Woman Authors Book on Faith

Twenty percent of North American non-Christians do not even know a Christian while the number of those who call themselves Christians dwindles. Winds of hostility toward Christian faith are strengthening. In the meantime, the American family continues to fracture as poverty grows all around us.

Nancy E. Head of Altoona once knew poverty.

Written in an easy to understand, conversational style, "Restoring the Shattered" is an account of her family's journey through single-motherhood and material need. Their journey shows the power Christians of varying traditions manifest when they live out the Gospel for the sake of those in need.

This family's story illustrates common problems in our society, the fracturing of families and communities, reflecting a splintered Church. Alienated families and a riven Church cannot minister effectively to their own members or others until they come together.

As this social shifting unfolds, the divide between those in prosperity and those in poverty widens. Separation grows.

When one of Nancy's grown children became Catholic, she became more aware of the ways her own evangelical tradition often dismisses Catholic believers and misinterprets many of their doctrines. While many of our doctrines differ, our essential beliefs are the same. Nancy looked at the causes of the Reformation and other schisms. The original schism within Orthodoxy resulted from a misinterpretation of each other's languages. Misunderstanding our faith languages feeds separation today.

The book is not a call to discard our differences and become a melded Christianity devoid of doctrinal distinctions. It is a call to respect each other and work beside each other to obey Christ's call for accord, in love for Him, for our Christian siblings, and for those outside the family of faith. Christian accord produces obedience to Christ's call to minister to those in need.

Accounts of both effective and ineffective methods of ministry in our personal story, in local communities, and in mission work pepper the text. Chapters begin with brief scripture passages and a quote relating to stained glass. Each chapter draws a parallel between the Church and the motif of a stained glass window. A quality of glass or stained glass draws our attention to a quality of the Church as God intended her to be. Each chapter ends with a short original poem or literary passage.

"Restoring the Shattered" presents parallels between a divided and separated family and a divided and separated Church. It explains how our discord came to be, how the Church in accord can most effectively minister to those in need, and how we can best respond to an increasingly hostile but suffering culture. There are books about Christian unity, books about Church history, and books about ministry to the poor. This unique text weaves these topics together into an informative, inspiring, and motivational work.

"Restoring the Shattered" is published by Morgan James Publishers.

Writer and teacher Nancy E. Head was a single mother with five children under the age of 14 when she attended Penn State to earn a bachelor's degree in English and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. Her career took a journalistic turn from radio news to newspaper reporting, then education before she returned to the classroom to secure a master's degree in English from Indiana University of Pennsylvania.

Currently an instructor at Penn State Altoona and Great Commission Schools, she also spent two summers teaching English in Asia. She is a member of the Altoona Writers' Guild, the Christian Writers' Roundtable, the US Armed Forces Mothers, Toastmasters, and the Pennsylvania State Republican Committee.

When not teaching or writing, she restores antique quilts, crafts projects for her grandchildren, and helps her husband lead a small group at their church devoted to ministering to the needy in their community.

"Restoring the Shattered" was released in electronic format in October. The paperback release is scheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 22.