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1. Resources
Equipping Vocational Discovery
Before you tell your life what you intend to do with it, listen for what it intends to
do with you. Before you tell your life what truths and values you have decided to
live up to, let your life tell you what truths you embody, what values you
represent.
Parker J. Palmer
FTE strives to equip the next generation of leaders who are inspired to do God’s work in the
world through his or her own church or academic community. With support, diverse young
people can enliven their vocational pursuit, becoming intellectually and spiritually whole leaders.
We provide resources created to meet the unique needs of those who are seeking their purpose,
passion and call, and the partners who nurture them on their journey.
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Audience
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Campus Ministry
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Congregations & Church Related Organizations
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Faith-based Volunteer
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Theological Institutions
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Students
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Young Adults
Topic
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Diversity
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Doctoral Education
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Leadership Development
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Pastoral Ministry
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Seminary Education
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Service, Activism & Volunteerism
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Spirituality
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Vocational Discernment
Type
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Articles / Whitepapers
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Audio
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Blogs
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Books
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Curriculum
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Tools
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Video
Articles / Whitepapers Featured
Active Faith Matters: 2015 FTE Christian Leadership Forum Reflections
Does an Active Faith Matter? This is the question explored by nearly 200 faithful leaders at the
2015 FTE Christian Leadership Forum. Over three days in Dallas, FTE hosted a diverse,
intergenerational gathering of Christian leaders—seminarians, faith-based community workers
and volunteers, doctoral students, leaders of theological schools, congregations and churchrelated organizations. This publication includes insights and reflections from several Forum
participants as well as written pieces from FTE’s Stephen Lewis and Dori Baker.
Tags: Campus Ministry, Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer,
Theological Institutions, Students, Young Adults, Diversity, Doctoral Education
Video Featured
Fuel the Fire to Lead
Right now a young adult you know is wondering, “what will I do with my one precious life?”
Watch this short animated video to learn how you can impact the life of an emerging Christian
leader.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Theological Institutions, Doctoral
Education, Pastoral Ministry, Seminary Education, Service, Activism & Volunteerism,
Vocational Discernment, Video
Articles / Whitepapers Featured
Seven Insights on Leadership the World Needs Now
We know that communities everywhere need inspired leaders to shape a hopeful future. But can
we actually create the conditions in which faithful, wise and courageous leaders will thrive? We
believe the answer is “yes.” And doing God’s work in the world depends on it. Over 18 months
in seven cities with 200 conversation partners, FTE explored three questions: What are the
leadership questions you wrestle with in your context? What kinds of leaders does the world
need from the church today? What attributes must these leaders have to make a difference in
the world?
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Theological
Institutions, Students, Young Adults, Doctoral Education, Pastoral Ministry, Seminary Education
Books
A Guidebook of Promising Practices: Facilitating College Students’ Spiritual Development
A Guidebook of Promising Practices: Facilitating Students’ Spiritual Development summarizes
campus-wide initiatives and institutional practices from colleges and universities across the
country, and features examples of practices that can facilitate students’ spiritual development.
This guidebook can serve as a companion to Cultivating the Spirit: How College Can Enhance
Students’ Inner Lives by Alexander W. Astin, Helen S. Astin, and Jennifer A. Lindholm (JosseyBass, 2011). Promising Practices is designed for use by administrators, faculty, student affairs
professionals, and student leaders who are committed to supporting students’ spiritual
development.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Theological Institutions, Students, Young
Adults, Spirituality, Books, Curriculum
Articles / Whitepapers
A Letter from a Pastor to a Young Person
A letter from a pastor to a young woman whom he believes has a call to pastoral ministry.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Students, Young Adults, Pastoral
Ministry, Spirituality, Vocational Discernment, Articles / Whitepapers
Books
A Life at Work: The Joy of Discovering What You Were Born to Do
In this slender volume, bestselling spiritual guru Moore (Care of the Soul) says that finding the
right work, finding one’s vocation, is also part of the care of the soul.
