Eleven Books, Eleven General Superintendents, and One Question: What Difference Does Christian Leadership Make?
Eleven books by Nazarene general superintendents reveal more than a collection of writings. Read together, they form a historical conversation about Christian living, holiness, pastoral ministry, mission, globalization, women in ministry, and the church’s engagement with culture.
The Youngness of Christian Living: Dr. Samuel Young and the Difference a Book Called “God Makes a Difference” Still Asks Us to See
Samuel Young’s 1954 book God Makes a Difference was written during his long general superintendency. Its simple question still presses on Christian life: where should faith become visible in the ordinary places where we live?
The Chapmanology of Christian Living: Dr. James B. Chapman and His Book “Christian Living in a Modern World”
Dr. James B. Chapman’s 1942 book Christian Living in a Modern World raises a question that has not disappeared: how should Christians live faithfully when the world around them is changing?
Dr. Donald D. Owens and the Book “Challenge in Korea”: What If the Missionary Was Also the One Being Taught?
Donald D. Owens wrote Challenge in Korea before becoming a general superintendent. Reading his missionary experience alongside his later leadership raises a deeper question: what if the missionary was also the one being taught?
Six Things 1915 Was Doing at Once
1915 was more than a year of loss in Nazarene history. Missions expanded, leadership structures changed, women’s missionary work gained wider organization, education continued, and ordinary church life carried on while Bresee and Wilson died within weeks of one another.
The Question Behind Bresee’s Last Assembly
Bresee’s final General Assembly was more than a meeting remembered because of his death. It was a moment when a young Nazarene denomination was expanding its mission and reshaping its leadership for the future.
The Two Empty Chairs of 1915
In 1915, the young Church of the Nazarene was expanding its mission while losing two general superintendents. The empty chairs reveal both the pain of leadership loss and the deeper foundation of the church.
The Generation Between Two Nazarene Churches: Where William Greathouse Belonged
William Greathouse stood between generations of Nazarene life, carrying a Wesleyan-Holiness inheritance through years of theological, cultural, and denominational change.
The Globalization of the General Superintendency
Who are the General Superintendents in the Church of the Nazarene? Explore their office, shared leadership, history, authority, and global development.