Students and staff pray together during evening worship. |
At a Glance
Theme:
The Spirit-Born Church: Unity Amid Human Diversity
Faculty Speaker:
Dr. J. Kameron Carter, Assistant Professor in Theology and Black Church Studies
Lectionary Texts:
Amos 2:6-7, 5:10-12, 14-15; Isaiah 58:6-9; Galatians 3:26-28; Matthew 5:1-10
Evening Worship:
Tonight’s service followed the revivalist tradition. Student Jacquette Jenkins sang a passionate solo of “As the Deer,” while student Rachel Lim accompanied her on the piano. Rev. Chris Brady preached charismatically on the Scripture about Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. He talked about times when our faith is tested by the fire and reminded us that God is always with us there, just as God was there in the furnace with his faithful followers in the passage. He encouraged us to have faith like those in the Scripture. They would not obey the king’s order to bow down to the tower of gold. They trusted God to save them, but their faith was even deeper than that. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego told the king that, “even if God does not save us, we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” (Daniel 3:18). This act of faith speaks vehemently against our desire for a God who acts the way
Reflections on the Lecture
Dr. J. Kameron Carter began his lecture with the reading of scripture from Genesis 12: 1-4, 32:22-28, and Galatians 3:26-29. While we processed that reading, we watched clips from the movies I, Robot and The Matrix. We then discussed the issues of sameness and difference and what those terms carry with them. Dr. Carter led us through an examination of the Apostle’s Creed where we find many ways in which God’s kingdom is in direct contrast to the rules and regulations of how this world works. He emphasized that not only are we baptized into a new story, we are baptized out of our old story. In that old story told by the world, we are enslaved by the labels and categories such as race, gender and sexuality, which inhibit us from seeing ourselves and our brothers and sisters first as children of God.
Quotable Quotes from the Plenary Lecture
“The question of difference leads to the question of identity. Many times the way in which we talk about the ‘other' is a way of talking about ourselves.”
“To say that you are a Christian is to declare your adoption into the story of the people of Israel and God's covenantal relationship with them.”
“We live in a world that calls us to live into its descriptions of beauty.”
“There is a cost involved in living into the narrative of God's covenantal story.”
“When Jesus resisted the narrative of power, it took him to the cross.”
“The action of baptism forms the entirety of one's Christian existence.”
Overheard in the halls of the divinity school...
“If by being baptized we renounce this world, how do we still coexist in the world?”
— Lauren Hilton
“I could live like this for the rest of my life!”
— Student Taggart Wall, referring to the DYA community
“How long is it going to take to get there?”
— Annalise Mesler, referring to heaven at our resurrection
What's ahead...
Professor Tonya Armstrong, Lecturing Fellow in Pastoral Care, will speak to us on the theme of The Spirit-Born Church: The Community of Caring.
We welcome Berea Baptist Church into our community for our hospitality meal tomorrow. After lunch we will leave campus for various service projects.
Mentor Whitney Fauntleroy and head residential advisor Emily Dueitt will co-preach tomorrow night during our evening worship service. We look forward to our third student-planned, student-led service.
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