Introducing Religion Matters

Last night I posted an entry announcing the publication of the newest issue of Practical Matters. I have worked with Practical Matters for two years now and am proud to be affiliated with such a groundbreaking journal. In pushing the boundaries of traditional scholarship in religious and theological studies into the world of digital humanities, and providing one of the only places for an explicit conversation between scholars of religious practices and practical theologians, it is one of the most dynamic places for new and interdisciplinary scholarship in these fields to emerge.

Well, to continue pushing the boundaries of scholarship and linking scholars with practitioners Practical Matters has launched a new blog to coincide with the scholarly work of the journal. The blog is titled Religion Matters. The launch of the blog coincides with the launch of the new issue, and the first post is from John Senior of Wake Forest University School of Divinity, the ethicist who interviewed Stanley Hauerwas for this issue of the journal. In this post, Senior finds places of agreement and disagreement over the thesis of Hauerwas’s new book in the public rhetoric of the Obama administration in reference to the killing of Osama Bin Laden.

This post represents the beginning of an exciting new blog for those interested in the ways that religion actually functions in the world and how that knowledge informs and is informed by practical theology. I encourage you to follow the blog, add your comments, and join the conversation!

Preaching Justice in an Age of Globalization

On Monday my friend and colleague Jacob Myers and I will teach the first installment of our course “Preaching Justice in an Age of Globalization” at Candler School of Theology. We are both really excited about this opportunity and course. I’ve taught several courses in ethics, leadership, and nonprofit management at Emory University’s Oxford College campus, and TA’d for courses at Candler before, but this will be the first course I’ve created and taught from scratch to seminarians. It should be a great experience – I’m sure for me, I hope for the students!

Months ago Jake called me up and asked to meet with me about an idea he had brewing in the back of his mind. The idea? He really wanted to teach a course on preaching justice that involved serious social engagement and he wanted me to dream up the course and teach it with him. His excitement quickly rubbed off on me and we were coming up with ideas on the spot. Now we finally get to teach it.

The impetus for the course were some burning questions that we both have wrestled with for awhile: “How does one preach about issues of social injustice in ways that encourage real engagement and work for social justice rather than one-time offerings to be sent off to people one never actually engages? How do we get Christians to understand, from the pulpit, that the gospel demands real work for justice and not just “charity?” And what tools do we need to provide ministers to be able to make informed decisions about what justice demands to avoid uninformed analysis or surface politicization of these issues?” Well, I’m the social ethicist and he’s the homiletician and we’re going to try our best to start figuring this out with our students this semester.

Our course description and objectives, as written in the syllabus, is this:

COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course aims to empower preachers to address issues of global injustice and oppression through their preaching ministry with the hope of mobilizing congregations to engage constructively in these issues. To that end, this course will equip students with critical tools to prepare congregations for ethical engagement in an age of globalization through their preaching ministry. We will model the kind of social analysis, theological/ethical reflection, and prophetic preaching we envision — one that is globally aware and locally mobilized — through in-depth engagement with a particular globalized context: viz., Atlanta. This “case study” will provide the opportunity for students to hone the skills they are learning — social and ethical analysis and prophetic preaching — by engaging a relevant contemporary context of social injustice, structural violence, and interpersonal harm that continues to have global implications. Atlanta serves as a particularly fascinating case study for preaching justice: from its role as a hub of the civil rights movement to its status as an urban epicenter for human trafficking; from its recent role as a symbolic site of contestation over American immigration policy to its burgeoning refugee population. As a necessary component of the course, students will be required to participate in an immersion experience during the semester that will serve as a catalyst for ethical, theological, and homiletical reflection.

COURSE OBJECTIVES
At the conclusion of the course students should have gained . . .
. . . a critical awareness of the complexities of social analysis in an age of globalization and a familiarity with the tools necessary to conduct such analyses
. . . a deeper knowledge of a particular social issue that is especially germane to the global injustices present in Atlanta (e.g., human trafficking, refugees, sustainability, immigration policy)
. . . a critical understanding of the challenges and opportunities the current cultural realities present to a preaching ministry attuned to the realities of global injustice
. . . a deepening of the skills learned in ES 501 (pre-requisite) in such a way as to better integrate theological and ethical analysis into the practical tasks of ministry, especially preaching. This course also serves as a complement to ES 609/M 619: Theology of Social Ministry/Social Mission of the Christian Church

. . . a deepening of the skills learned in P501 (pre-requisite) with a particular emphasis on the arts of prophetic and testimonial preaching

. . . a capacity to couple experience (both reported and personal) with biblical texts to craft sermons that lead to congregational engagement in issues of global injustice.

