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Wednesday, August 29, 2018

Excerpt from Preaching with Empathy: Crafting Sermons in a Callous Culture

Some of you have asked for an excerpt. Here is a snippet from the introduction:

Seminary taught many of us important skills for preaching. We were shown how to exegete a biblical text by probing the literary, historical, and theological contexts. Next in the curricular lineup was the art of rhetoric. Various linear and narrative sermon forms were critiqued or commended. Then we were thrown into a somewhat sterile preaching lab where we tried our best to impress our peers and professor with voice fluctuation, gesture variety, and, of course, eye contact. Seminary professors hoped that students, in the process of learning how to preach, would develop a deep love for God, scripture, and preaching. I suspect most of us did.

There is another love necessary for preaching to reach its full potential for societal transformation—love for those to whom we preach. It’s not enough to get the biblical text, sermon form, and delivery right; the preacher must also get the listeners “right.” If not, the preacher will “prepare generic sermons for generic humanity that never truly become enfleshed in the real-life situations of particular congregations.”

Enter empathy. Empathy gives preachers the capacity, the grace really, to slip their feet into the shoes of their congregants so that they think and feel what their people think and feel. Empathy can make mediocre preaching better, and good preaching great. Without empathy, preachers cannot begin to fully know and love the people to whom they preach. Furthermore, the preacher who lacks empathy will have only a partial view of the God in whose image listeners are made. Empathy that is rooted in and compelled by the trinitarian God has the power to create a revolution in the pulpit and pew that ripples to the ends of the earth.

Simon Baron-Cohen writes, “Empathy itself is the most valuable resource in our world. . . . Given this assertion, it is puzzling that . . . it is rarely, if ever, on the agenda.” If you feel nobody is listening to, or being transformed by, your preaching, I can relate. Maybe your problem has little to do with exegesis or delivery and a lot to do with empathy.

https://www.abingdonpress.com/product/9781501841729#.W4auiM5Kipp

Monday, August 13, 2018

Endorsements for Preaching with Empathy: Crafting Sermons in a Callous Culture

I am deeply humbled by the kind endorsements Preaching with Empathy has received from some of the most thoughtful homileticians, leaders, and preachers around. If the book has impact it will be, in large part, because of their support. Please pray with me, that God would use this book to cultivate the empathy of "Christ in us, the hope of glory." 

“The best preachers have a heartfelt concern for the listening congregation as they prepare their sermons. The tone and tenor of this empathic sensibility can be honed and sharpened. In Preaching with Empathy, Lenny Luchetti shows us how to accomplish this task.”
—Cleophus J. LaRue Jr., Francis Landey Patton Professor of Homiletics, Princeton Theological Seminary, Princeton, NJ

“Luchetti gets specific in his analysis of how empathy fosters intimacy between pulpit and pew and motivates listener response. And he gets practical in his exploration of the obstacles to empathy and his strategies for cultivating it. Preaching with Empathy is a welcome addition to the homiletical literature and a useful resource for both new and seasoned preachers.”
—Alyce McKenzie, Le Van Professor of Preaching and Worship; Altshuler Distinguished Teaching Professor; director, The Perkins Center for Preaching Excellence, Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX

“As preachers we can become so immersed in the text, so consumed with a creative idea in delivery or illustration, or so captivated with a message delivered by another that we unintentionally miss profoundly connecting with those receiving the message. Empathy is a bridge between God’s living and active word and the deepest longings of those who listen. Preaching with Empathy equips us to build that bridge.”
—Wayne Schmidt, General Superintendent, The Wesleyan Church, Indianapolis, IN

“Lenny Luchetti has provided a new approach to an old problem, but one not frequently associated with preaching. That is the problem—and necessity—of empathy in the pulpit. Luchetti gives to preachers a practical and theological framework against which we may measure our preaching, our ministry, and our own hearts. This is a valuable book for us all.”
—Richard Lischer, James T. and Alice Mead Cleland Professor Emeritus of Preaching, Duke Divinity School, Durham, NC; author, The End of Words and Stations of the Heart

“Do not read the title and think this is only for preachers. Empathy has become a lost ingredient of our culture, and this book speaks to what has been lost. In addition, the science, theology, sociology, and biblical depth of the subject of empathy is explored.This phrase jumped off the page to me: ‘We are wired for empathy created in God’s Image’—powerful words of hope. At the same time, Dr. Luchetti gives practical and specific methods in which a preacher may increase empathy by drawing upon models of the past and current exercises. This book should be at the top of one’s reading list and, of course, especially for preachers. Compelling and inspiring for times like these!”
—Jo Anne Lyon, ambassador, General Superintendent, Emerita,
The Wesleyan Church, Indianapolis, IN