Spiritual Fitness

Graham Tomlin is Acting Principal and tutor in Historical Theology and Evangelism at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford. Formerly chaplain of Jesus College, he teaches regularly at Oxford University and has spoken in churches, colleges and conferences in the UK and overseas.

• CONTENTS; Part 1: Why Spiritual Fitness?; 1. Church in a Culture of Choice; 2. A Fresh Look at the Gospel; 3. Spiritual Fitness in the Bible; 4. Spiritual Fitness in Christian History; 5. Body and Soul; 6. The Church as Spiritual Fitness Centre; Part 2: Disciplines for Spiritual Fitness; 7. Generosity; 8. Patience; 9. Forgiveness; 10. Kindness; 11. Self-Control; 12. Truthfulness. FULL CONTENTS; Part 1 gives a historical and modern context for spiritual discipline.; Part 2 offers resources to help churches become centres of spiritual health.

"Written by the Principal of St. Paul's Theological Centre, Graham Tomlin, Spiritual Fitness: Christian Character in a Consumer Culture connects a parallel between physical and spiritual fitness. Both require daily maintenance and attention, and both are vital to human well being. Tomlin stresses that spiritual fitness is vital not only for the church itself, but also society as a whole, and offers guidelines to help churches transform into agents of change and spiritual renaissance. From cultivating virtue to the vital role of discipline in enacting spiritual transformation, to the necessity, power, and difficulty of forgiveness, Spiritual Fitness conceptualizes a powerful antidote to the consumption and luxury-driven culture advertised by modern media that can all too readily drown out the finer and holier aspects of life."   Reviewed in The Midwest Book Review, December 2006