'Faith in the World' Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACTS:
TaNelle Forgy, Signal Hill, 209-740-3458; tanelle@signalhillspot.com
Sabrina Lynn Motley, Vesper Society, 415-291-0902; smotley@vesper.org

New Book Explores Influential Partnership in Global Laity Movement; Faith in the World Available for Purchase on Amazon

San Francisco, Calif., April 30, 2009 – Long before any talk of the "emerging church," before the "purpose-driven life" entered church lingo, before "vocation" became a consideration for all believers, there was a movement that boldly claimed every Christian is a minister.

Among the movement's advocates was an unlikely prophet, a former English schoolmaster named Mark Gibbs, and his unusual partner, Vesper Society, a small network of Christian leaders who sought to use their gifts in business and management for the betterment of the world.  From 1970-1986, Gibbs and Vesper Society played a pivotal role in a worldwide movement.  Their inspirational story is the subject of a new book, FAITH IN THE WORLD: MARK GIBBS AND VESPER SOCIETY, BEING GOD'S LIVELY PEOPLE.

Co-authored by Nelvin Vos, Emeritus Professor of English at Muhlenberg College; Daniel Pryfogle, a journalist and leadership consultant; and Mel George, former president of St. Olaf College, Faith in the World provides a unique perspective on the laity movement, one of the most important developments in 20th century church history, by recounting Gibbs and Vesper Society’s shared journey.

The first full-length book published by Vesper Society, a faith-based private operating foundation, FAITH IN THE WORLD blends biography and historical analysis to offer a compelling story that will engage clergy and laity alike.  Richard Mouw, well-known author and president of Fuller Theological Seminary, finds in FAITH IN THE WORLD a story worth remembering and a  message relevant for today.

"I am deeply grateful for this book.  It tells a story that must be preserved.  For me it is a very personal story, about a man and a movement that profoundly shaped my thinking about what it means to be the laos, the people of God," Mouw says.  "But it also contains an urgent challenge to the church at large, one that is too easily forgotten when we get bogged down in 'churchy' affairs: that the goal of all that we do as church is to nurture and equip all of God’s people for serving the Lord in the complexities of our daily lives."

In the course of their 16-year relationship and beyond, Mark Gibbs and Vesper Society profoundly shaped the worldwide movement for the ministry of the laity.  Partners in an era of institutional church decline, Gibbs and the Society said renewal would be found in reflection and action upon the calling of all Christians: to be the body of Christ in daily life amid the economic, political, and cultural structures of the world.

An Anglican, Gibbs' writing inspired thousands and influenced clergy and laity across the globe.  Co-author of GOD'S FROZEN PEOPLE and GOD'S LIVELY PEOPLE, his provocative perspective challenged church hierarchy and prompted laypeople to claim their ministries in secular life.

Gibbs met the leaders of Vesper Society several years after the founding of the innovative nonprofit group by two Lutheran businessmen.  Through the mid-1980s, the Society owned two San Francisco Bay Area hospitals, which it used as a springboard for ministry of the laity.  After the sale of the hospitals in 1984, the Society became a private operating foundation, whose mission to promote social justice continues today.

Gibbs and the Society convened groundbreaking conversations on pressing social issues with church, academic, business and political leaders, and the conversations prompted significant initiatives in the U.S. and abroad. With Gibbs as editor, the Society published VESPER EXCHANGE, a compendium of reprinted articles on political, cultural and economic life, and LAITY EXCHANGE, a collection of essays and resources for the laity movement.

"Reading the story of Mark Gibbs and Vesper Society is to take a journey through an exciting period in 20th century church life," says Vesper Society President Mary Olson Baich.  "Gibbs and the Society's leaders were pioneers in their declaration that every Christian is a minister and that the place of ministry is in the secular structures of the world.  Their inspiring story is instructive today as old institutional structures pass away and Christians discern anew what it means to be the church in the world."

FAITH IN THE WORLD can be purchased at www.amazon.com. Further details on the book plus selected essays by Mark Gibbs are available at www.vesper.org.

About the Authors

FAITH IN THE WORLD is co-authored by Nelvin Vos, Emeritus Professor of English at Muhlenberg College and author of SEVEN DAYS A WEEK: FAITH IN ACTION; Daniel Pryfogle, a journalist and principal The Signal Hill Company, a leadership and communications consultancy; and Mel George, a retired professor of mathematics and former administrator in several higher education institutions, including president of St. Olaf College and interim president of the University of Missouri System.  Vos and George have both chaired Vesper Society’s board; Pryfogle has consulted with the Society since 2004.

About Vesper Society

Founded in 1965, Vesper Society is a faith-based private operating foundation that envisions a compassionate world that protects human dignity and enhances human potential.  The Society’s mission is to promote social justice locally and globally by addressing critical social issues, including the provision of health services for the underserved.  To learn more about Vesper Society, go to www.vesper.org.