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By Jody Neufeld, on August 22nd, 2011
First United Methodist Church, Pensacola, FL had much to celebrate this past Sunday, August 21, 20011. 25 young people were confirmed, welcomed as full members, into the church and the long-awaited art worship project, A Living Psalter:Creative Reflections on the Book of Psalms, was released. The editor, Rev. Geoffrey Lentz (pictured at left) is excited that members have embraced the “Summer in the Psalms” that has brought their focus on the history, the beauty, and timeless vehicle that is the Psalms. “We are grateful to Energion Publications for their prayerful work in making parish-based publishing a possibility for pastors and congregations. It is an important tool in making disciples of Jesus Christ,” says Rev. Lentz.
By Energion Publications Staff, on November 2nd, 2010
We have integrated this blog with our main web site at energionpubs.com. Please join us there for comments and discussion! This blog will remain temporarily available for archival purposes.
By Jody Neufeld, on October 28th, 2010
– Taken in total with permission from The Journal Era newspaper, Tim Pullano, Publisher, October 20, 2010, Berrien Springs, Michigan.
Dr. Herold Weiss of Berrien Springs has published his fourth book, “Finding My Way in Christianity – Recollections of a Journey.”
The csts $16.95 and is available from Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
“The book is a recollection, a story of a faith journey that is linked to episodes in my life,” Weiss said. “It is an argument against those who claim that unless you are the ultra conservative Christian of the religious right, you are not a Christian.”
He emphasized that Christianity is not a system of doctrines, it is a way of life.
“Jesus did not promulgate any laws or established a doctrine, but gave us an example,” he said.
Dr. Weiss is also the author of Paul of Tarsus: His Gospel,and Life and A Day of Gladness: The Sabbath Among Jews and Christians in Antiquity, and he is the co-author (with Cosgrove and Yeo) of Crosscultural Paul: Journeys to Others, Journeys to Ourselves.
Dr. Weiss is professor emeritus of religious studies at Saint Mary’s College in Notre Dame, Indiana. He is a native of Montivideo, Uruguay, and received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Southern Missionary College, his Masters and B.D. From Andrews University, and his Ph.D. from Duke University. He was also an affiliate professor of the New Testament in the Hispanic program of Northern Baptist Theological Seminary for many years.
Dr. Weiss also writes a column in Spanish and English for Spectrummagazine.com.
When he is not writing, he enjoys his grandchildren, sailing on Lake Michigan, and working around the house.
Dr. Weiss and his wife, Aida, live in the house he built on Garr Road in Oronoko Township and they are members of the Spanish SDA Church in Berrien Springs. They have two grown sons, Herold “Dito” Wiss of Berrien Springs and Dr. Carlos Weiss of Grand Rapids, and five grandchildren.
By Henry Neufeld, on October 25th, 2010
 The original Energion triangle logo, still used for our Energion.com web site In my video Why Energion? I draw a triangle on the white board to illustrate the boundaries of our publishing mission here at Energion Publications. I labeled the points of that triangle “Evangelical,” “Liberal,” and “Charismatic.” Now there are many ways one could divide Christianity into streams, but those three represented groups I was, and am, personally involved in bringing into more communication.
In my illustration, the points on the triangle represent forces pulling away from the center, and potentially becoming unbalanced. There is a value, I believe, in these forces hearing from one another and being accountable to one another. I don’t wish to see them driven toward compromise and homogenization. In fact, I view their very differences as valuable to the church as a whole. I do not see myself sitting comfortably in the center. I definitely lean toward the liberal and charismatic element, though on particular issues I also lean toward evangelical. I feel the need of accountability to those who may see things differently.
Looking back to the company mission (which I regard as both a business and a ministry), there are two elements that set the outer boundaries. The first is simply conversation. When I look at a proposal or a manuscript, I ask not just where it is in the theological spectrum, but whether it is in conversation with other movements. Again, “conversation” does not mean “homogenization.”
 For example, I published my own book When People Speak for God, which is probably the best illustration of what I mean by simultaneously leaning liberal and charismatic. In it I argue for the continuation of the gifts of the Spirit, and at the same time connect the inspiration of scripture with the prophetic gift at any time or place. I would be delighted to get a similar book from a more evangelical perspective that would challenge those suppositions. Such a book shouldn’t say nice things about me or my thesis, but should respond to my claims, or more importantly claims of liberal and charismatic theologians on the topic.