Tags: Spirituality, Vocational Discernment, Books
Books
A Ray of Darkness
A collection of sermons and addresses that show how faith equips for engagement with the
world.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Students, Young
Adults, Pastoral Ministry, Spirituality, Books
Books
A Sacred Voice Is Calling: Personal Vocation And Social Conscience
Includes wisdoms from many traditions including Native American and Christian to better hear
the call to action for others as the journey toward vocation.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Students, Young
Adults, Seminary Education, Spirituality, Vocational Discernment, Books
Books
A Work of Heart: Understanding How God Shapes Spiritual Leaders
A Southern Baptist leader looks at the lives of biblical leaders for six factors shaping leaders’
hearts.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Students, Young
Adults, Pastoral Ministry, Seminary Education, Spirituality, Vocational Discernment
Books
Addicted to Hurry: Spiritual Strategies for Slowing Down
Dr. Jones is an adjunct professor at Andover-Newton Theological School and a popular 2008
Boston VEV presenter. Audio CD.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Students, Pastoral
Ministry, Service, Activism & Volunteerism, Spirituality, Vocational Discernment, Books
Books
After the Baby Boomers: How Twenty and Thirty-Somethings Are Shaping the Future of
American Religion
Wuthnow is a sociologist at Princeton. Recommended by Mike Wilker, former president of the
Lutheran Volunteer Corps, this book gives a view of American religion decades into the future.
Tags: Faith-based Volunteer, Young Adults, Service, Activism & Volunteerism, Spirituality,
Books
Books
All Saints: Daily Reflections on Saints, Prophets, and Witnesses for Our Time
Saints in history who had a capacity for goodness and love, which led to true happiness.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Students, Young
Adults, Spirituality, Books
Books
Amazing Grace: A Vocabulary of Faith
How Norris learned to use religious words. Norris is a best-selling author, poet, feminist,
theological conservative and Benedictine oblate.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Students, Young
Adults, Spirituality, Books
Tools
American Academy of Religion
As a learned society and professional association of teachers and research scholars, the American
Academy of Religion has more than 10,000 members who teach in some 1,500 colleges,
universities, seminaries and schools in North America and abroad. The Academy is dedicated to
furthering knowledge of religion and religious institutions in all their forms and manifestations
through Academy-wide and regional conferences and meetings, publications, programs and
membership services.
Tags: Theological Institutions, Students, Doctoral Education, Seminary Education, Tools
Tools
American Academy of Religion Career Guide for Racial and Ethnic Minorities in the Profession
A source of reflection upon and understanding of religious traditions, issues, questions and
values through excellence in scholarship and teaching in the field of religion.
Tags: Theological Institutions, Students, Diversity, Doctoral Education, Tools
Books
An Ignatian Spirituality Reader
Selections by Ignatian spirituality experts, including Howard Gray, William Berry, Dennis
Hamm, Ron Hansen and others.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Students, Young
Adults, Spirituality, Books
Books
Answering the Call in the Spirit
One of the first works attempting to offer a theology of calling for Pentecostals.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Students, Young
Adults, Seminary Education, Spirituality, Vocational Discernment, Books
Books
Answering Your Call: A Guide for Living Your Deepest Purpose
A spiritual “how-to” book that helps readers discern what they are called to do, find the courage
to respond to that call and stay the course to make that vision reality.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Students, Young
Adults, Pastoral Ministry, Spirituality, Vocational Discernment, Books
Books
Anxious Souls Will Ask : The Christ-Centered Spirituality of Dietrich Bonhoeffer
A brief, brilliant book that shows the prison reflections of Bonhoeffer for those who desire to
walk more closely with Jesus in today’s troubled world.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Students, Young
Adults, Spirituality, Books
Books
As Leaven in the World: Catholic Perspectives on Faith, Vocation, and the Intellectual Life
Illuminating essays by well-known American Catholic intellectuals about the interaction of faith
and work.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Students, Young
Adults, Seminary Education, Service, Activism & Volunteerism, Spirituality, Vocational
Discernment
Books
At This Time and In This Place: Vocation and Higher Education
Growing out of a year-long seminar sponsored by the Council of Independent Colleges and its
Network for Vocation in Undergraduate Education (NetVUE), this book brings together a
nationwide group of scholars from a variety of disciplines in order to produce new scholarly
writing on this topic. It offers a historical and theoretical account of vocational reflection and
discernment and also suggests how these endeavors can be carried out through specific
educational practices. Attending both to the current state of higher education and to broader
cultural trends, the contributors examine the contours of vocation from historical, theological,
and philosophical perspectives. They consider the relationship between vocation and virtue, both
of which encourage the cultivation of habits that lead to a life marked by flourishing and
fulfillment-for oneself and for others. The authors also discuss how to engage students in
actively reflecting on questions of meaning and purpose through classroom conversations, cocurricular activities, programs for community engagement, and attention to a campus’s physical
features. At This Time and In This Placeoffers a compelling argument for vocational reflection
and discernment in undergraduate education and represents a significant contribution to the
emerging scholarly literature in this field.
