Episode 52: Insurance is choking churches, stories from a historic Church of Christ landmark, and how to write fiction for Christian young people

The Christian Chronicle Podcast

Send us a Text Message.

Christian Chronicle contributor Cheryl Mann Bacon talks more about her recent report on how the cost of insurance is threatening the very existence of some congregations. Ethel Sherrill, a longtime member of the landmark historic Silver Point West End Church of Christ in Silver Point, Tennessee, shares an oral history with The Christian Chronicle’s Ted Parks. Christy Award-winning author Sara Watterson (Edmond Church of Christ, Edmond, Oklahoma) talks about writing Christian and clean fiction for young readers.
SEGMENT ONE: Congregations are struggling to keep or pay for their insurance (Cheryl Mann Bacon)

Cheryl Mann Bacon’s Christian Chronicle coverage of insurance companies dropping congregations or more than tripling their annual premiums in some states

Cheryl Mann Bacon’s Christian Chronicle column on advice she collected for congregations from insurance industry experts

SEGMENT TWO: An oral history of a landmark congregation in the Church of Christ tradition (Ted Parks with Ethel Sherrill)

Ted Parks’s Christian Chronicle story on the reunion of the Silver Point West End Church of Christ

Erik Tryggestad’s Christian Chronicle interview with Evelyn Buck, the keeper of the important and rich history of the Silver Point Christian Institute and Silver Point West End Church of Christ

SEGMENT THREE: Award-winning Christian fiction author talks about how to write a great book for teens and young adults (Sara Watterson)

Link to Sara Watterson’s author page

Link to Sara Watterson’s Christy Award-winning Christian young adult fiction book This Dreamer

Link to Sara’s book recommendations and reviews website for Christian and clean teen and young adult fiction, including fantasy, romance, and science fiction

View the full archive of stories at christianchronicle.org

Donate to The Christian Chronicle at christianchronicle.org/donate

Send comments, ideas, and questions to [e-mail]

TAGS

Insurance, premiums, natural disasters, acts of God, church buildings, church finance, church administration, church budget, climate change, California, Florida, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Texas, Cheryl Mann Bacon, Black history, Black History Month, G.P. Bowser, Silver Point Christian Institute, Silver Point West End Church of Christ, Civil Rights Movement, segregation, integration, Silver Point, Tennessee, Ethel Sherrill, Ted Parks, Christian fiction, Christian fantasy, Christian romance

This episode is brought to you by Freed-Hardeman University Church Leadership Workshop, September 27 - 28, 2024, at Mid-South Youth Camp in Henderson, Tennessee. FREE for all church leaders who register in advance.
Go to fhu.edu and type "Church Leadership Workshop" in the search bar

Chapters

1. Episode 52: Insurance is choking churches, stories from a historic Church of Christ landmark, and how to write fiction for Christian young people (00:00:00)

2. Increasing Insurance Premiums Threaten Church Congregations (00:02:11)

3. Insurance Premiums and Shrinking Church Attendance (00:17:15)

4. Silver Point School and Church Integration (00:24:27)

5. Silver Point and Writing Success (00:36:04)

6. Writing for Teens and Christian Fiction (00:45:40)

7. Christian Chronicle Podcast Team Introduction (00:56:31)