Christian
Scharen
Assistant Professor of Worship and
Theology
2481 Como Avenue
St. Paul, MN 55108
cscharen001@luthersem.edu
(651) 641-3459
Office: NW320F
Fax: 641-3354
ext: 459
Office Hours: by appointment.
Courses
Resources
Faith as a way of life blog - A blog envisioning Christianity lived.
Speaking & Travel
2010
Ethnographic Notes Towards a Carnal Ecclesiology,” keynote paper at “Being Surprised by God: Embodied Ecclesiology in Local Contexts,” Protestantse Theologische Universiteit, Utrecht, The Netherlands, June 21-24, 2010.
“‘He’s Just A Pastor of Levels’: Worship and the ‘Prosperity Gospel’ in an African American Mega-Church,” paper for the Association of Sociology of Religion Annual Meeting, Atlanta, GA August 13-15.
“Cultivating Sent Communities: Missional Spiritual Formation,” keynote for the Sixth Annual Missional Church Consultation, St. Paul MN, November 12-13.
2011
“God’s People Sing: Abundance, Challenge, Joy!” keynote for the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians Thirteenth Biennial Conference, Seattle, WA, July 31-August 3.
Selected Publications
BOOKS
Faith As a Way of Life: A Vision for Pastoral Leadership
Christian ministry is deeply concerned with proclaiming the transforming power of God's gift of faith in the daily lives of disciples. How is it, then, that Christian faith so often fails to be an orienting force that impacts every aspect of our lives?
June, 2008 - Eerdmans Publishing
Review of this book
One Step Closer: Why U2 Matters to Those Seeking God
U2 is widely hailed as the greatest rock and roll band in the world, and lead singer Bono is often seen in the media touting humanitarian goals. Now Christian Scharen provides a thoughtful look at the driving force behind the band. Bono and other band members are marked by the Christian faith of their Irish backgrounds. Scharen reflects on how U2 "fits within the longer Christian tradition of voices that point us to the cross, to Jesus, and to the power of God's ways in the world" as he explores the music's honest spiritual questioning. Music lovers, pastors, and anyone on the path to God will value this book.
April, 2006 - Brazos Press
Review in the Christian Century
Public Worship and Public Work: Character and Commitment in Local Congregational Life (Virgil Michel Series)
In a time of increasing cultural pluralism and vast religious restructuring in the United States, Christian social ethics must take account of how values and commitments shape Christian communities. In Public Worship and Public Work Christian Scharen examines theological claims about the relationship of worship and ethics by means of ethnographic study of the life, worship, and work of three vibrant congregations.Public Worship and Public Work moves beyond two caricatures of the relationship between worship and social ethics. Rather than resolute portrayals of the Church as a reflection of its culture and context and causal accounts of the Church’s liturgy forming a Christian witness over and against culture, this book lifts up congregational identity as an area of dynamic interaction between worship, social ethics, and culture.
June, 2004 - Pueblo Books
Review in Catholic Books Review
Married in the Sight of God: Theology, Ethics, and Church Debates Over Homosexuality
Married in the Sight of God is a case study into the contemporary sexual ethics debates in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Christian B. Scharen analyzes the origin, rhetorical use, and institutionalization of the Lutheran "orders of creation" theology used to exclude gays and lesbians. In addition, this study shows that the Lutheran tradition holds neglected possibilities for an affirming theological and ethical position that blesses the lives and leadership of people -- homosexual or heterosexual -- who make life-long promises of love and fidelity one to another.
August, 2000 - University Press of America
Forthcoming:
February 2011
with Aana Marie Vigen. Ethnography in Christian Theology and Ethics. Continuum
August 2011
Broken Hallelujahs: Imagination, Pop Culture and God. Brazos.
November 2011
with Peter Ward, eds. Church and Culture: A Manifesto, Studies in Ecclesiology and Ethnography, Vol. 1, Eerdmans.
with Peter Ward, eds. Church and Culture: A Reader, Studies in Ecclesiology and Ethnography, Vol. 2. Eerdmans.
Practical Theological Investigations: Liturgy, Ecclesiology, Ethics. Under review.
The Dying Life: Notes on an Apprenticeship in Ministry. In Preparation. Carnal Theology. In preparationARTICLES
Worship & Ministry
“Worship in a Secular Age: ‘Worship Wars’ and the Conditions of Possibility for Worship Today,” final draft under review for publication (2010).
“Imagination, Pop Culture and Ministry with Youth and Young Adults” final draft published in Dialog (Winter): 339-347 (2008).
“Learning Ministry over Time: Embodying Practical Wisdom,” final draft published pp. 265-288 in Craig Dykstra and Dorothy Bass, eds., For Life Abundant: Practical Theology, Theological Education, and Christian Ministry. Eerdmans (2008).
“‘Judicious Narratives’: Ethnography as Ecclesiology,” final draft published in Scottish Journal of Theology 58 (2): 125-142 (2005).
“Baptismal Practices and the Formation of Christians: A Critical Liturgical Ethics,” final draft published in Worship 76 (January): 43-66 (2002).
“Lois, Liturgy, and Ethics,” final draft published in The Annual of the Society of Christian Ethics, 20: 275-305 (2000).
“Ideology, Ritual, and Christian Subjectivity,” final draft published in Worship 70 (September): 406-22 (1996).
Theology & Sexuality
Assessing The ELCA Draft Social Statement on Human Sexuality" “Assessing The ELCA Draft Social Statement on Human Sexuality,” final draft published in The Network Newsletter 17(August 2008): 2-6.
“Context versus Principles: Still A Misplaced Debate,” final draft published in Journal of Lutheran Ethics (July 2008) www.elca.org/jle.
“‘Married in the Sight of God’: Martin Luther, Theology and Same-Sex Unions,” final draft published pp. 19-34 in Traci C. West, ed. Our Family Values: Same-Sex Marriage and Religion. Praeger (2007).
“Experiencing the Body: Sexuality and Conflict in American Denominations,” final draft published in The Union Seminary Quarterly Review 57(Spring-Summer): 47-65 (2003).
“In Christ We Are a New Creation: Gay Christians and the Meaning of Sexuality and Marriage,” final draft published in The Lutheran (March): 22-23 (2003).
“The Difficulty of Thinking Well Together: Notes on Writing About Homosexuality in the ELCA,” final draft published in The Network Newsletter (Fall 2003 ): 5-8.
“Subject to Discipline: Authority, Sexuality, and the Production of Candidates for the Ordained Ministry,” final draft published in the Journal of the American Academy of Religion 68 (Summer): 89-120 (1998).
Education/Curriculum Vitae:
Ordained New England Synod 2001
Biographical Notes
Photo
(suitable for publication)Profile
Ph.D. Emory University
Atlanta, GA2001 M.Div Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary
Berkeley, CA1996 MAR Graduate Theological Union
Berkeley, CA1995 B.A. Pacific Lutheran University
Tacoma, WA1989
Last updated: March 12, 2010.
