A Review of the Book "Leadership for a Changing Church" by Robert Dale

Title: Leadership for a Changing Church
Author: Robert Dale
Publisher: Abingdon Press
Year: 1998
120 pages

Leadership is hard to learn. I am sure it's just as hard to teach. Sometimes I wonder if it's even a learned quality. or is it something you either have or you don't.

Of all the classes  I took on history, theology, and bible studies, one area I find lacking overall is how to actually run a church.

Yes there was a leadership course or two in there, but once you are actually placed into a church, you realize that you truly have no idea what to do.

My mentor recommended this book to me, hoping that I would glean a few tidbits of information to help me get started (as I feel that leadership learning will be a life-long endeavour).

While the book is a couple of decades old, the principles still apply, especially when considering how much our church is changing in these COVID-19 days. One thing that was continually emphasized throughout the book was the idea of communal leadership; working as a team with parishes members to create forward-thinking strategic plans of where you want your church to go, how do you want your church to be an influence in the community, and what you want your church to be in 5, 10, and 15 years. The pandemic has made us all re-examine who we are as a church and what we will look like in the future. If you are unsure how to walk your parish through these changes, Dale's book is a good place to start.

A great quote can be found on page 112, "Just as believers as partners in Christ, so are leaders and followers natural allies in ministry."