I’ve noted that despite an almost universal conviction that witches exist and are able to do terrible things, there are significant numbers of believers who are not personally afraid of witchcraft. This is what I’ve been writing on thus far and what my research conducted among evangelical mission church leaders in northeastern Congo (DRC) has found. These…

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…

Whether one conceives of image-flourishing as best facilitated with an emphasis on individual achievement, or shared achievement within a more collective framework, dangers of abuse reside in both. Dangers of abuse reside in any attempt to formulate a position in between. No form of government or economic system can guarantee freedom from damage done to…

“And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing” (Gen 12:2). The call to image-flourishing can inadvertently breed its opposite. The ideal of a prosperous existence may feed, on one hand, a kind of negative individualism that focuses…

It would be less burdensome if the fulfillment of image-flourishing could be accomplished through a multi-step program. “If anyone follows these steps, it will result in your total fulfillment,” or so the idea could be expressed. While the ideal of image-flourishing is simple—submission to God, his will and his perspective—it is also a complex path….

  With his usual blend of passion and keen insight, Dr. Anthony Bradley, Associate Professor of Theology at The King’s College, delivered a lecture entitled “Lost in Policy? The Person Beyond Public and Social Utility.” Continuing our series on The Church & Reconciliation, Dr. Bradley delivered a thought-provoking talk on our frequent inability to see people as…

Dr. Jo Anne Lyon is one of the three General Superintendents of the Wesleyan Church. She was elected as the first woman General Superintendent at the June 2006 General Conference. Dr. Lyon was ordained as a minister in the Wesleyan Church in 1996; that same year she founded World Hope International, an organization desiring to…