Tags: Theological Institutions, Doctoral Education, Seminary Education, Vocational
Discernment, Books
Books
ATLA Religion Database
ATLA provides an index to journal articles, book reviews and collections of essays in all fields
of religion. Click here to log into ATLA Database. If you do not have a login, please contact
Fran Davis-Harris for login information at fdavis-harris@fteleaders.org
Tags: Students, Doctoral Education, Seminary Education, Books, Curriculum, Tools
Articles / Whitepapers
Auburn: Report on a Study of Doctoral Programs that Prepare Faculty for Teaching in
Theological Scho
A study that reflects more than 25 years of study by Auburn with the purpose of tracking patterns
of doctoral preparation of seminary faculty.
Tags: Theological Institutions, Students, Diversity, Doctoral Education, Articles / Whitepapers,
Tools
Articles / Whitepapers
Auburn: Study of Theological Education
Auburn’s Center for the Study of Theological Education is the only research institute in the
nation focusing specifically and comprehensively on theological education. Established in 1991,
it identifies key challenges, explores them in depth, and shares the results with theological
schools, religious communities and other educational institutions.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Theological Institutions, Students,
Diversity, Doctoral Education, Pastoral Ministry, Seminary Education, Articles / Whitepapers
Books
Awakened to a Calling: Reflections on the Vocation of Ministry
Ms. Wiginton is the former VP of Ministry Programs and Planning at FTE. This is a collection of
sermons on the theme of discerning a pastoral vocation.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Students, Young
Adults, Pastoral Ministry, Seminary Education, Spirituality, Vocational Discernment
Articles / Whitepapers
Becoming a Pastor: Reflections on the Transition into Ministry
Published by the Alban Institute, this is a web-based e-book resource about how to start,
administer and review a TiM-style program.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Pastoral Ministry, Articles / Whitepapers,
Curriculum
Books
Becoming Who You Are: Insights on the True Self from Thomas Merton and Other Saints
(Christian Class
How becoming who you are, the person God created, is the path to happiness, peace of mind,
and sanctity.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Students, Young
Adults, Spirituality, Vocational Discernment, Books
Books
Being Consumed: Economics and Christian Desire
Positive and inspiring vision of how the body of Christ can engage in economic alternatives.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Students, Young
Adults, Pastoral Ministry, Service, Activism & Volunteerism, Spirituality, Vocational
Discernment
Books
Beyond Charity: The Call to Christian Community Development
Perkins has been a leader in economic development and empowerment as part of the mission of
the church, a theme very close to the hearts of volunteers.
Tags: Faith-based Volunteer, Young Adults, Service, Activism & Volunteerism, Spirituality,
Books
Books
Big Questions, Worthy Dreams: Mentoring Young Adults in Their Search for Meaning, Purpose,
and Faith
Young people need to be challenged to find a center for their beliefs and a focus for their lives.
Tags: Faith-based Volunteer, Young Adults, Service, Activism & Volunteerism, Spirituality,
Books
Books
Black American Feminisms: A Multidisciplinary Bibliography
This multidisciplinary subject bibliography of black American feminist writings is an effort to
combat the erasure of black feminist subjectivity and thought through the promotion and use of
the literature for the general public, students, scholars and life-long learners seeking information
on African American feminism and African American feminist interpretations of a broad range
of issues. The bibliography documents and validates an intellectual tradition that is continuously
ghettoized within black studies, women’s studies and society as a whole. Moreover, the
bibliography serves to ensure a place for black American feminist thought in the social change
discourse, ensuring its preservation and perpetuation.
Tags: Theological Institutions, Students, Doctoral Education, Seminary Education, Books
Books
Body Politics: Five Practices of the Christian Community Before the Watching World
Describes five ancient practices important for the social, economic, and political witness of the
church today. Yoder is well known among the Anabaptists within the VEV partnership.
Tags: Faith-based Volunteer, Young Adults, Service, Activism & Volunteerism, Spirituality,
Books
Books
Breathing Space: A Spiritual Journey in the South Bronx
An FTE Fellow, this parish pastor in the south Bronx shares insights and inspiration through her
own ministry.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Students, Young
Adults, Pastoral Ministry, Spirituality, Vocational Discernment, Books
Books
Calling & Character: Virtues of the Ordained Life
Willimon, a United Methodist bishop, popular preacher and former dean of the Chapel at Duke
University offers a clear and compelling picture of pastoral life that can inform those considering
ordained ministry.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Students, Young
Adults, Doctoral Education, Pastoral Ministry, Seminary Education, Spirituality
Audio
Calling Cast Podcast Series
A podcast to support future pastors, those who teach them, and the communities who call them.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Theological Institutions, Young Adults,
Doctoral Education, Leadership Development, Pastoral Ministry, Seminary Education, Service,
Activism & Volunteerism
Books
Callings: Twenty Centuries Of Christian Wisdom On Vocation
An incredible anthology of passages about work and vocation from the greatest writers in
Christian history.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Students, Young
Adults, Seminary Education, Spirituality, Vocational Discernment, Books
Curriculum
Calvin Institute of Christian Worship
The Calvin Institute of Christian Worship aims to promote the scholarly study of the theology,
history and practice of Christian worship and the renewal of worship in worshiping
communities across North America and beyond.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Students, Doctoral Education, Pastoral
Ministry, Seminary Education, Spirituality, Curriculum
Curriculum
Campus Ministry
The best environment in which to learn about oneself as a leader is in the practice of leadership.
