DLGP

Doctor of Leadership in Global Perspectives: Crafting Ministry in an Interconnected World

A Christian President?

By: on September 5, 2024

A Christian for President! Vote! This is the signpost many of my neighbors and family may want to put up or the flag they want to fly during this season of presidential elections.  It leaves me with the question, can you be a Christian President in the United States of America? I grew up in…

5 responses

Liberal Democracy and Confident Pluralism

By: on September 5, 2024

This week as I was reading Jesus and the Powers by N.T. Wright and Michael F. Bird, I received a notification on my phone from 6abc Philadelphia: “Causalities reported in shooting at Georgia high school, suspect in custody.”1 My first response was, “No, no, no.” Throughout the day, I was glued to my laptop waiting…

9 responses

What Did You Expect?

By: on September 5, 2024

Have you ever noticed that when we Christians speak about things like “the gospel,” “Jesus,” or “the kingdom of God,” it can mean very different things from one person or group to the next? We all seem to have unique ways of explaining what the gospel is, what Jesus cares about, and what the kingdom…

7 responses

A Welcome Signpost

By: on September 4, 2024

Given the overwhelming number of global and national issues we currently face, our reading this week is a welcome signpost guiding the way. In the introduction to Jesus and the Powers, authors N.T. Wright and Michael F. Bird noted the powerful objective that undergirds their book. They write, ”… in an age of ascending autocracies,…

12 responses

Поляризація імміграції, Poliaryzatsiia immihratsii, Polarization of Immigration

By: on September 4, 2024

Week 2 – Поляризація імміграції, Poliaryzatsiia immihratsii, Polarization of Immigration Introduction – what the author says What others are saying: Thumbs down and Thumbs up Bland ending? Concluding points. Epilogue: Polarization of Immigration   Introduction Political theology is not a term I have used very much in my academic journey.  I feel that I have…

9 responses

Considering God’s Nature When Diversity Creates Conflict

By: on September 4, 2024

Marilynne Robinson’s newest book, Reading Genesis, is a rich exploration of the book of Genesis. She considers the academic interpretations and the literary interpretations from previous scholars through a unique lens.  Her approach to Genesis weaves themes that resonate through the whole of Scripture–within her achingly beautiful writing, Robinson powerfully considers the profound meanings and promise of…

13 responses

Powers, People and Politics

By: on September 3, 2024

I’m a fan of N.T. Wright (or at least as much of a fan as a Gen-Xer can be), and I was fine that he brought along his buddy, Michael Bird, to explore what Christian engagement in the political realm should look like. Jesus and the Powers (1) is a rather short book for such…

9 responses

The Kingdom and the Mission of God

By: on September 2, 2024

N.T. Wright and Michael Bird have a singular aim for writing Jesus and the Powers. After starting with a description of who they are NOT[1] and then spending an additional paragraph describing what the book would NOT be like, they state their book’s objective: “to say that, in an age of ascending autocracies, in a…

8 responses

Luminous Living

By: on September 2, 2024

“The very existence of a community living like that – scandalous as it appeared to many- was the sign to the watching world that something radically new had come about, a way of life that was attractive and vibrant even as, in social and political terms, it was costly and dangerous. “ [1] Drawing attention…

7 responses

Jesus and The Power Team

By: on September 2, 2024

If you’re an American of a certain age raised in a charismatic/pentecostal tradition, you will remember the Power Team: A half-dozen or so bulked up men who would hold assemblies at churches and schools, displaying feats of strength and attributing them to God. I think the reasoning went something like this: If these guys can…

12 responses

A Challenge to Bring Two Worlds Together

By: on September 2, 2024

With the backdrop of the upcoming elections for the President of the United States looming, N.T. Wright and Michael Bird’s Jesus and the Powers[1] have provided the global Church with a thorough review of the moral imperative for remaining involved in public life. While we may have heard this concept in other spaces, Wright and…

9 responses

The Party Crasher

By: on September 2, 2024

I never want to reduce a book to quippy tweet-like punchlines. However, Jesus and the Powers by N.T. Wright and Michal Bird is absolutely chock full of amazingly powerful teeth punches that capture so much of the significance of this important resource. Examples include the following: • “The greatest evils are not done by people who…

8 responses

What Will We Preach?

By: on September 2, 2024

If you back off from every little controversy in your life you’re not alive…and what’s more, you’re boring!  [The truth is] you can be more alive in pain than in complacency.  It’s not enough to pray, ‘Grant us peace in our time, O Lord.’  God must be saying, ‘Oh, come off it!  What are you…

7 responses

Helene’s Dilemma

By: on September 2, 2024

At seven years old, Helene was faced with a dilemma. She was a daughter of Pastor Jacob, a small-town pastor who was deeply concerned regarding the changing political landscape. Hitler had gained much acclaim for helping Germany recover from World War 1 but was now showing signs of tyrannical power. Many Jews had already been…

6 responses

Loving our neighbor

By: on September 1, 2024

Jesus and the Powers by Tom Wright and Michael F. Bird was not at all what I expected but was a delight to read. Readers journey through the history of God’s people who have nearly always lived under or at least nearby imperial rulers and then dive into the Biblical mandate to bear public witness…

12 responses

When Love and Compassion Matter the Most!

By: on August 30, 2024

What did you know about Israel before 7th October, and what was that based upon? I had a Biblical understanding of Israel. The lessons on God Abraham and Jacob’s descendants being the chosen people in the chosen were taught throughout my life. I never quite made the modern-day connection until I was in my late…

3 responses

Empathy is just the beginning

By: on August 29, 2024

As I gratefully and thankfully enter into my third year, I am approaching everything with the mindset, “Todd, you have more to learn than you realize. Therefore, intentionally look for what you do not know and what you do not see.” As I read The Palestinian-Israeli Conflict by Martin Bunton, I thought about what I…

9 responses

Pick a Side Already!

By: on August 29, 2024

Well, summer is officially over, and we’re diving into a simple topic: the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. I’m just going to answer these in the order Dr. Jason Clark gave them to us. What did you know about Israel before 7th October, and what was that based upon? Being an enthusiast for ancient religion, most of my…

5 responses