After four years of college and six years in seminary, William Mills was ready for a parish--or so he thought. He didn't realize much of his time would be endless discussions about bagels and coffee, digging ditches, and parking lot condom patrols. For six years, community life was just humming along. Then disaster struck. Mills' life came crashing down when nearly a third of his congregation left in a public power play, causing him to question his faith in himself, in the church, and in God. Marva Dawn, a noted writer of spirituality and ministry, said that being a pastor is like being peppered with popcorn: after a while, you just get tired of it, pack your bags, and move on. However, as Mills himself says, "I was either too stubborn or stupid, so I stayed." Losing My Religion is about the ups and downs, ins and outs, choices and challenges of being a pastor in the twenty-first-century church. It's also about the redemptive power of community life and finding healing and wholeness in a broken world.
William C. Mills is the rector of the Nativity of the Holy Virgin Orthodox Church in Charlotte, North Carolina. He holds a PhD in Pastoral Theology from the Union Institute and University in Cincinnati, Ohio. He is the author of A 30 Day Retreat: A Personal Guide to Spiritual Renewal and the author of numerous articles and books on the Bible, Christian Spirituality, and Ministry. For more information, visit his website at www.williamcmills.com.
