Larry A. Golemon writing for the Alban Institute:
While stories of faith are second nature to local congregations, American popular culture has learned to exploit them in powerful ways.
Bluegrass, gospel, country, and even hip-hop render images and stories of faith in new musical idioms. Hollywood and Broadway have capitalized on stories of faith in classics like The Bells of St. Mary’s (1945) and Fiddler on the Roof (1964), and television captured the faith craze in hit series like Touched by an Angel (1994–2003). Public tragedies bring an outpouring of popular sentiment laced with religion—as in the death of Princess Diana in 1997 or the aftermath of 9/11. Yet, while popular culture and practice recognize the power of faith stories to address modern life, many churches and synagogues have yet to recognize the potential of their own narrative work for revitalizing religious traditions and practices.At the Alban Institute, we believe the time has come to lift up the power of these narrative traditions and the art of story crafting and performance as primary resources for congregational leadership and renewal. For two years, the Alban Institute engaged in the Narrative Leadership project, research made possible by the Luce Foundation, which involved pastors, lay leaders, seminary educators, and several congregations in an exploration of the narrative resources and activities of ministry. We tapped the growing expertise of Alban consultants in narrative theory and practice. Through it all, the power of storytelling and narrative approaches to leadership have convinced us that this is a groundbreaking arena for developing new forms of pastoral and lay leadership in ministry. In short, we believe good narrative leadership has the potential to transform congregational traditions, practices, and mission for the current age.