race

The Impact of George Floyd’s Murder on the Church

Presentation Given at December 1, 2021 Colloquium Part of Educating Urban Ministers in Philadelphia After 2020 project Presentation Question: How did the murder of George Floyd impact churches and ministries in the greater Philadelphia area? The fury of generations rained down on the United States of America in the wake of the public torture and […]

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Response: The Impact of George Floyd’s Murder on the Church

Response to Kimberlee A. Johnson’s Presentation at December 1, 2021 Colloquium Part of Educating Urban Ministers in Philadelphia After 2020 project The murder of George Floyd was a catalytic event within modern American history. When it comes to the progress of civil rights within the American social landscape, the murder of Floyd coupled with the

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Seminary Life and the Future of Theological Education in Philadelphia from the Student Perspective

Focus Group Report Given at May 4, 2022 Colloquium Part of Educating Urban Ministers in Philadelphia After 2020 project The focus group consisted of current seminary students or recent graduates from seminary. They all attend or attended seminaries in the Philadelphia region. The seminaries represented included Missio Theological Seminary, Palmer Theological Seminary, and Westminster Theological

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From Plantation to Shalom Economics: How a Cooperative of Faith Communities Reweaves Communion in Urban and Ecological Systems

What would it mean for the church to intercept the becoming of cities and turn them toward the joy of communion? How might this alternative trajectory in the spiritual-material life of cities interact with ecological systems to cultivate shared wellbeing for all members of creation? Could the urban minister–as community organizer, community developer, prophetic dreamer

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Review: How We Can Win: Race, History, and Changing the Money Game That’s Rigged

Title: How We Can Win: Race, History, and Changing the Money Game That’s Rigged Author: Kimberly Jones Publisher: New York: Henry Holt and Company, 2022 Pages: 192 pages Reviewer: Jason Rowland Kimberly Jones’s fierce dedication to seeing people of color play offense for a change in the money game of our nation is compelling and

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Ferguson Square

Racism Alone? – Reflections on the Current National Divide

Some claim that Ferguson and Staten Island demonstrate the existence of racist structures that permeate our society. Others claim that these killings resulted from criminal behavior or “a lack of personal responsibility.” While both positions point to contributing factors, they both continue to ignore culture – a factor that dwarfs the previous two.

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“Step Out The Boat”: Following the Urban Disciple Maker

The national conversation in the wake of Ferguson cannot ignore the voice of a crucial subject matter expert, the urban disciple maker. What does the urban disciple maker see that simplistic analyses from outsider pundits can’t? How does she lead the way forward through the treacherous gauntlet of nihilistic culture, organized crime, pulpit pimps, sexual and familial confusion, prison industrial complex, race hustlers, destructive public policy, government-funded dependency, etc.?

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A Sense of Place

The hope of most urban missionaries is to see people living in urban poverty become leaders in their own community. Once equipped with education and opportunity, instead of moving out of town, we encourage them to stay and make a difference. However, these leaders are often considered a failure by their own community if they don’t relocate. Incarnational ministers receive accolades for their “sacrifice” of living in urban poverty, but community leaders do not.

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