By: Christal Jenkins Tanks on October 6, 2017
I can recall reading the history textbooks in both primary and secondary school. In every historical account it seemed to praise or revere the Eurocentric formation of western civilization. I was told of this by my mother who was my first teacher. I was home schooled until I was in the 3rd grade. It was…
By: Kristin Hamilton on October 5, 2017
I thought my 6th grade history teacher was way off base until this week. I have a very clear memory of Mr. Spence telling us that, even though we would learn that Greece and Rome were the center of civilization, Persia should really have that title. In all of my years studying and teaching history,…
By: Chip Stapleton on October 5, 2017
When I went on Amazon.com six or so weeks ago to buy my books for this semester, I did so mostly laser focused on the task at hand (finding the exact correct title for the lowest possible price). Because of this focus, I didn’t notice much else on that visit to the world’s largest book…
By: Lynda Gittens on October 5, 2017
This book was similar to a potluck meal or even gumbo. Why do I say that? The author covers so many aspects of history that one could stumble over themselves trying to grasp each one. He covers cultures, trades, economics, technology, religion and more. Each chapter has a specific purpose presenting his view…
By: Stu Cocanougher on October 5, 2017
Growing up in the United States, my Tennessee public school education taught history like it began in the 1700s. Sure, there was Columbus, the Pilgrims, and some scuffle with the French; but the bulk of my education was focused on 1776 and beyond. I grew up during the Cold War. As I reflect on my…
By: Jim Sabella on October 5, 2017
One cannot do justice, in a four-day reading period, to a book so influential and impactful, not to mention that it is 600 plus pages. Besides, I am not an historian, and so a review of his methodology would be less than accurate. However, I do wish to bring a modicum of connection to The…
By: Mary Walker on October 5, 2017
It is easy to mold the past into a shape that we find convenient and accessible. But the ancient world was much more sophisticated and interlinked than we sometimes like to think. …A belt of towns formed a chain spanning Asia. … Together with increasing traffic connecting India with the Persian Gulf and the Red…
By: Katy Drage Lines on October 5, 2017
“Who lives, who dies, who tells your story?”—Hamilton, the musical After Alexander Hamilton’s death by duel with Aaron Burr, his wife, Eliza, spends the next fifty years cementing his legacy. She advocated for the building of the Washington Monument and founded the first private orphanage in New York City, in memory of her orphaned husband.…
By: Jennifer Dean-Hill on October 4, 2017
Although Silk Threads is a historical account of the roads our world have carved from the last several centuries to current, there are some tragic realities that live on in our cultures today. Slavery Profits… Sadly, human trafficking is still a profitable commodity and in high demand. Whether it is the Muslim nation of yesteryears…
By: Christal Jenkins Tanks on September 15, 2017
This week we read the book Visual Faith by William A. Dyrness. Throughout the book he advocates for a renewal of the arts within worship and faith culture. One of many statements that he made stood out to me: “We must become better stewards of their gifts as we allow them to expand our corporate…
By: Chip Stapleton on September 15, 2017
In one sense, as a reader engaging with his book, Visual Faith: Art, theology and worship in dialog, the stated goal that William Dyrness puts forward seems almost ridiculous: ‘This book aims to extend and enrich a Christian conversation on the visual arts’ (Dyrness, 9). The question rings hollow because in a culture where we are constantly…
By: Kristin Hamilton on September 14, 2017
When I taught US History to high school students, I pointed out to them what I had learned in my art history classes – that art is a mirror of what has just happened or is currently happening in the world. That’s why many artists aren’t appreciated until long after their death, when we finally…
By: Lynda Gittens on September 14, 2017
“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder” is a saying of the American and British community. It justifies the rights of the person who does not agree with another one’s view of something visual. In our society art refers to pictures, dance, music, sculpture, and more. Dyrness discuss the inclusion and exclusion of the…
By: Stu Cocanougher on September 14, 2017
As I read this week’s assignment for the DMinLGP program, I realized that some of the information in this book was extremely relevant to the team of 17 that I will take to Serbia this November. The following is written to these team members. Serbia Mission Trip Team: I know that you are excited…
By: Jennifer Dean-Hill on September 14, 2017
As I was listening audibly to the book Visual Faith, on art and its relationship to the church, many times the voice would say, “Image not included because of rights restriction”, and all I had was the words and my imagination. The author would describe the picture and I would try to visualize what he…
By: Jim Sabella on September 13, 2017
“I believe that making beautiful forms is theologically connected to our call both to listen and respond to God in prayer, praise, and sacrament.”(1) The church in which I grew up met in a rather utilitarian building on the side of town that was filled with immigrants. As the church developed and grew it moved…
By: Katy Drage Lines on September 13, 2017
What do an iPhone, a cloud column, and a Star Wars mug all have in common? Perhaps as we journey together through this post, we might discover the connection between these images. We step onto the path, first, by recognizing our earthiness as humans, connected as creatures to one another, the rest of creation, and…
By: Mary Walker on September 13, 2017
…the one important fact for us is the significance of the marked rejection of all distinctively esthetic devises by those religions which are rational, in our special sense…But there can be no question at all that the systematic prohibition in devout Jewish and Puritan circles of uninhibited surrender to the distinctive form-producing values of art…
By: Chip Stapleton on September 8, 2017
I first read Jim Collins seminal leadership book, Good to Great, as a seminary student over a decade ago in (of course) a pastoral leadership class. According to the copyright, the accompanying ‘Good to Great and the Social Sectors’ monograph was already released, but we didn’t read it at the same time. In hindsight that was…
By: Christal Jenkins Tanks on September 7, 2017
“Simple Truths Good-to-great leaders understand three simple truths: If you begin with the “who,” rather than the “what,” you can more easily adapt to a changing world. If you have the right people on the bus, the problem of how to motivate and manage people largely goes away. If you have the wrong…
