Catalyst Publications
Publications by Category
If you are at all conversant with the goings on in the contemporary church, you have probably heard the term “emerging church.” It has become a common descriptor for alternative and nontraditional approaches to thinking about and doing chur…
Mar/01/2008
Some have called John Wesley a theologian of grace. While I believe he could with equal appropriateness be called a theologian of love, there is no question that grace is central to his theology. But as with love, it is important to underst…
Mar/01/2008
As human beings, we long for excellence in our lives and among those with whom we interact. We hope to be treated by an exceptional physician. We desire to learn from a master teacher. We relish the opportunity to hear a gifted musician. So…
Feb/01/2008
On its way to the fullness of God’s kingdom, as a people whose calling is conformity to Christ by the wisdom and power of the cross, the church requires exemplars of transformation. It is significant that the apostle Paul, in addition to th…
Feb/01/2008
The time for that dreaded final exam is at hand. Perhaps the course may be called “Systematic Theology 1” or “Introduction to Constructive Theology,” but virtually all Protestant theological schools teach a course in which students are requ…
Feb/01/2008
When a group of Protestants are asked to define grace, they typically respond with something like “the unmerited favor of God.” It is, of course, a correct answer. Grace is a gift: we neither deserve it nor can we earn it. John Wesley would…
Feb/01/2008
A comprehensive account of the authority and canon of Christian Scripture would engage the whole Bible and the entire theological tradition. I attempt far less in this brief essay. While conversing with the book of Hebrews and the Methodist…
Nov/01/2007
Martin Luther penned the following introduction to the Psalter:
Where does one find finer words of joy than in the Psalms of praise and thanksgiving? There you look into the hearts of all saints, as into fair and pleasant gardens, yes, as …
Nov/01/2007
The word “evangelicalism” for a variety of reasons, brings on a mild to severe twitch for some participants within the Emerging Church, and has led to the suggestion that their own change in convictions and attitudes can no longer fall unde…
Nov/01/2007
In his “An Earnest Appeal to Men of Reason and Religion,” John Wesley describes true religion “to be no other than love: the love of God and all mankind; the loving God with all our heart and soul and strength, as having first loved us, as …
Nov/01/2007
A large body of literature has been produced in recent decades emphasizing that pastors and other church leaders are to be servants. Phrases similar to “servant leaders” and discussions of the proper use of pastoral power are common. What h…
Apr/01/2007
So I have been asked to write an article on “thinking Christianly.”
Oh yea?
So do a riff on fides quarem intellectum for a few pages and you are there.
Well, that is a possibility, but there are some problems with that.
Problems? …
Apr/01/2007
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A Foundation for Theological Education (AFTE) John Wesley Fellowships have been awarded to three doctoral stud…
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Announcing that 2026 John Wesley Fellowship Scholarship Applications are now being accepted. Please see the at…
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JWF and Friends of AFTE, we look forward to you joining us Thursday-Sunday, January 15-18, 2026, for the AFTE …
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Twenty John Wesley Fellows, spouses, and friends were able to experience a trip of a lifetime. The travel itin…
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