Equipped

The sacraments are rooted in the New Testament, but experiences and expectations have evolved over time in the context of different faiths and cultures.  Where do we find similarities?  Where are our differences?  This class explores the roots of the Christian sacraments and the variety of ways they are currently celebrated and honored.

While many Christians would balk at even asking if Christian evangelism is imperialistic, to much of the world the answer resounds in the affirmative: Christianity is inherently imperialistic, given both its connection to historic empires and the legacies of abuse and marginalization many in the world (e.g. African slaves, indigenous North and South Americans, North and South East Asians, and others) continue to suffer due to men and women acting “for the glory of God”. In this course, I aim to encourage us to not feign ignorance, remain aloof, or dismiss these imperial legacies as of another era or no longer relevant but to do the hard work of understanding what aspects of Christian missions have historically led to global oppression and commit to enacting more holistic visions of global missions. I will adopt an approach of “kenarchic evangelism” that attempts to recover resources within ecclesiastical history (and the present) to gesture toward non-imperial evangelical futures.