Testimonies

Panelist Priscilla Adoyo (center) addresses plenary group with John Perkins and Stanley Hauerwas.

“For a long time I’ve been looking for a place for Christians doing reconciliation and peace which embodies the whole gospel.  Coming to this Institute has really given me everything that I have hoped for.”

— Priscilla Adoyo, Director, Center for Peace-Building and Conflict Transformation, Nairobi Evangelical Graduate School of Theology

"The Institute offered me the most important continuing education experience I have had in my 15 years of ministry.  The combination of outstanding lectures from experienced leaders, the conversations I had with a very diverse group of individuals, and the extraordinary worship all challenged me and renewed my determination and hope in the work of reconciliation and justice in my own community.  I thank God for the experience.”

— Rev. Chip Edens, Pastor, Christ Church, Charlotte N.C.

Peter Cha engages in worship and reflection held daily during the 2009 Summer Institute.

"What a gift Duke's Summer Institute has been for me and my students!  God's Spirit used this timely gathering to refresh our souls, engage our minds, sharpen the skills of our hands and deepen our hearts' commitment to God's call to reconciliation."

— Peter T. Cha, Associate Professor, Pastoral Theology Department, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School

“Chris Rice and Emmanuel Katongole have created a transformational learning experience that touches the spirit, soul, and body. As a senior leader in a Christian organization that is committed to ethnic reconciliation and justice, I was energized by the biblical teaching and theological reflection, enriched by the diversity of the participants and experienced faculty, and inspired to continue the journey as we celebrated the wonders of reconciliation and lamented the deep places of pain and division in our world. I highly recommend the Summer Institute for leaders who are in search of biblical instruction, relationship-building with experienced practitioners, and personal renewal.”

— Paula Fuller, Vice President and Director of Multiethnic Ministries, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship

“The Summer Institute 2009 was my introduction to the Center for Reconciliation. One of my pastors at St. Luke’s UMC recommended I attend, as St. Luke’s has committed itself to helping develop meaningful relationships, worship, and service to a neighborhood in Houston that is richly diverse in its social, ethnic, and economic character. The Institute was a week of learning and inspiration.  The leadership was outstanding. The participants represented a world-wide network deeply committed to a myriad of reconciliation initiatives.  I left the Institute awakened to the hope and the pain of the reconciliation journey and armed with stories, contacts, and resources to enrich my church’s commitment to the Beloved Community.”

— Gene Graham, Houston, Texas