But you, O Lord, reign forever; your throne endures to all generations. Why do you forget us forever, why do you forsake us for so many days? Restore us to yourself, O Lord, that we may be restored! Renew our days as of old—unless you have utterly rejected us, and you remain exceedingly angry with…

Is ‘ādām unclean, trampled ‘ādāmāh? Can ‘ādām be re-formed, given New Life? In the Toy Story trilogy, being marked by Andy’s name not only changes how his toys see themselves but how they see toys who are not Andy’s. At first, Buzz and Woody are terrified by Sid’s warped and misfit toys—a doll’s head on spider…

I assume that behind the attempts to rid the public of signs of the old Confederacy is the motivation by proponents to accomplish elements of Jubilee: restoration, forgiveness, healing and the empowerment of all people in our communities to flourish. If this is the case, then, to denigrate what some people hold dear, even if…

Was it appropriate to speak of the confederate flag as a symbol/sign that could be reclaimed and become a reminder of both the dehumanizing capacities of human beings toward other human beings and the need for God’s transformative grace to guard against such occurrences? Was it appropriate to compare this possibility with how the Church…

In the old rugged cross, stained with blood so divine, A wondrous beauty I see For ‘twas on that old cross Jesus suffered and died, To pardon and sanctify me. “The Old Rugged Cross,” George Bennard   For people in the United States, the details of the massacre at Emmanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in…

“What makes a people great?” I contemplated this question during the Black Church Studies conference last month, along with a few other questions that I’ve reflected upon in previous posts (“The Church as Channel of Jubilee,” “What is the black church?“, and “What is Justice?“). But only until recently could I pinpoint a potentially foundational…

In my last attempt at some needed soul searching, I reflected on Dr. King’s challenge for oppressed people to learn to forgive. I shared how uneasy this thought made me feel because of my problematic tendency to never forget a slight, much less a clear demonstrations of disrespect. It is hard to let go of…

Jubilee shows God’s awareness of sin’s devastation both at the individual and the community’s structural levels. Forgiveness and restoration are required because of the potential to harmfully accumulate wealth and property leading to an even greater insidious danger, forgetting that everything is ultimately under the ownership of God. I have begun exploring the theological and economic…

After the Trinity Symposia event hosting Michael Emerson, many of you asked us for the powerpoint he used in his presentation. You can find it in our Media page. We hope you enjoyed Emerson’s lecture and we thank you for joining us in such an important conversation regarding race and the church. We’re looking forward to…

Last February we were sad to announce that Emerson’s lecture had to be postponed for health reasons. For all of you who were hoping to attend, the time has come! Next Thursday the Henry Center along with TEDS is hosting Michael Emerson as part of the Trinity Symposia series. Dr. Emerson has specialized on the role…

In a recent survey of 610 missiologists, a fair number of respondents wrote comments indicating they perceived missiology meetings as comprised of old, white, and male participants. The following are a few of these comments: I attended a society meeting that was largely composed of older men, who did not interact with us younger participants….