W. Tali Hairston

Signs of Hope and Health in Mainline Churches

Church Leadership & Ministry

“This project by Thomas Kirkpatrick offers a meaningful framework for hope and health that emerges out of the life of Christian communities. Kirkpatrick’s research reveals essential markers and relationships that every leader must seriously consider in order to do the work of building hopeful and healthy communities. While simply stated and very practical, there is nothing light about what Kirkpatrick presents because it deepens how leaders understand the task of congregational work—a ministerial task all but forgotten. We are asked to consider the futurity of hope, a profound invitation to say the least. But we are encouraged to do so deliberately, relationally, and truthfully. My hope is that every faith leader uses this book as a resource for advancing congregational ministry.”