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Recommendations
& Reviews
of
Congregational Social Work:
Christian Perspectives
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Affiliation |
Recommendation |
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David A. Sherwood,
Ph.D.
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Editor-in-Chief,
Social Work & Christianity
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Congregational Social Work: Christian Perspectives
is
a vital one-of-a-kind resource for Christians who care about
ministering to the needs of other Christians in churches and the
needs of the communities in which they live. Based on grounded
research on the stories of congregational social workers, whether in
local churches or in agencies collaborating with congregations, and
their own extensive experience, Garland and Yancey provide a living
account of what is happening in community ministry and a
penetrating analysis of what could and should be
happening going forward. |
Frank B. Raymond, Ph.D.
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Dean Emeritus and Distinguished Professor Emeritus
College of Social Work, University of South Carolina
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Drs.
Diana R. Garland and Gaynor I. Yancey have produced a much-needed
book on providing congregational social work. They define "congregational
social work" as those social work services that are offered in and
through a religious congregation, whether the employer is the
congregation itself or a social service or denominational agency
working in collaboration with congregations. There are multitudes of
social workers employed in such settings, as well as untold numbers
of students who aspire to work in this field. This book will provide
an excellent resource to guide to all who are dedicated to serving
in this special area.
Congregational Social
Work represents a
thorough treatment of the topic. This analysis includes a
discussion of the Biblical basis of congregational social work, an
examination of the history of education for church social work in
various denominations, a survey of the literature on congregational
social work, and a review of the research that has been done in this
area. The authors' survey of the literature on this area of service
reveals that congregational social work has seldom been mentioned as
a field of practice. This finding underscores the need for a book
such as the one the authors have written.
Congregational Social
Work includes numerous
examples of social work practice in congregational settings. These
illustrations bring to life the principles of practice discussed by
the authors. Many of these examples are selected from a three-year
research project conducted by the authors in which they interviewed
51 congregational social workers who were employed in religious
congregations or church-related agencies. The authors also draw
upon their personal practice experience, both having worked in and
consulted with congregations, religiously affiliated organizations,
denominational agencies, and Christian schools of social work for
over a forty year period. Finally, they include in the book the
things that they have learned from their students who have practiced
social work in congregational settings.
Drs. Garland and Yancey
not only describe the experiences that they and others have had in
congregational social work practice, but they also analyze these
experiences, explain the meaning of this work in light of Christian
scriptures, and present their own opinions of principles for best
practice. This broad perspective provides a wealth of information
for the reader. Furthermore, the framework the authors use to
present this material makes the book easy to read and entirely
comprehensible for readers at every level of training and
expertise. Both of the authors are accomplished writers, having
published extensively on the practice of social work by Christians.
This rich compilation of
information should be a "must read" for students in every
church-related school of social work and for students in secular
schools of social work who are interested in this area of practice.
It should also be on the desk of every social work student,
practitioner, administrator or researcher engaged in the field of
congregational social work. |
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Ram A.
Cnaan, Ph. D. |
Professor and Director, Program for Religion and
Social Policy Research
University of Pennsylvania |
Congregational social work was around even before the term
‘social work” was invented. Help to co-religionists and strangers
has been practiced by most American congregations for many
generations, yet it has hardly ever been documented. Garland and
Yancey masterfully rectify this void. In a brilliant and
thorough manner, they portray the intricacies and nuances of
Christian congregational social work and provide us with new
knowledge. They provide practitioners with tools to work within
or in collaboration with religious congregations. This is a must
read for every church member and every social worker.
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Stephanie C. Boddie
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Visiting Researcher at the University of Pittsburgh and the
University of Pennsylvania
Co-author
of The Other Philadelphia Story:
How Local Congregations Support Quality of Life in
Urban America |
Congregational Social Work
draws on Garland and Yancey’s years of experience as social work
practitioners, church leaders, and scholars. With their extensive
research, they provide an insightful analysis of the diverse and
complex experiences of social workers in Christian churches. At a
time when congregations continue to fill in social service gaps with
paid and unpaid social workers, this inside look at the ethical
challenges facing these leaders is sorely needed. They offer
guidance rarely provided for social workers, social work educators
and clergy seeking to understand the ways professional and personal
values can be integrated in service to congregations. Garland and
Yancey offer an important contribution to the next chapter of
faith-based services. |
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Sister Ann
Patrick Conrad, DSW |
National Catholic School of Social Service
The Catholic University of America
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It comes as no surprise that Diana Garland and her colleague Gaynor
Yancey have produced another remarkable addition to our
understanding of social work in congregational settings. By
combining an interesting and informative update on the historical as
well as new opportunities and emerging directions across faith
traditions, it is increasingly clear that congregational social work
is not only central to ministry but also a meaningful field of
social work practice. The diverse narratives of the real-life
experiences of professionals in this field as well as well as the
practical advice on how-to-do-it combine to make Congregational
Social Work: A Christian Perspective a must reading for those
in the field as well as those interested in exploring the rich
spiritual and professional opportunities available. |
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Ron Sider, Ph.D.
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President Emeritus
Evangelicals for Social Action
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This book is a major contribution to our understanding of how
churches do and should engage in social work. It is grounded both in
significant new research and also a life-time of engagement and
reflection by two of our most important scholars of congregational
social work. Highly recommended. |
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Jay
Poole,
Ph.D.
