Gathering Place, The

A Hand Up Instead of a HandoutIn order to break the urban cycle of poverty and oppression, our communities need the empowerment that comes from a practical education—one that combines biblical principles with real-world knowledge and application. Inner-city churches are ideal for providing such an education. The Gathering Place shows how your church can give needy people not only a handout, but also an essential hand up to successful lives.“This book serves as a training manual . . . even for those who are ill-equipped for or overwhelmed by the task of urban church education,” writes Dr. James R. Love Sr. From his years of experience with urban churches, Dr. Love shows how the church can bring people together and give them the spiritual and practical resources needed to put the life-changing power of the gospel in motion.With case studies demonstrating urban church education in action, The Gathering Place includes: · Introduction: Forging a Vision · Empowerment: Why Urban Church Education Is Needed · The City on a Hill: The Context of Urban Church Education · Liberated to Learn: Principles of Empowering Education · In Order to Succeed: Constructing a Christian Education Ministry · Follow the Leader: Becoming an Empowering Teacher · Striving for Knowledge: The Legacy of African-American Education · Reap What You Sow: Developing a Christian Philosophy of Education

James R. Love Sr. (D.Min., Westminster Seminary) is pastor of Faith Tabernacle United Holy Church of American (UHCA) in Washington, D.C., and president of Love the Word Ministries, Inc. He served as principal of a Christian school and director of Christian education at Evangel Church in Washington, and has been published in several journals.