by Soo-Inn Tan | Jun 1, 2016 | 2016, Articles, Church, Preaching & Teaching
We are just back from taking a church camp. On the last day there was a time for testimonies. Many shared that my sermons were simple. I was glad. That meant folks understood what I was trying to share. A few understood the amount of hard work that goes into making...
by Soo-Inn Tan | May 17, 2014 | 2014, Articles, Church, Life Issues, Preaching & Teaching, Work & Vocation
I had the privilege of teaching an evening course in a major seminary recently, on the ministry of the laity. The class started with 26 students. Midway through the class we were down to about half that number. We had about 11 students on the last evening. I was...
by Soo-Inn Tan | Feb 6, 2014 | 2014, Articles, Christian Living, Church, Mentoring, Preaching & Teaching
In his memoir, Now and Then, Frederick Buechner writes about his time at Union seminary. In terms of Union’s history, I couldn’t have gone there at a more auspicious time. It was its golden age. Reinhold Niebuhr was there, and Paul Tillich was there, these two great...
by Soo-Inn Tan | Dec 11, 2013 | 2013, Articles, Church, Preaching & Teaching
There are times that I wince when I hear a preacher use big words in his or her sermons, words that presuppose a high degree of formal education on the part of the audience, or technical terms understandable only by those who have had some theological education. I am...
by Soo-Inn Tan | Nov 20, 2013 | 2013, Arrogance & Pride, Articles, Church, Life Issues, Preaching & Teaching
I saw them from the corner of my eye, three young men waiting to have a word with me. The Sunday worship had just ended. Various other people wanted to talk to me, old friends came by to say hello. There were quite a number of people who wanted to talk to me. The...
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by Soo-Inn Tan | Nov 13, 2013 | 2013, Articles, Church, Preaching & Teaching
I wasn’t sure if I should have accepted the invitation. It’s not that I didn’t care. I just wasn’t sure if I would be effective. But I said yes. This afternoon I spoke to a small group of eight men from a facility for those with mental disorders. I realised that many...
