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Conflict resolution in congregations:
Is that what we really need?

By W. Craig Gilliam

When pastors call him for help resolving congregational conflict,
Craig Gilliam usually declines. Conflict resolution, he says, may not
be a good idea.
Read on.

Ten Things We Need to Know about Healthy Leadership

By Michael Jinkins

How do we distinguish healthy from unhealthy leadership? Michael
Jinkins says there are ten things we need to know about healthy leaders.
Read on.

Two News Items from E-Newsletter of The Roundtable on Religion and Social Welfare Policy, Oct 7, 2008

Nonprofits, Serving People on Precipice, Await Financial Cliffhanger's End

Four months ago, Catholic Charities USA released a sobering report that was unsettling for many in the nonprofit world - a survey of its 54 local agencies showed dramatic increases in the number of working and middle-class families seeking basic needs such as food, housing, prescriptions and utilities amid "tough economic times." That was before the nation's financial bottom fell out - before the stock market plummeted, before the federal government rescued the nation's two failing giant mortgage institutions, before major financial companies and banks crashed, and before the federal government passed a $700 billion bailout package to buy financial institutions' troubled assets. Though there's currently no data to show what change has occurred in the last four months, many religious and secular service providers are circumspect, nervous and uncertain about what will happen next as the economy continues to show further signs of worsening. Meanwhile, some groups are seeing increased demand from the needy, shrinking investment portfolios and the beginnings, or at least hints, of declines in
donations.

Read on.

Study shows America's farm and ranch families are struggling with rising costs of healthcare

Nearly a quarter of farmers and ranchers say healthcare costs cause
financial problems; spend 42 percent of annual income on coverage and care.

America's farm and ranch families are paying top dollar for health insurance that inadequately covers their needs and causes them significant financial risk, according to a report released today from The Access Project and sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Read on...

Pastors' Web Electioneering Attracts U.S. Reviews of Tax Exemptions

Duke Divinity School serves as the coordination program for the Sustaining Pastoral Excellence Grant Program, created by Lilly Endowment, Inc., to help maintain the high caliber of many of the country's pastoral leaders. Since the program's establishment in 2002, the endowment has awarded funds to 63 grant recipients, including seminaries, denominational offices, retreat centers, and other educational institutions, to develop and administer research and other programs to sustain clergy for effective ministry.

The Sustaining Pastoral Excellence Coordination Program publishes a monthly e-newsletter that highlights new articles published to the website. These articles are a mix from and about the various SPE projects, commentaries and reflections on pastoral excellence, as well as other useful resources.

The Aug. 2008 issue contains articles focusing on the rural church. They can be viewed and downloaded.

Place Matters - Challenges and Opportunities in Four Rural Americas
A Carsey Institute Report on the Rural America Carsey Institute, University of New Hampshire, Durham.

Hamilton, L., Hamilton, L., Duncan, C. & Colocousis, C. (2008)

Did you know that America has more prisoners/parolees/offenders than it has farmers? Actually, for every person in America who claims farming as his or her major occupation, the U.S. has four-plus individuals incarcerated or monitored/supervised by our criminal justice system. 

Read on.

Health Insurance as a New Indicator of Farm Households’ Well-Being
Mary Ahearn
Amber Waves, 2008

As in any household, the basic indicators — income and wealth — do not fully capture information about farm households' well-being. Because medical care is relatively expensive and can significantly affect morbidity and mortality, the incidence of health-insurance coverage among populations is an important indicator of well-being. Since farming is a relatively dangerous occupation, health-insurance coverage is critical. Health insurance provides individuals or groups with a contractual arrangement for personal medical expenses to be covered (usually, in part) in exchange for a fee paid to insurance companies.

1. The Deaconess Parish Nurse Ministry Network, in St. Louis, Mo., oversees a network of 45 paid parish nurses working in 58 congregations and faith-based organizations in the greater St. Louis metropolitan area.

International Parish Nurse Resource Center (IPNRC eNotes #77, May 6, 2008): www.parishnurses.org

2. The following article about faith-community nurses appeared in the Journal of Gerontological Nursing:

"Care of Community-Dwelling Older Adults by Faith Community Nurses," Laura Rydholm, MSN; Rajean Moone, Ph.D.; Lisa Thornquist, Ph.D.; Wanda Alexander, MPH, BSN; Vicki Gustafson, MSN; Bethany Speece, BSN.

Journal of Gerontological Nursing, Vol. 34, No. 4, April 2008. Abstract
at: www.jognonline.com/view.asp?rID=27540

Joyce Sasse of the Canadian Rural Church Network www.canadianruralchurch.net forwarded this news item (www.irca.is) from Robyn McPhail of the International Rural Churches Association. The article concerns a rural mission-policy conference in Korea. Do any of the suggestions and recommendations sound familiar?