The Prophetic Voice and Making Peace.

2016·3.7 MB·English

by  Matthew. W. Charlton, M. Kathryn. Armistead

General Editors:
Matthew W. Charlton
M. Kathryn Armistead
Nashville, Tennessee

THE PROPHETIC VOICE AND MAKING PEACE
The General Board of Higher Education and Ministry leads and serves The
United Methodist Church in the recruitment, preparation, nurture, educa-
tion, and support of Christian leaders—lay and clergy—for the work of
making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. Its
vision is that a new generation of Christian leaders will commit boldly to
Jesus Christ and be characterized by intellectual excellence, moral integri-
ty, spiritual courage, and holiness of heart and life. The General Board of
Higher Education and Ministry of The United Methodist Church serves
as an advocate for the intellectual life of the church. The Board’s mission
embodies the Wesleyan tradition of commitment to the education of lay-
persons and ordained persons by providing access to higher education for
all persons.
Copyright 2016 by the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry,
The United Methodist Church. All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form whatsoever, print or
electronic, without written permission, except in the case of brief quota-
tions embodied in critical articles or reviews. For information regarding
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ucation and Ministry, P.O. Box 340007, Nashville, TN 37203-0007; phone
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All Scripture quotations unless noted otherwise are taken from the New
Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian
Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United
States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture noted KJV is taken from the King James Version (public domain).
ISBN 978-0-938162-68-1
All web addresses were correct and operational at the time of publication.

