Generation to Generation: Family Process in Church and Synagogue 1st Edition

Generation to Generation: Family Process in Church and Synagogue 1st Edition
Author: Visit ‘s Edwin H. Friedman Page ID: 0898620597

Review

"Friedman understood congregational life as no one else did at the time and possibly as no one else has done since….When this book was originally written, clergy flocked to read it, as well as to attend Friedman's lectures and participate in the training program he established. Just as the book's title suggests, Friedman's ideas continue to be passed down to today's generation of leaders."–from the Foreword to the Paperback Edition by Gary Emanuel, PhD, and Mickie Crimone, MS, APRN

"Well written and lively…required reading for pastoral counselors of every persuasion….Any therapist will find here new techniques for bringing about changes and will enlarge his or her conceptual framework of the human dilemma." –Jay Haley

“A feature throughout the book is the heavy use of story and narrative to make a point. This is very effective as the narrative often contains multi-dimensional meanings that the author then explores in an engaging way….Provides an interesting and very readable account of how to incorporate family processes into congregational life.”–Journal for the Study of Marriage and Spirituality

(Journal for the Study of Marriage and Spirituality 2011-03-04)

“I was shocked, surprised and disillusioned when I began to realize that hard work, sincerity and prayer weren’t enough to guarantee success in pastoral ministry. I kept getting myself into tangles that I didn’t understand until I read this book by a storytelling rabbi with uncommon wisdom. Friedman helped me see that the best way to engage with the factors I can’t control—like the opinions and behavior of others—was to focus on the factors that I can control: my own presence, identity and behavior in the social system of the local congregation.”–The Christian Century

(The Christian Century 2011-03-04)

“An important contribution to…family systems thinking and pastoral care….One of the most creative aspects of this volume is the way the book is laid out. The chapters are organized around interrelated concepts that feed back on and amplify one another—a design that itself helps the reader begin to think systemically.”–Journal of Pastoral Care and Counseling

(Journal of Pastoral Care and Counseling 2011-03-04)

“A groundbreaking book in the use of family therapy….The key is not expertise, but self-definition and self-understanding.”–Behavioral Studies of Religion

(Behavioral Studies of Religion 2011-03-04)

“A must read for persons of the cloth, for it points to significant issues and considerations on the experience of living in families and working with a congregation as a family.”–Review and Expositor

(Review and Expositor 2005-01-03)

About the Author

Edwin H. Friedman, until his death in 1996, worked for more than 35 years in the Washington, DC, metropolitan area, and was in great demand as a consultant and public speaker throughout the country. A family therapist and ordained rabbi, Dr. Friedman was well known in the fields of mental health and pastoral education for his motivational style and his unique blend of systems thinking, humor, and common sense. He offered acclaimed workshops for mental health practitioners, clergy, business leaders, and others.

 

Series: The Guilford Family TherapyHardcover: 319 pagesPublisher: The Guilford Press; 1 edition (July 19, 1985)Language: EnglishISBN-10: 0898620597ISBN-13: 978-0898620597 Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 1.2 inches Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies) Best Sellers Rank: #269,608 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #187 in Books > Religion & Spirituality > Religious Studies > Psychology #455 in Books > Christian Books & Bibles > Ministry & Evangelism > Counseling & Recovery #603 in Books > Medical Books > Psychology > Counseling
This is a book to be absorbed slowly.

I don’t think I can summarize this book any better than Friedman himself does on page 1: "It is the thesis of this book that all clergymen and clergywomen, irrespective of faith, are simultaneously involved in three distinct families whose emotional forces interlock: the families within the congregation, our congregations, and our own. Because the emotional process in all of these systems is identical, unresolved issues in any one of them can produce symptoms in the others, and increased understanding of any one creates more effective functioning in all three."

This book will invite you to take a good, hard look at your own functioning. "There is an intrinsic relationship between our capacity to put families together [or, Friedman would also say, to put congregations together] and our ability to put ourselves together" (page 3). Friedman looks at family issues and congregational issues from a systems perspective, arguing that when a member of a family (or a congregation) is demonstrating "symptoms," it is necessary to look at the whole network of relationships that that individual is involved in — because the root cause of the problem may lie in a completely different part of the system.

Friedman illustrates in detail how clergy can positively effect change in a family system or a congregational system. He also (somewhat indirectly) stresses the critical importance for clergy to resolve their own lingering family-of-origin issues.
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