Mark Schwehn and Dorothy Bass, Editors, Leading Lives that Matter: What We Should Do and Who We Should Be. Eerdmans, 2006.
Referenced in: Missional Lifestyle, Discipleship, Spirituality – Spirituality of Life Calling
LifeandLeadership.com
This is 500-plus pages collection of pieces from both Christian and secular writers about living lives that make a significant difference. Like Placher’s Callings and Os Guiness, The Call, it is not limited to the “ministerial call,” but encompasses all walks of life with the challenge to see what they do as an expression of God’s mission.
The authors comment on the purpose:
“This anthology is designed for people…who want to lead lives that matter. The readings gathered here, which include Schweitzer’s own story of his decision to become a ‘jungle doctor.,’ have been selected because they can help us to think with greater clarity and depth about just what that might mean. Although most reader may not aspire to join Schweitzer as winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, in creating this book we have assumed that they do want to ‘make a difference’ in this world.” (2)
They go beyond a crass American pragmatism that looks at questions of purpose in life according to what we do (work), not about what we believe and live for. They uphold the importance of the pragmatic, but more importantly explore the deeper issues of purpose and that “other vitally important part of our lives that matter – love and friendship, family and sexuality, leisure and play, study and worship.” (3)
The book is divided into two parts:
Part 1 offers select authors who explorre three distinct “vocabularies” that people have used to speak about meaningful life: authenticity and individualism; virtue and character; vocation and the divine.
Part 2 arranges authors who address three main questions:
- Are some lives more significant than others?
- Must my job be the primary source of my identity?
- Is a balanced life possible and preferable to a life focused primarily on work?
- Should I follow my talents as I decide what to do to earn a living?
- To whom should I listen?
- Can I control what I shall do and become?
- How shall I tell the story of my life?
This is followed by the Epilogue, which the authors regard as the most important chapter in the book. The selection is Leo Tolstoy’s The Death of Ivan Ilych. It raises and deals with almost all of the questions dealt with throughout the book.
Schwen and Bass bring together the thoughts of some of the most interesting human beings who have ever lived. These include William James, Albert Schweitzer, Aristotle, Theodore Roosevelt, Diettrich Bonhoeffer, Frederick Buechner, C. S. Lewis, Ray Kroc, H. G. Wells, Abraham Joshua Heschel, Gilber Meilander, Robert Wuthnow, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, John Milton, Immanuel Kant, Thomas Merton, and others.
From the Publisher
Leading Lives That Matter draws together a wide range of texts — including fiction, autobiography, and philosophy — offering challenge and insight to those who are thinking about what to do with their lives. Instead of giving prescriptive advice, Mark Schwehn and Dorothy Bass approach the subject of vocation as an ongoing conversation. They include in this conversation some of the Western tradition’s best writings on human life — its meaning, purpose, and significance — ranging from ancient Greek poetry to contemporary fiction. Including Leo Tolstoy’s novella “The Death of Ivan Ilych” as an extended epilogue, this volume will help readers clarify and deepen how they think about their own lives.
About the Authors
Mark R. Schwehn is at Valparaiso University.
Dorothy C. Bass is a writer, noted church historian, and director of the Valparaiso Project on the Education and Formation of People in Faith.
***For additional information on this resource, including reviews, click the bookstore links. Check the reference at page top or the links below for resource guides on related topics.***
See Resources on Over 100 Areas of Ministry Leadership