal, Evangelical, Jewish, Lutheran, Methodist,
Presbyterian and Roman Catholic are some of the faith traditions
that have enriched this ecumenical guide."
We teach Active Parenting annually because of the benefits for
our church members and others. Many of the parenting skills,
like sensitive listening, can easily be used by participants
in other contexts, such as between couples or at work. We have
had many young families join our churches after the parents first
came to attend a parenting seminar.
When we first taught the class we were not yet parents; we are
now blessed with John (age 15), Catherine (age 12) and Sarah
(age 10). One of the reasons we continue to teach it annually
is that the class is a helpful reminder to us about what we should
be doing as parents. We are better parents because of what Active
Parenting has taught us and from hearing the insights of hundreds
of other parents in our classes.
The original author of the wonderful Active Parenting in the
Community of Faith: A Biblical and Theological Guide is Freda
Gardner. She was a favorite professor of ours, and many other
fellow students, at Princeton Theological Seminary. Freda is
one of those gifted teachers who brings a true depth of understanding
to her subject as well as practical insights. She was recognized
by her fellow Christian educators as the "Educator of the
Year," and has served as the Moderator of the PCUSA General
Assembly. When Active Parenting Today was revised to become
Active Parenting
Now, we were honored when Freda agreed to have us do
the updating of her resource for churches.
"We are better parents because of what Active Parenting
has taught us and from hearing the insights of hundreds of other
parents in our classes."
The revised church guide takes the excellent text in Freda's
original guide and rearranges it to match changes in the new
Active Parenting Now. The twelve handouts are new and
offer a mixture of biblical material, questions for individual
and group reflection and a wealth of practical ideas to help
children and parents grow in faith together. Web page addresses
with helpful additional online resources are included in this
updated edition. We tried to combine an emphasis on "inward
and outward journeys" of faith and spiritual formation with
active discipleship. Active Parenting Product Development Manager
Rachel Metzger did a wonderful layout for the new guide, adding
helpful icons to make it easy for leaders to relate the church
guide to the program Leader's Guide.
Baptist, Congregational, Episcopal, Evangelical, Jewish, Lutheran,
Methodist, Presbyterian and Roman Catholic are some of the faith
traditions that have enriched this ecumenical guide. We are grateful
for Freda's thoughtful review and suggestions for the revised
guide, and also for the helpful insights of two national church
leaders in family ministry—Martha Miller of the Presbyterian
Church (USA) and Mary Jane Pierce Norton of the United Methodist
Church. The new annotated
bibliography offers 40 resources (90% published in the last
five years) for church libraries, personal reading and group
discussions. We are grateful that Active Parenting has added
a new web page with our suggested list of 30 helpful web sites
for parents, church educators and pastors at www.ActiveParenting.com/FaithResources.htm
Blessings on your families, congregations and ministry.
Grace and Peace.
Bruce and Carolyn Winfrey Gillette are co-Pastors of First
Presbyterian Church in Pitman, NJ.
Click for more information:
List
of Faith-based Resources
Active
Parenting Now in the Faith Community Guide
First Presbyterian
Church of Pitman, NJ
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