As another example, I just released the second edition of Dr. David Alan Black’s book Why Four Gospels? I dare say I will not be challenged in referring to that book as conservative. I’d be delighted to get a similar book that is both comprehensive and compact (a tough order!) from a more liberal perspective. While such a book  shouldn’t personally attack Dr. Black by calling him a reactionary or some such thing, it should respond on point to his arguments. That would be conversation. If the conversation forces each person to recheck sources and ideas, even if their minds are not changed, then it’s the type of conversation I’m seeking to promote.
The second set of boundaries are simply those of general Christian orthodoxy. Now orthodoxy can be a slippery term these days, but the short definition I like is that persons are orthodox if they can say the Apostle’s Creed without crossing their fingers. I have a more modern statement, taken from one of our Energion authors, Elgin Husbheck, Jr. In defining the Christianity he intends to defend in his book Christianity and Secularism, p. 77, he cites four points:
 The nature of God is best represented by the doctrine of the Trinity: that there is only one God but within the one God exists three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.- Jesus Christ is the only Son of God, who died on the cross for our sins, and he rose again bodily in victory over death.
- Man is a sinner in need of salvation, which is made possible by the death of Jesus, and can only be gained by grace through faith.
- The Bible is the inspired word of God.
Those with theological training will doubtless realize how much of this might depend on definitions, but that is the nature of brief statements–the definitions are missing. Nonetheless, this again provides our outline.
To bring these ideas together, my aim is for the broadest possible conversation possible amongst generally orthodox Christians, aiming to hold us accountable for our fidelity to our sources of belief, and at the same time sharpening one another as iron sharpens iron (Proverbs 27:17).
I want to add one thing here. I am not trying to judge the orthodoxy of authors. I’m only evaluating books. An author may have written something that falls outside these boundaries. He or she may write something else regularly on a blog. I’m only concerned with the manuscript I’m publishing at the time.
By Energion Publications Staff, on October 22nd, 2010
From Dave Black Online:
It is God’s prerogative to realign our lives to bring more glory and praise to His name.
(David Alan Black is author of three Energion titles: Why Four Gospels? (just released), Christian Archy, and The Jesus Paradigm.)
By Energion Publications Staff, on October 22nd, 2010
 Henry Neufeld with Why Four Gospels? about to be shiped! Since I talked about how the release is done and mentioned that we would be shipping books today, let me provide photographic evidence, seen at the left. We got our first order of books for our “office stock” and they almost all went immediately back in the mail headed out to reviewers and folks who pre-ordered the book.
While I’m at it, let me mention ordering through Energion Direct. Other than for special offers, we sell books at our suggested retail price there. Since online retailers discount the books, why should you buy at Energion Direct? The answer is simple: Shipping! We don’t charge shipping and handling. So the price is the price.
With many other retailers you’ll be paying $3 or more for shipping and handling, which would make our price the equivalent of $8.99. So check out Why Four Gospels? on Energion Direct!
There are still review copies available and we’re very interested in generating discussion about this book. Please e-mail us if you’d like a copy, or you can use our handy form at Energion.info. You can request other forthcoming books as well.
By Energion Publications Staff, on October 22nd, 2010
A couple of people have asked me about the way we do releases at Energion Publications. The public image of a book release has the publisher getting in a stock of the books, shipping them out to various bookstores, and then, on the date selected, allowing these bookstores to make the books available. In that scenario there are usually a few leaks where someone gets their hands on a copy a little bit early.
 Sold out first printing That scenario is actually realistic–for large publishers with much-anticipated books. We don’t even attempt such a scenario around here. There are two reasons. First, as I already noted, that approach is for large publishers who can count on orders from major stores even before a book is released. We do get pre-orders from individuals, and even a very small number wholesale, but it isn’t a major piece of our marketing strategy. Second, Energion is aiming to be very much in the 21st century in terms of production and distribution, and this means we give up some control over the process.
It’s this second aspect that I want to discuss. From the start, my plan for Energion Publications was to make heavy use of print-0n-demand. At the time, however, I still intended to use it as a supplement to regular offset print runs on some books. I used a standard offset run for one book, and we have, in fact, sold out except for some damaged copies of that particular book. But in calculated the difference in price for small print runs, in this case 5,000 copies, including storage and handling, and comparing that to the prices I can get for print-on-demand, offset print runs began to look much less attractive.