16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26—10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Manufactured in the United States of America
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C
ontents
Introduction
Matthew W. Charlton, PhD, Assistant General Secretary,
Collegiate Ministry, General Board of Higher Education
and Ministry, The United Methodist Church ..............................1
Ecology
A United Methodist Reading of Francis’s Laudato Si’ ..............7
Matthew W. Charlton, PhD, Assistant General Secretary,
Collegiate Ministry, General Board of Higher Education
and Ministry, The United Methodist Church
Making Shalom: The Body of Christ within the
Household of God ..................................................................31
Jane Ellen Nickell, PhD, College Chaplain,
Allegheny College
A Theological Response to the Ecological Crisis .....................51
Domenico Nigrelli, PhD, Assistant Professor
of Religion and Philosophy, Martin Methodist College
Pluralism
Transformative Knowing: Scriptural Reasoning
and Wesleyan Epistemology ...................................................83
Christopher Donald, College Chaplain and
Director of Religious Life, Millsaps College
All Faith Chapel or No Faith Chapel? Contours of
Diversity and Pluriformity in Collegiate Ministry ..................109
Mark Forrester, University Chaplain and
Director of Religious Life, Vanderbilt University
Sunesis: Understanding via Interplay .....................................135
Timothy Moore, DMin, Director of Collegiate Ministry
Resources and Training, General Board of Higher Education and
Ministry, The United Methodist Church
A Particular Ministry in a Pluralistic Context .......................165
Stephen W. Rankin, PhD, University Chaplain,
Southern Methodist University
Practical Divinity: Pluralism in a Liberal Arts Community ....185
Ron Robinson, DMin, Perkins-Prothro Chaplain and
Professor of Religion, Wofford College
Erin Simmonds, student, Wofford College
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Racism
Systemic Racism: Making Room for Emerging
Narratives as the Spirit Gives Utterance ................................221
Sheila Bates, Director of Student Faith and
Leadership, General Board of Higher Education
and Ministry, The United Methodist Church
How Is It with Your Soul? Developing a Liberatory
Consciousness through Dialogue in Campus Ministries ..........245
Kimberly Williams Brown, PhD student,
department of Cultural Foundations of Education,
Syracuse University
T. L. Steinwert, Dean of Religious and Spiritual Life,
Wellesley College
Sexual Ethics
Christian Sexual Ethics: Accountability and
Compassion with LGBTQ College Students ...........................273
Brittany Burrows, Executive Director and
Campus Minister, Wesley Foundation at the
University of Texas at Dallas
Vocation
Clearness Committees Revisited: Gathering
Young Adults for Contemplative Discernment ........................299
Dori Grinenko Baker, Research Fellow, The Forum for
Theological Education
L. Callid Keefe-Perry, Director, The Association for
Theopoetics Research and Exploration
Discovering Calling at the Center and the Edge .....................331
David E. MacDonald, DMin, University Chaplain, Ohio
Northern University
Wesley, Integrity, and Vocation: The Power and
Possibility of Collegiate Intentional Christian Community .....355
Rimes McElveen, Executive Director, Mere Christianity
Forum and Vista House, Furman University
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I
ntroduCtIon
Matthew W. Charlton
The biblical account of John the Baptist portrays a rough-
edged soul, who stalked the edges of civil society, proclaiming
a new message of repentance and forgiveness. His home
was the wilderness and his food the insects thereof. Yet, his
appearance belied his deep wisdom and vision for God’s future
for the creation. He possessed the prophet’s voice, using it
to declare the coming of the kingdom into the world. In the
Gospel of Matthew, he dies by execution, beheaded, the victim
of the stratagems of power and the folly of youth. The cover
of this volume depicts John, an image from a mosaic found in
Hagia Sophia mosque in Istanbul, Turkey. At the center is the
adored Son of God, Jesus. To his left is the God-bearer, Mary.
On the right, is John, the prophet who proclaimed the presence
and power of God in Jesus. Perhaps in John, we discern that we
never truly see or hear what God is speaking to the people, if
only because our common reaction to those who speak against
abusive power, oppression, and “the way things are” is to find
a way to silence these voices, settling for the worst instead of
hoping for the best.
The essays in this book are presented in an effort to speak
with the prophet’s voice toward making peace among God’s
people. Specifically, these essays seek to speak with a prophetic
voice toward making peace in the context of higher education
and collegiate ministry. In essence, this book proposes a formula
that, in speaking in a prophetic way to the issues that impact the
lives of college students, we aid in the possibilities of peace for
God’s people. This is the ground of human flourishing after all,
that we might live in peace with one another, a peace that gives
shape to hope.
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The ProPheTic Voice and Making Peace
Written by campus ministers and college and university
chaplains, as well as by staff members of the General Board of
Higher Education and Ministry, these essays convey the belief that
young people, and especially college students, are given gifts of life
when they are presented with the opportunity to be heard, to make
a difference, and to bring peace to their world. The essays cover five
topics that are of importance today in campus life: ecology and
environmental ethics; interreligious understanding and dialogue;
systemic and interpersonal racism; sexual ethics; and Christian
vocation.
When the coordinating committee developed this list of
topics, I was convinced that we would be overwhelmed with
proposals on race and sexuality. The original call for papers
was posted while we were living in the echoes of Ferguson and
ongoing campus protests on race, as well as in anticipation of
the 2016 United Methodist General Conference, where the
church’s positions on human sexuality will again be an import-
ant axis of discussion and protest. Yet, this did not happen. In
fact, essays that dealt with these topics were difficult to come
by, while proposals on the other topic areas were numerous. We
experienced some considerable difficulty in generating interest
from people of color and, to a lesser degree, from women. I re-
main concerned that the realities of race, gender, and sex have
yet to be adequately addressed by our church. We must take up
these concerns with serious, critical inquiry. There is just too
much at stake in our world to continue demonizing difference
at the expense of peace and human flourishing. The gospel of
Jesus unerringly points us toward love of neighbor, yes, even
the neighbor that all others would stone to death. As Sheila
Bates argues in her chapter, it is incumbent on each of us to
open up space for each other, despite and because of difference.
As the general editor of this volume, I commend to you this col-
lection of essays as a collective effort to speak prophetically in our
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inTroducTion
time. They were written with college students in mind, but each has
relevance for the broader church. These may be used as resources
for you as you prepare for your ministry, as readings for discussion,
or as research for your own efforts at making peace in this troubled
world.
I would like to extend my gratitude to those who engaged in
this project, chiefly to the contributors. Each of them engaged
fully in this project, working through ideas with each other,
arguing and struggling through concepts, and generally caring
for the process and each other. If you know any of these con-
tributors personally, I believe you already know the blessing of
their friendship.
Significant and heartfelt thanks go to the coordinating com-
mittee of Jane Ellen Nickell (Allegheny University), Ron Robin-
son (Wofford College), and Tiffany Steinwert (Wellesley College).
We consulted via phone call and many e-mails to create a con-
ference that was amenable to collegial conversation around im-
portant and difficult topics. The conference was held at Syracuse
University in August of 2015, where we were fantastically hosted
by Tiffany Steinwert, who was then the Dean of Hendrix Chapel
at Syracuse, and her very helpful staff. The weather was nearly
perfect and there was not a snowflake in sight!
Sincere thanks goes to Kathy Armistead, who served as the
project manager and content editor for this volume. Many of the
contributors commented on the excellence of her engagement with
their work and the value her expertise added. I am pleased now to
call Kathy a valued colleague, as she has recently joined the staff of
GBHEM as Publisher.
I am also grateful for the work of Kristi Stephens Walker,
who worked on the copyediting and proofing of the manuscript;
to Donnie Reed for patiently preparing the cover design; and to
Sarah Porter, who did the work of making sure all our participants
were able to arrive, work, and depart safe and sound from our
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The ProPheTic Voice and Making Peace
conference at Syracuse. Sarah originally contributed an essay on
human sexuality that was quite spectacular. However, she was
not able to finish the essay due to her matriculation into the PhD
program at Harvard. One day, though, I trust that we will benefit
from her thoughtful and careful scholarship.
I would like to extend gratitude to Rev. Dr. Kim Cape, the
General Secretary of GBHEM, for her support of thinking dif-
ferently and prophetically about collegiate ministry in the United
Methodist context. Dr. Gerald Lord and Dr. Ken Yamada are also
to be thanked for their support as the Associate General Secretary
for the Division of Higher Education. On their shoulders rested
the approval of this project and I am grateful that, through our
collective work, GBHEM continues to see the value in this form
of theological reflection.
Finally, I am grateful for The United Methodist Church, a
church that by doctrine and discipline is committed to nurtur-
ing the whole person. We have that commitment even as there
remain sharp disagreements about who and how the nurturing
of soul and mind should be part of our shared ministry. As a
people who believe in sanctification, we know that we have not
yet arrived at perfection. We continue always to strive for it,
with God’s help.
Matthew Charlton
Palm Sunday 2016
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