If you’re interested in seeing the entire syllabus you can find it here: Preaching Justice in an Age of Globalization Syllabus

It’s going to be a fun semester – wish me luck!

What Are People Saying About the Claremont University Project?

Recently I posted a link to the press conference where Claremont School of Theology officially announced the launch of the Claremont University Project - a multi-faith/interreligious graduate school/seminar. As expected, there has been a wide array of responses to the idea of a Christian seminary transforming itself into an explicitly interreligious institution. Some welcome it as the future of theological education, some as evidence of the natural end of a “weak,” Liberal version of Christianity, and others are simply confused about why this is news or why seminaries are still allowed to grant graduate degrees. Bloggers, religious organizations and news outlets have all reported on the project. Here are what some people are saying:

News
Associated Press
Merinews – An Indian newsource documenting the approval of Hindu leaders
United Methodist Church
Inland Valley Daily Bulleting – The local newspaper in Claremont
LA Times
Jewish Journal

Commentary by President Jerry Campbell
Washington Post
President’s Pen 1
Indian Muslim Observer
President’s Pen 2

Commentary by Others
CST Professor Sheryl Kujawa-Holbrook on the Huffington Post
CST grad Rob Rynders
CST student Ekaputra Tupamahu
Albert Mohler, President of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

Also, check out their

Still the Old Boys Club: Race, Gender, Churches of Christ, and the Academy

I am a life-long member of the churches of Christ and a current doctoral student in religion (Christian social ethics) hoping for a future as a professor and scholar. A couple of weekends ago I attended the Christian Scholars’ Conference at Lipscomb University in Nashville, TN. I think highly of the conference and think it is a jewel in the world of CofC higher education. The annual conference is, generally, focused on different issues regarding the intersection of faith and culture. This year focused on faith and the arts, next year focuses on religion and science, and two years ago (the last CSC I attended) the focus was on faith and politics. The conference draws scholars, ministers, students and laypersons from around the country. Often CofC sponsored events are rather exclusive, meaning only people affiliated with the CofC attend, but this conference is different. Every year there are plenary speakers from outside the tradition, but the event still has a profoundly CofC ethos. It is, in my opinion, a shining example of one way people can be ecumenical, show hospitality to “outsiders,” have a true willingness to learn from others and still be true to one’s own tradition and identity. I was happy to attend and plan to attend many more in the future.

However, it is also a reminder of much of what is wrong within the CofC world – especially its circles of higher education. Due to professional responsibilities I was only able to attend the last day of the conference. During that one morning/afternoon I was involved in two events. The first was a breakfast for CofC graduate students in theological/religious studies. The second was a panel presentation. As I looked around the room of future CofC theology, Bible, and ministry professors during the breafast I couldn’t help but notice that I was the only person who was not, um, white. And I’m only halfway there! (Perhaps there was another barely noticeable multi-racial person in the room, but I couldn’t tell.) Also, among the 30 or so attendees there was only, if I remember correctly, four women. The room was as white and male as any room in contemporary America can be. Clearly, something (some-bodies) was missing. (As an important sidenote, I attended the conference free of charge because of an initiative the CSC has of providing $500 for ethnic minorities/graduate students attending the conference to encouarage diversity and future scholars.)

In my second event, the panel discussion, there was only one person who was not white (not including myself) in the entire room. He was of Asian descent. Oh, and there were exactly zero women present in the room. Zero. So, let’s count the number of black persons present at events I attended: 0. Number of Hispanic persons: 0. Number of Asian persons: 1 1/2. Number of women: 4. The CofC still has a problem with the “old boys club” if you ask me.

Now, these, obviously, aren’t the only experiences people had. So, what experiences did others have? Well, I heard one story of a luncheon held in an esteemed scholar’s honor in which a joke was made about the lack of women present, though there was at least one present, with some inappropriate reference to strippers. I’ve also read about an incident where an offensive joke about multi-racial marriages was made (as the product of, and current partner in, one, I wish I was there to show some, ahem, “righteous indignation”). Finally, in the panel session I attended one of the presenters referred to a group of people, literally, as “A-rabs.” So, while displays of overt racism were far from the CSC, ingrained bigotry and prejudice were more than present. In many ways, the CofC is decades behind the rest of the nation as far as the presence, and influence, of minority scholars of theology/religion is concerned.

I’ve been affiliated with two Methodist seminaries in my life. At both places concerns about racial/gender justice and inclusivity were the norm. They are consciously addressing the legacy of racism and patriarchy in American Christianity. Unfortunately, the CofC lags far behind. Take a look at the theology/Bible/ministry faculty at OCU, Harding, Harding University Graduate School of Religion, Lipscomb University, ACU, and Pepperdine University. Notice any racial and/or gender patterns there? (Special shout-out to Pepperdine and ACU for actually having TWO ethnic minorities on their faculty and to Pepperdine for having the FIRST woman Bible prof ever at a CofC school.)

