Black History Month 3

Mahalia Jackson, singing "Didn't It Rain?" at the Newport Jazz Festival, 1958. Without a doubt, she was the Queen of Gospel Music. Born in New Orleans, Mahalia was disciplined in school for humming; when she moved to Chicago, she was "corrected" in the Baptist church for moving while she sang. No matter, she sang out of her heart and out of her soul.

Coming To A Theater Near You

It is estimated that there are 27 million people enslaved around the world. Please join the fight to stop slavery. Go to http://www.theamazingchange.com/campaign.html
to see what you can do.

Making History

What we do today as Christians and ministers will become tomorrow's church history and historical theology. There is no area where the actions of the present have a more direct impact than the Environment. Dr. Cheryl Bridges Johns recently became a part of history once again by being involved in a collaborative effort between scientists and Evangelical Christians. The resulting statement was sent to President George W. Bush and Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Black History Month 2

"Ain't I A Woman?"
Sojourner Truth (see Amy Oden, In Her Words) was a powerful witness of holiness as a transforming force in an individual and in society. When the voices from the margins are finally heard it is earth-shattering. No wonder the powers that be try to keep them quiet.

Black History Month 1

On February 23, 1807 slavery was abolished in England. Without the work of one man, William Wilberforce, and the encouragement of another, John Wesley, the practice which de-humanized and exploited one race for economic gain, might have continued for decades, as it did in the United States. Read Wesley's letter, written shortly before his death, to Wilberforce.

HT2 Google Group

Spring semester HT2 students have been invited to join our class Google Group. The group will serve as a vehicle for class discussion beyond the classroom setting. From time to time, you will be required to participate. The board will be open at all times for class members only. You may use this forum to continue class discussions, for study inquiries, etc.

One of the important practices of Wesleyans is "Christian conference." Theological students and scholars have traditionally hammered out the sticking points of theology over tea, coffee and "spirited dialogue" (pun intended). So, we will simulate the experience of the Inklings or other such conclaves in cyberspace! Grab your coffee or tea and join the conversation.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer

It seems timely to consider the contributions, and martyrdom, of Dietrich Bonhoeffer at this juncture in history and at this point in the school term.

HT2 begins with a look at the Reformation. Luther's contributions to both theology and western civilization are without question. But it is Luther's Germany which gives rise to the Third Reich and Hitler's violent anti-semitism. Though not a person given much consideration, due to time factors, in HT2, perhaps an on-going examination of Bonhoeffer's reflection on the dilemma in which he found himself would be fruitful for us.

I will post from time to time on Bonhoeffer and will set up a list of links. Today, I've begun a devotional journey through his thought with the aid of A Year With Bonhoeffer published by Harper San Francisco.

It is my hope that you will comment on how this brief look impacts you and your thought.

"An ethic of disposition or intention is just as superficial as an ethic of consequences. For what right do we have to stay with inner motivation as the ultimate phenomenon of ethics, ignoring that 'good' intentions can grow out of very dark backgrounds in human consciousness and subconsciousness, and that often the worst things happen as a result of 'good intentions'" (January 23, p. 25)