Book Explores Global Laity Movement

Faith in the World
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A global movement captured the imagination of Christians in the second half of the 20th century by declaring that the renewal of the church depended upon laypeople acting beyond the church walls—taking up their ministries in daily life amid the economic, political, and cultural structures of the world. Among the movement’s advocates was an unlikely prophet,Mark Gibbs a former English schoolmaster named Mark Gibbs, and his unusual partner, Vesper Society, a small network of Christian leaders who sought to use their professional skills for the betterment of the world. Their inspirational story is told in 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 past and future of the laity movement.

The book is available for purchase on Amazon for $12.95.

“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. 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.”

—Dr. Richard J. Mouw, President, Fuller Theological Seminary,
author of Praying at Burger King

About Mark Gibbs

Essays and Lectures By and About Mark Gibbs

“In the Structures of the World,” from the first edition of Vesper Exchange, 1970
“The Development of Large-Scale Corporate Caring,” written with Vesper Society co-founder Eugene Heckathorn, 1972
“That the Good May Be Clever,” Vesper Exchange, 1979
“The Development of a Strong and Committed Laity,” the first Audenshaw/Vesper Laity Lecture, 1981
“No More Spiritual Babies: The Development of a Strong Laity,” keynote address to the Lutheran Church in America’s LAOS Theologians’ Colloquium in New York City May 23, 1982
“Mark Gibbs: One Friend’s Perception,” by Robert Brorby, September 1986

Resources

The ministry in daily life movement is comprised of a number of organizations around the world whose interests include leadership development, laity education, ministry in the workplace, ecumenical and interfaith cooperation, and other issues. Below is a sampling of organizations.

  • Centered Life, a congregational and personal development program started in 1999 by Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minn., to help people connect faith to daily life
  • Coalition for Ministry in Daily Life, an “international network of Christians and their organizations committed to fostering the affirmation and practice of ministry in daily life by all followers of Christ,” founded following the 1991 Daylesford Consultation sponsored by Vesper Society
  • Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, which offers a variety of online resources on ministry in daily life
  • German Protestant Kirchentag, large laity gatherings that occur every two years or so in various German cities
  • Oikosnet Europe, an association of 80 laity centers in 17 European countries
  • Oikosnet North America, an association of Canadian and U.S. retreat centers that cooperate for training, dialogue, and other special programs
  • Princeton University Faith & Work Initiative, which conducts research and offers lectures and conferences