In multiple ways the world of CofC theological studies is very much still an old boys club. Justice has yet to reach our version of the ivory tower. I have hope that the future will be different, but if the breakfast I attended at the CSC is any indication that hope is very dim. And if the attitudes represented in off-hand comments are any indication, many of those currently holding academic positions are blind to, or don’t care about, the problem.

It makes me sad, and angry, that this is the case in the ecclesial fellowship I am a part of. This experience is a stark reminder of how much work I have to do, and far we have to go, in the CofC. As a Christian I understand it to be my duty to seek justice in any context I find myself in. As one who has chosen to place myself in the context of higher education, one form of that pursuit is to work to open the doors of our institutions of higher education, specifically those doors in theological/biblical/ministerial studies, to those who have not been able to teach and lead the future generations of CofC’ers for far too long – women and ethnic minorities.

Will you join me in that pursuit?

The Claremont University Project

My seminary alma mater is Claremont School of Theology (CST). CST has boldly embarked on a journey to becoming an interreligious graduate school that hopes to train Christian ministers and pastors, Jewish rabbis, Muslim imams, practitioners of all faiths, and nonbelievers in intelligently engaging the world and each other. They have been calling this dream The Claremont University Project. If successful, it will be the first truly “interreligious seminary.” CST believes that in our increasingly globalized, multireligious world this model is the most responsible way to train religious leaders. I find the project intriguing because of its vision to be a model of interreligious dialogue and cooperation that does not gloss over the serious differences between the faiths, but does not give up hope on the possibility of true cooperation in the pursuit of peace and justice. Pres. Campbell has called it an attempt to “religiously desegregate theological education.” Go read about the project here. And check out this press conference co-held today with CST, the Academy of Jewish Religion California, and The Islamic Center of Southern California and tell me what you think. Is this a positive step forward in interreligious dialogue that moves beyond stereotypes and “surface” conversations? Or is it a post-modern step that ignores the uniqueness of each tradition? Is it a faithful or unfaithful expression of its historically Christian convictions?

New Issue of Practical Matters: Ethnography and Theology

Practical Matters, the journal I will soon join the staff of, has just published their third issue focusing on ethnography and theology. It includes articles by Emory colleagues like John Senior and Lerone Martin (students), and Dianne Diakite and Don Seeman (professors). There are articles on ethnography and feminism, African Diasporic Religions, children and art, and Christian moral formation. This journal is an exercise in interdisciplinarity and multiple technologies in doing religious scholarship, and I highly recommend checking it out!

Reading French for Religious and Theological Studies

In every doctoral program in religion you will be required to pass an examination in at least one, but probably two, of these languages: French, German and maybe (the Euro/white bias is still prevalent in “progressive” academic spheres) Spanish. Of course, if you’re studying Asian or African religions or doing research that requires another language you can often substitute it for one of your languages, but you’re probably still going to have to know either German or French.

I am still in my first semester as a doctoral student at Emory University and had to take a language examination before my classes started. I chose French. I passed!

Now, languages have never been a strongsuit in my intellectual development. I studied Koine Greek as an undergrad, but struggled mightily to earn the good (but not great) grades I did.

Most wise students devote the summer before their first semester as a doctoral student taking a summer school course on a language to prepare for their exam. I did not. I spent the summer serving in Kenya and moving across the country. Obviously, I had no regular schedule and no time to take a class.

So, I purchased K. Janet Ritch’s book Reading French: A Guide Guide for Students of Religion and Theology. I pulled it out on airplanes, at my in-laws home, in Kenya and in my new apartment the week before my exam…and I passed my exam!

I tell this story to give my full endorsement for this book. Without any formal instruction I was able to learn to read French for academic research purposes. I (currently) speak no other modern language outside of English and can only read an ancient language that is no longer in use. The book is organized well, is easy to understand and provides adequate practice exercises. It does not, however, include an answer key, but I was able to obtain one simply by e-mailing Ritch.

The great thing about this book is it is geared toward religion students. So, the vocabularly includes many common words used in religious and theological studies, and many of the practice readings are from classic theological/religious texts. Most textbooks that are intended to teach reading competence in a language do not have this bias towards religious language. It seemed to me during my exam that I was searching for vocabulary a little less than some of my colleagues. I attribute this to the vocabulary I learned from Ritch’s text.

If you are going to prepare for a French language exam and want to save some money or are not able to enroll in a class I highly recommend this book. You must be self-disciplined, but if you are this book can prepare you to pass your exam with flying colors!

