Mother Kirk: Essays on Church Life

What does it mean to be a faithful pastor? Find out what forty-year pastor Douglas Wilson's thoughts are.

Look Inside the Book or Listen on Canon+

Modern evangelicals have gained money, power, and influence, and it has been like giving whiskey to a two-year-old. The need of the hour is theological, not political. The arena is the pulpit and the table, not the legislative chamber. Before we are equipped to proclaim His lordship to the inhabitants of all the earth, we must live as though we believed it in the Church. In Mother Kirk, forty-year pastor Douglas Wilson offers very practical and pastoral guidance to many of the countless issues that arise in conservative Christian churches. The essays span subjects ranging from the nature of legalism and church authority to worship music, debt, youth ministry, and pastoral character.

You can purchase this as an audiobook here or on Audible.*

* All purchases made through this link will earn us a small commission through Amazon Associates, an affiliate program.

What People Are Saying:

"Mother Kirk highlights the importance of teaching and preaching as the center of pastoral ministry. That is hardly surprising, since this book comes from a classical Calvinist. Some Calvinists, however, leave the impression that the church would function much more smoothly if it were not for the people. Doug Wilson is not that sort of Calvinist. He understands that the church is people, and that people can be governed and led only by other people. He realizes that the ministry of the Word must be incarnated in the life of the pastor. He has observed that the biblical qualifications for elders focus on character. He knows there are no paper pastors." -From the introduction by Peter Leithart, president of Theopolis Institute

"Wilson brings to this book a fearlessness to deal with current ecclesiological issues. He not only looks at the broad evangelical scene but also at Reformed practice. He reminds readers to examine the pride and vainglory that may be sinking down roots in their own lives." -The Presbyterian Witness

"Provocatively, systematically, and intelligently written, this book is crammed with practical biblical wisdom. . . . [H]is comments cut close to the bone." -Christian Renewal