The Campus Ministry course is designed to give students practical experience in organizing,
planning, designing, and implementing a small group curriculum in the context of peer groups.
Using the ‘classroom’ of the campus and the text of Philippians, students will use peer groups to
develop a small group strategy for their dorm areas.
Tags: Campus Ministry, Leadership Development, Pastoral Ministry, Curriculum
Curriculum
Center for Effective Teaching and Learning
The Center for Effective Teaching and Learning (CETaL) promotes excellence in university
teaching and learning. Support for UTEP faculty and other instructors in the region in
instructional design, development and evaluation. The Center works with faculty to develop
teaching materials that clearly communicate to students how to succeed in completing course
requirements and in learning course material.
Tags: Theological Institutions, Students, Doctoral Education, Seminary Education, Curriculum,
Tools
Books
Centering Prayer: Renewing an Ancient Christian Prayer Form
Pennington is a leading authority on spirituality, especially centering prayer.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Students, Young
Adults, Spirituality, Books
Blogs
Century Blogs
A progressive, ecumenical magazine that explores what it means to believe and live out the
Christian faith in our time.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Spirituality,
Vocational Discernment, Blogs
Books
Christ At Work: Orthodox Christian Perspectives on Vocation
Theologians from Eastern and Orthodox traditions write on the topic of vocation.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Students, Young
Adults, Seminary Education, Spirituality, Vocational Discernment, Books
Books
Christian Meditation
A short work that is not a “how to” book, but reflections about Christian meditation, its
experience and union with God.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Students, Young
Adults, Spirituality, Books
Curriculum
Christian Spirituality
This course will be based on a variety of learning strategies intended to stimulate, challenge, and
transform students, as the Holy Spirit guides us. First, students will wrestle with great texts:
Scripture, Foster’s Celebration of Discipline, and primary sources from the history of spirituality.
Second, students will practice the ancient discipline of lectio divina—sacred reading—as they
study these texts. Third, students will reflection upon and apply what they are studying to their
lives. This course, in short, will be more than merely academic, although it will be that, too. It
will be transformational.
Tags: Campus Ministry, Spirituality, Vocational Discernment, Curriculum
Books
Civil Disobedience and Other Essays (Dover Thrift Editions)
Thoreau lived counter-culturally in another era. His works may inspire modern examples.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Faith-based Volunteer, Students, Young
Adults, Pastoral Ministry, Service, Activism & Volunteerism, Spirituality, Vocational
Discernment
Articles / Whitepapers
Coalition on the Academic Workforce
A 2010 survey by the Coalition on the Academic Workforce (CAW) that studies the courses
faculty members were teaching, where they were teaching and for what pay and benefits.
Tags: Theological Institutions, Students, Doctoral Education, Articles / Whitepapers, Tools
Books
Colonies of Heaven: Celtic Models for Today’s Church
Bradley, a theologian at St. Andrew’s, Scotland, uses early Christian monasticism as a model for
missions for today’s church.
Tags: Faith-based Volunteer, Young Adults, Service, Activism & Volunteerism, Spirituality,
Books
Books
Common Fire: Leading Lives of Commitment in a Complex World
A landmark study that reveals how we become committed to the common good and sustain such
commitments.
Tags: Faith-based Volunteer, Young Adults, Service, Activism & Volunteerism, Spirituality,
Books
Books
Company of Pastors’ Daily Quotations
Daily quotes from a wide range of theological writers.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Students, Young Adults, Doctoral
Education, Pastoral Ministry, Seminary Education, Spirituality, Books
Tools
Congregational Resource Guide
An effort of the Alban Institute in consultation with the Indianapolis Center for Congregations
and other specialists, the Congregational Resource Guide (CRG) exists to help congregational
leaders connect with resources that will enable them to face challenges and foster vitality in their
communities of faith.
Tags: Congregations & Church Related Organizations, Pastoral Ministry, Vocational
Discernment, Tools
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