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Reviewed by Kevin R. Armstrong, senior pastor of North United Methodist Church in Indianapolis, IN Keep the Call by Jill Crainshaw The fifth and sixth grade Sunday school students waited like hungry cats for the quarterly visit of the senior pastor who challenged them to a contest of “Stump the Pastor.” The students were encouraged to ask some question about the bible, theology, or church life that the pastor couldn’t answer. As time went on, the game became more cunning and clever than instructive and enlightening. Few pastors I know are willing to submit themselves to a round of “Stump the Pastor” although I suspect many clergy feel that’s a good description of their day. Leading a congregation, especially one in transition, means fielding a host of questions from members, neighbors, and perfect strangers: Why aren’t we growing like the church down the street? Who decided to let them use the building? How are we going to pay for new ministries? When are things going to change around here? Where is God in this mess? Sometimes the questions are enough to make a pastor ask: How can I lead this congregation without losing my soul? Wake Forest Divinity School Associate Dean for Vocational Formation, Jill Crainshaw, offers a helpful guide for pastors and congregations overwhelmed by the questions as well as those who may find themselves playing clever games in order to get to predetermined or predictable answers. Keep The Call: Leading the Congregation Without Losing Your Soul guides the reader in how to listen more deeply to the One who still speaks through scripture, theology, and community life. Crainshaw’s book begins with a familiar story: A recent seminary graduate brings her eagerness and gifts to a struggling congregation in a changing neighborhood. Desperation’s hand is on the rudder and the crosswinds of nostalgia and new ideas create a storm of uncertainty. The pastor asks, “Is there a model of ministry that will really work for me and my congregation?” The remainder of the book is something of a well-crafted case study suggesting that easy answers are not nearly as important as well-discerned questions. Drawing on systems theories, scripture, and other theological treasures, the book is worth reading if only to consider some of the life-giving questions the author has discerned as she has been attentive to congregational stories. There’s a good deal of poetry in the way she describes how pastors can move from situation to story, information to imagination, and proclamation to transformation. Crainshaw’s creative images of soundboards and public looms as well as her accessible examples of congregational life speak to the veteran pastor as well as newcomer. She gently and effectively challenges the habits that look for easy answers before we ever ask the right question. The book is most helpful when commending the theological task of storytelling and story-listening, theological curiosity and story fluency. The nuances of systems theory sometimes dull an otherwise fresh-sounding approach to the power of questions in kindling dialogue and promoting collaborative leadership. Integrating more of the wisdom of pastors whose seasoned “soundwalk” anticipates rather than responds to change would have improved the book. Still, this is a good text to tuck in every itinerant pastor’s satchel as she heads to a new congregation or simply finds herself in a time of vocational or congregational transition. When the questions sound too clever, the answers too simple (or maybe downright frightening), Jill Crainshaw is a good conversation partner. She helps us understand how the complexities and challenges of life-long listening can shape vibrant, life-long leadership.
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