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Reviewed by Rev. Patricia Farris, Senior Minister, Santa Monica First United Methodist Church Attentive to God: Thinking Theologically in Ministry, by Charles M. Wood and Ellen Blue
Abingdon Press, 2008 This is an excellent resource for candidacy mentors and candidates, or for discussion with the SPRC on the role of the pastor. It would also be fascinating to work through some of the case studies with trustees and other church leaders, teaching them how to think theologically about the myriad challenges and opportunities that present themselves in the normal course of congregational life. Though focused on the responsibility of the pastor, the goal for clergy and lay theologians alike is a learned ability to see everyday moments as occasions to comment, respond and intervene as a theologian, one deeply attuned to the ways of God and to the Good News of Jesus Christ. The theological concepts and vocabulary to which Wood and Blue point can be learned by all who are entrusted with the responsibility of leading and nurturing the life of the people of God. For as they say, quoting their favorite definition: theology is a way of paying attention to God. The work of the theologian in the life of a congregation requires, they assert, an attentiveness, an active listening to conversation and to situations that arise in the life of the church. Along with this listening comes the spiritual discipline, we might say, of making and taking time for reflection on what one has heard, observed or intuited prior to reaching conclusions, taking action, or offering advice. In this rushed age of “shooting off quick emails” and frantic schedules, this approach of discernment calls for a kind of inner calm, a more deliberate pace, a more reflective style. This form of practical theology moves from the Great Commandment to the work of discerning, in any given situation, what love demands, and of discerning between loving and unloving behavior in ministerial relationships and situations. The case studies cover the gamut of congregational life—from finances to membership, from different views of the sacraments to differing styles of dealing with conflict and difference. A number of social issues are addressed—homelessness, intercultural community, death, and dying. Surely every pastor will resonate with many of these “fictional” stories, based as they are on the real life situations we encounter week in and week out. The weakness of the book is found in the very brief Notes section at the conclusion. Only a few of the cases are commented upon and the approach of the section is much more “informational” than “formational” as if the authors felt a need to provide more background and detail about the cases themselves. Given that the intent of the book is to cause the reader to reflect on the cases, either individually or with a group, fewer case studies accompanied by more extensive and evocative Notes, might engender more extensive discussion and reflection. The Introduction and first four chapters, which spell out the approach, provide a valuable framework and a welcome invitation to see the work of ministry not in terms of tasks or goals or accomplishments, but rather in the formative work of Christian formation. Opportunities for real ministry, through word, sacrament and order, present themselves daily in the lives of the people and congregations where faith is lived. That reminder is the gift of this book. 
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