So we now use print-on-demand as our primary means of production. We can order quantities, and even request offset runs as needed, but in general we neither go out of stock, nor do we have warehouse space filled with unsold books. Our printer, Lightning Source, provides any desired quantity promptly, and will even ship direct to our customers and to the distributor. In addition, they provide distribution through the Espresso Book Machine™. We now stock very small numbers here at our office, from about 5 to 250, most commonly around 50. Large orders go out direct from our printer.
What does that mean for releases? Let’s take the example of Why Four Gospels? which is in its release process right now. I approved this title for distribution from our printer on Monday, October 18. I had extended the release date to October 20. What happened on Monday? Well, the book became available in two senses. First, it went into the electronic catalog at our distributor (Ingram), and second, it became available for us to order it shipped directly to customers from the printer. At that point rush orders could be shipped within 48 hours and regular orders would normally take about 72. (During the same time frame I had a regular order for 20 books ship in about 36 hours, so these aren’t hard numbers.)
If you look at Amazon.com today, you’ll see that Amazon is showing shipping in 1 to 2 months, but one marketplace seller already has the book ready to ship. (Of course, by the time you get there, this might have changed!)
 Got to a reader before it got to the author! That is simply the process of distributing the information. Various online retailers have to download catalog updates. Once that occurs, the book becomes available. It surprises some of my authors to realize that their book can reach a customer without anyone at Energion and without anyone at their retailer ever touching the book.
In another recent release, Soup Kitchen for the Soul, one of the authors friends received and read a copy of the book from Amazon.com before she got her free copies from Energion.
Today UPS tells me that my first case of Why Four Gospels? is on the delivery truck. I expect it within the next couple of hours. We’re geared up to send all our review and pre-ordered copies out in today’s mail. In one way that’s the end of the release process. But even so I’ll still be watching the various retailers and letting our readers know when the books are available.
By Energion Publications Staff, on October 21st, 2010
The second edition of Dr. David Alan Black’s book Why Four Gospels? has been released. We expect to ship all pre-ordered copies by the end of the day tomorrow, and we’re waiting for Amazon.com to show “In Stock.” (Note: If you see the 1 to 2 months note there, be assured that the books are in the pipeline and it will be much less than 1-2 months–more like a day or so.)
We at Energion Publications are looking forward to good things from this second edition. In particular we hope that we can market it to many readers from mainline churches who may not have considered its thesis, that the gospels were written early, starting with Matthew.
We especially encourage bibliobloggers to request free review copies. We don’t ask for favorable reviews. We love to get them, of course, but we won’t put any pressure on you about what you say. What we’d like to see is a strong debate, enhanced by this valuable little volume.
So if you want a review copy, e-mail pubs@energion.com and let us know where you will review it and where to send the book. If you want to order a copy for yourself, check out Energion Direct. While we list the books there for suggested retail, and you can expect discounts from Amazon.com and B&N, we do offer standard shipping free in the continental U. S. and very low cost overseas shipping.
Coming Soon!! Watch this space also for video and audio clips of an interview with Dr. David Alan Black recorded during his recent visit to First UMC in Pensacola, FL.
And don’t forget whyfourgospels.com, the web site for discussion of this book and topic.
By Energion Publications Staff, on October 15th, 2010
We’d like to direct you to a competitor’s web site (if it’s proper to call a company [Zondervan Academic] so much larger than we are merely a “competitor”) because they have an excellent question for discussion.
They ask: “Is it ever appropriate to ban books from our children?”
For the background of the question, please see their complete post, and take the discussion over there.
By Energion Publications Staff, on October 15th, 2010
Due to several factors, Why Four Gospels? will not be available for purchase online today. We have updated our various outlets to reflect release October 20, 2010. We expect to begin making some shipments Monday, October 18, but it will probably not be until Wednesday, October 20, that the book becomes available for shipment from Amazon.com and other online retailers. We apologize for this delay.
We do have something exciting coming up, however. During his visit here in Pensacola the last weekend of September, Dave answered some questions regarding his books on video, and we will be posting these on YouTube and as audio on our podcast site starting Monday, October 18. We’ll begin with a series of questions and answers regarding Why Four Gospels?.
The best way to watch for these is on the dedicated book site for this book, whyfourgospels.com (RSS).
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