Methodism in Recovery: Renewing Mission, Reclaiming History, Restoring Health

Broken bodies mend. Depressed minds heal. Storm-tossed cities rebuild. Troubled institutions recover. Churches experience renewal. So why not the Methodist Church? This book confronts the facts and invokes the Spirit. It will explore the multiple meaning of recovery and the denomination's prospect for recovering. It will take seriously the possibility that recovery of Methodism may not require--or include--the survival of The United Methodist Church as a denomination. That is part of the mystery of recovery. By confronting provocative questions relating to funding missions, declining membership, itinerancy, guaranteed appointments, ordination requirements and authorization, the author helps Methodism take those crucial first steps on the road to recovery.

From the Circuit Rider review: "Dean of the Perkins School of Theology in Dallas, Lawrence offers a sobering diagnosis of the United Methodist Church’s current condition and prescribes a number of items essential to its recovery. The book is a thoughtful portrayal of Methodism’s plight in North America, with specific attention given to the United Methodist Church and the history of this particular limb of the Methodist body (viii)." (Click here to read the entire review.)