Hello, my Silverton Friends family!

I hope this note finds you all well.

I’m writing because today is a big day for me and for the whole Pattison family.

Today – at long last – is the official release date for my book, Slow Church: Cultivating Community in the Patient Way of Jesus. This is a book that’s been almost three years in the making. My co-author, Chris Smith, and I are incredibly proud of it. Slow Church would not be a reality if not for the love, support, and inspiration of our friends and family. So I need to say something from the bottom of my heart:

Thank you.

It’s been humbling to see Slow Church receive early attention in The Washington Post, Huffington Post, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, and in other news outlets around North America and Europe. Often, these stories speculate about a “Slow Church Movement.” But Chris and I have never talked about Slow Church in these terms. Our goal hasn’t been to spark a movement, it’s been to fan the flames of a conversation – a broad and long and, yes, slow conversation about how churches can be faithfully rooted in both the place and pace of their neighborhoods.

Today, that conversation goes public.

You’re receiving this email because, as our church family, you’ve already been a part of that conversation. It takes a village to write a book. But I have one more huge favor to ask: Will you help us let people know that the book is now available to purchase? Even though we’ve tried to make it as simple as possible for you to share this news, we recognize what a big deal this is. Recommending a book means putting some of your own social capital on the line. We wouldn’t ask if we didn’t think it was important.

Here are five simple ways you can help us spread the word.

1. Recommend the book to a friend or family member.

Social media is pervasive, but word-of-mouth is still the most persuasive. Recommending a book while sitting with a friend over coffee or a meal is also the method that fits best with Slow Church, which is all about developing deep presence with God and neighbor.

2. Send an email, or post on social media – Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, etc.

We’ve created a special page on the Slow Church blog with a lot of resources for our book launch. These include shareable quotes, key endorsements, early reviews, a digital sampler that includes two chapters and the Table of Contents, direct links to places where the book is for sale, and other ways to connect with the Slow Church conversation online.

3. Use Slow Church in your Sunday school class or book club.

This is the recommendation of John Wilson, editor of Christianity Today’s Books & Culture magazine. Slow Church is a book best read in community. Every chapter ends with Conversation Starters, questions for discussion and meditation. And next week Chris and I will be publishing a free, downloadable Group Discussion Guide to help readers go even deeper.

We have a special discount bundle specifically for Sunday school classes and book clubs. It includes:

• 5 paperback copies of the Slow Church book
• 2 paperback copies of Chris’s book, The Virtue of Dialogue
• 1 paperback copy of my first book, Besides the Bible: 100 Books that Have, Should or Will Create Christian Culture – a great resource for book clubs
• A one-year subscription (four print issues) to the Englewood Review of Books
• Free shipping

This is a $130 value—all for just $80.

In addition, Chris and/or I will do a half-hour Google Hangout or Skype call with any group of five or more people going through the book. This is less relevant since we’re all in the same town, but I thought I would mention it. For Chris and I, it’s all about the conversation!

4. Rate the book

If you’ve already read the book, it would be enormously helpful if you could rate or review the book on sites like Amazon, Powells.com, BN.com, and Goodreads.

5. Come to the Silverton “Slow Church” Book Launch Party.

We are having a party to celebrate the book’s release. Join us on Friday, June 6, from 6:30 – 8:00 p.m. at Gear-Up Espresso. My co-author will be in town, and the event will be informal and lots of fun. It would make me so happy to see you all there.

Finally, I’d just like to ask for your prayers and well-wishes – for me, Chris, our families, and our little project.  Pray for traveling mercies, for good health, for energy and patience. Pray too that we would be good stewards of our message and of the stories we’re hearing along the way.

Thank you for everything.
Sincerely,

John

 

P.S. I realized after writing this letter that some friends and family have been waiting for launch week to buy their own copies of the book. If you’re one of those folks, here are a few of the places Slow Church will be available to purchase starting tomorrow. Some brick and mortar stores – Powell’s, Barnes & Noble, etc. – have copies of the book coming into the store but they may not be on the shelves yet.

• Amazon – (Paperback)   (Kindle)
• Powell’s
• Hearts & Minds Books*
• IVP – (Paperback)  (E-book)
• Barnes & Noble
• Christianbook.com (Paperback)  (EPUB)
• A Local Bookstore Near You

*My favorite independent Christian bookstore.