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University of North
Carolina
at Greensboro
Principal Investigator for
the Congregational Social Work Education Initiative (CSWEI)
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Diana Garland and Gaynor Yancey have not only given an overview of
what may be conceptualized as Congregational Social Work through a
Christian lens, they have allowed the voices of congregational
social workers to emerge in exploring the dimensions and nuances of
practicing social work in a congregational context. The authors
challenge readers to consider how social workers are or may become
part of congregational ministries, and readers are challenged to
think about how social work and social workers may engage within,
among, and through congregations. |
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Bob Wineburg, Ph.D. |
Jefferson Pilot Excellence Professor and
Director of Community Engaged Scholarship
UNC
Greensboro |
Wow! What was once considered taboo in mainline social work -- a
discussion of congregational social work, from a Christian perspective
no less
--
is now where it is at! Drs. Garland and Yancey nailed it.
Through their thorough understanding of social work and congregational life,
they bring home a crucial point: that houses of worship are also
houses of service, where Christian values and social work values,
when operationalized harmoniously, meet the client and institution
where they are at. Bravo to two of the best scholars in our field
for bringing new light to a complicated, often misunderstood field of
service. |
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Rowena Fong, Ed.D. |
Ruby Lee Piester
Centennial Professor
The University of Texas at Austin School of Social Work |
A well-written, comprehensively documented, must-have resource book
about Congregational Social Work, highlighting elements of worship,
Christian education, community building, and service. It offers a
compelling charge for Christians: ‘we make the path by walking it’… |
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John Graham,
Ph.D. |
Professor
of Social Work
University of Calgary
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Christianity has been an important factor in human helping - prior
to, during, and after the development of a social work profession.
This book provides a thoughtful, data-driven analysis of
contemporary social work among Christian congregations in the United
States of America. It would be of interest to anyone - scholar,
practitioner, student, or member of the general public - who is interested
in learning more about the intricacies of this area of social work
practice. |
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Heidi Unruh |
Consultant and author of Hope for Children in Poverty and
Churches That Make a Difference |
When “mercy and truth are met together” (Ps. 85:10), a harvest of
goodness results. Similarly, when faith communities connect with
social workers, new fields are sown with potential for God’s
restorative work. The more that congregations answer the call of
Christ to love their neighbors, the more they discover gaps in
knowledge and practice that professional social work is designed to
fill. Garland and Yancey map this uncharted, complex territory with
clarity and graciousness, illuminating a track that hopefully many
will follow. |
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John A. Calhoun |
Former U.S.
Commissioner of the Administration for Children, Youth and Families,
and author of "Hope Matters: The Untold Story of How Faith Works in
America." |
Garland and
Yancey have given a rare gift to those answering a call to Christian
social work, academics who wish to teach it, and clergy who need to explore what social work means in the
context of a congregation's core mission. Social work started in and grew out
of the faith community, but hit a rocky path in the 1950s when,
responding to Freud and the positivists, posited that religion and
social science were no longer compatible. During these dark days,
attempts to integrate faith with social work practice could have
meant rejection from a school of social work.
Fortunately,
given the work of pioneers like Garland and Yancey, the
science/faith antipathy of the 1950's has begun to fade in our rear
view mirrors. Anchored in research, extensive interviews and the
daily realities of congregational life, Congregational Social
Work by Garland and Yancey pull no punches, describing
with clarity and promise the joys as well as challenges of a social
work/faith wedding. |
Ian Bedford,
Ph.D. |
Wodonga, Australia |
It was 1977 when I
began my first social work job, based in a church congregation in a
public housing area of Melbourne Australia. For my wife and I this
job was a calling, and involved not only moving our family from
Melbourne’s bible belt to this low income outer suburb, but it also
meant engaging with the small congregation within which this
community service ministry was based. It was a package “deal” to
which God had strangely called us when He opened the road from
mathematics teaching to social work. But it was not a calling I had
seen coming and there was little to prepare me.
Subsequently I have
spent 18 years in mainly congregationally based social work – in
between academic periods and brief periods in government social
worker roles – as well as a further 9 years in Ph.D. studies
researching the process by which congregations initiate and sustain
community services, and considering further the implications of this for
the practice of social work. I am therefore pleased to read this new
book by Dr Diana Garland and Dr Gaynor Yancey, Congregational
Social Work, providing a detailed overview of the issues
confronting the practice of social work in congregational settings.
This book, undoubtedly in my view, provides a map that can assist
and guide any social worker newly entering this practice setting in
the range of issues needing to be considered and the range of
responses open to them as they assess the features of their
particular context and the goals and mission of the congregation
with which they are engaged. Whilst it cannot provide packaged
answers, it can provide insight and awareness to assist the
necessary reflection and discussion of workers grappling with the
issues anticipated and/or encountered. I know because Garland’s and
Yancey’s discussion matched well my own experience, and more
particularly where there is overlap between their research and my
own, the congruence of issues and options identified is clearly
evident – despite the fact that my work is all based in the less
well developed mission of medium sized congregations in less
religiously active Australia.
I fully endorse this book as a
necessary introduction to congregations as an important setting for
social work practice; a long overdue acknowledgement of a return to
one of the settings within which social work was itself born and
which is more evident in both our countries than was grasped until
the research of the 1990s. |
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