Good luck!

So You Want to Go to Seminary?

This past Friday I attended my last class as a student at Claremont School of Theology. This upcoming Saturday I will graduate with a degree in Christian Ethics with an emphasis in Peace and Justice studies. I have been at CST for two years now and I thought I’d pass along some advice to anyone who may be considering going to seminary. This advice will be especially relevant, I think, for people who come from more “evangelical” or “conservative” theological backgrounds who are considering attending a “mainline” or “liberal” seminary.

I guess I should preface my advice with this background: I studied religion at Pepperdine University (a well respected “evangelical” university), I am a member of the churches of Christ (and was the only one at CST during my entire time here) which is congregational and has no formal ordination process, I was already a minister at a church when I entered seminary, I entered seminary considering further doctoral studies, I entered as an M.Div. student but switched to the M.A. in my second semester, I entered seminary married, and I held a full-time job on top of my part-time ministry work at the church and full-time studies. So, now on to the advice…

1. You first need to decide which type of seminary you want to attend. There are several factors which will help you determine this: professional goals, location, denominational affiliation, interests, cost/financial aid, etc. If you are not limited to a certain location I would recommend considering a school someplace new because of the way getting outside of one’s comfort zone physically somehow allows more “space” to get outside of one’s comfort zone theologically. If you attend a good seminary you will be challenged. In fact, I believe having your beliefs challenged and refined is one of the biggest blessings of seminary.

Tips on Applying to Ph.D. Programs

I hope it isn’t too presumptuous for me to write a blog about what to do when applying to Ph.D. programs in religion, theology, religious/Christian ethics or biblical studies, but I figure that as someone who has just successfully completed the process my insights may be helpful. I know I found similar insights from others extremely helpful in my process.

I guess I should begin by laying my cards out on the table. I applied to seven programs and was accepted at four, rejected at two and waitlisted at one. I feel blessed to have had five options on the table since many people do not get any. My results ended up like this:

Emory University, Ph.D. in Ethics and Society – Accepted, 100% tuition waver and living stipend. (This is the offer I eventually accepted.)

Vanderbilt University, Ph.D. in Ethics and Society – Not accepted

Duke University Divinity School, Th.D. – Not accepted

Claremont Graduate University, Ph.D. in Theology, Ethics and Culture – Accepted, told I would have received a 100% tuition waver but declined the offer before a financial aid offer was given so that they could make the offer to someone else since I had already made my decision to go to Emory. (I felt obligated to help them out since that is where I did my masters and I knew the profs very well.)

Graduate Theological Union, Ph.D. in Ethics and Social Theory – Accepted, 40% tuition waver

University of Denver/Iliff School of Theology, Ph.D. in Religion and Social Change – Accepted, 75% tuition waver

Fuller Theological Seminary, Ph.D. in Christian Ethics – Waitlisted, told I’d be accepted if I agreed to complete some prerequisites I didn’t have because I did an M.A. instead of an M.Div., no financial aid package.

This time was an extremely tense and nerve-wracking time. My wife has said she has never seen me so nervous before. I can’t adequately explain the emotions I was feeling during this entire process, but before you make the decision to apply I’d recommend getting ready for a full range of emotions.

What Do I Study?

So…I’m wrapping up a masters degree in Christian ethics and have applied to Ph.D. programs in the same field. Because of this I often get asked, “So…what exactly do you study again?” It seems a lot of people don’t really understand what the academic study of Christian ethics is. Well, according to the syllabus of a Christian ethics course I found online one professor defines it like this:

There are a variety of ways to study Christian Ethics. One approach is to look at the history and development of Christian ethical thinking from the earliest Christian writers (the New Testament writers) to the present. Another way is to examine various “types” of Christian ethical theories, e.g., Christian Realism, Narrative Ethics, Liberation Theology, etc. A third way is to start with ethical issues that have been important to Christians—such as poverty, war, and abortion—and examine the way various Christians have dealt with them.

I recently sent an e-mail to someone who asked this question. Here is what I said:

Hey _____,

So, ____ told me you were asking about what I study. Don’t worry, I’ve been asked that a lot. Generally speaking I study Christian Social Ethics; Catholics call it Moral Theology. This means I study the ethical implications of the Christian faith. This can be done constructively (saying what Christians/society should do in certain situations or in addressing certain problems), historically (exploring what Christians/society have done in the past in certain situations or in addressing certain problems), and sociologically (describing how specific communities of Christians/society are addressing situations and problems today.) It is really an interdisciplinary field that includes theology, biblical studies, history, philosophy, sociology and political science. My emphases are theology/biblical theology, history, public policy and sociology.