Speaking of Dying: Recovering the Church’s Voice in the Face of Death

(Brazos Press) Inspired by Goldsmith’s experience with how his daughter’s congregation dealt with her death, this book looks at how 10 congregations faced the deaths of their pastors. He argues that churches are not adequately serving the dying and their families, having “outsourced the management of dying.” He offers ideas on how the church can “help its members die well,” by drawing on theological resources and faith, and he discusses how to talk to a dying person. Goldsmith was a pastor and a professor of philosophy and religion at McPherson College and of Biblical languages and literature at the Baptist Seminary of Mexico.