by Eron Henry | Apr 30, 2024 | News
Lott Carey is pleased to announce the continuation of its mission to empower congregations through the Thriving Congregations Initiative. With a focus on nurturing the capacities of congregations for impactful and faithful witness, this initiative supports faith communities striving to enhance their spiritual vitality.
Thanks to generous funding from Lilly Endowment Inc., the Thriving Congregations Initiative is set to support selected congregations across the United States. This program offers technical assistance, training, and mentoring to help congregations discern their unique context, clarify their purpose, and boost their overall vitality.
While the initiative will work intimately with approximately 60 congregations, the insights and learnings gleaned from this experience will be documented and shared. This dissemination of knowledge aims to inspire and inform the work of thousands of churches and partners within the Lott Carey network.
The upcoming cohort, focusing on the Northeast Region, is scheduled to undergo an 18-month training program starting in the fall of 2024. This comprehensive training will blend in-person sessions with virtual learning, ensuring a robust and flexible educational experience.
Who Should Join?
The Thriving Congregations cohort is ideal for congregations that:
- Seek to deepen their understanding of their community context, identify their strengths, and rejuvenate their ministry.
- Are committed to engaging their pastoral leaders and laypersons in a series of six quarterly in-person training sessions and monthly virtual gatherings.
- Serve primarily within the states of Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania.
Lott Carey pledges to cover all costs related to instructional materials, including books, access to thought leaders, mentors, and meals during in-person sessions. Participating congregations will be responsible for their lodging and transportation expenses.
We invite you to seize this opportunity to enrich your congregation’s journey. For those interested in learning more about the Thriving Congregations Initiative, please reach out to us at thriving@lottcarey.org.
Thank you for considering this transformative experience.
Key Dates for the Northeast Region Cohort:
- September 13-14, 2024
- November 8-9, 2024
- March 14-15, 2025
- May 2-3, 2025
- September 19-20, 2025
- October 17-18, 2025
For more information or to join the cohort, contact Lott Carey at:
- Phone: 301.429.3300
- Email: thriving@lottcarey.org
- Website: www.lottcarey.org
Lott Carey is dedicated to fostering thriving congregations that can recognize and adapt to the evolving social and cultural landscapes. Through this initiative, we aim to equip church leaders with the tools necessary to clarify their mission and cultivate practices that enhance their community’s faithfulness and effectiveness. Join us as we embark on this journey of growth and transformation.
by Eron Henry | Apr 28, 2024 | News
At the Lott Carey annual Spring Missions Conference held on April 18-19, Rev. Dr. Christophe Ringer, associate professor of Theological Ethics and Society at Chicago Theological Seminary, delivered a presentation on the impact of public policy on society. His talk, titled “How Public Policy Impacts People,” was his second presentation at the conference and offered reflections on social problems and challenges.
Dr. Ringer presented a framework for thinking about public policy, focusing on four critical aspects: benefits, fairness, fidelity, and legitimacy. He emphasized that effective policies must not only provide tangible benefits but also uphold fairness, remain faithful to the community’s trust, and maintain legitimacy in the eyes of those they serve.
Reflecting on the recent influx of Venezuelan asylum seekers in Chicago since August 2022, Dr. Ringer discussed the resulting social crisis and its implications for public theology. He highlighted the resistance from the local community, which stems from a history of school closures and unfulfilled promises by city officials. This situation has prompted a reevaluation of the role of place in public theology.
Dr. Ringer shed light on the campaign to end cash bail in Illinois, underscoring the criminalization of poverty and the racial disparities in the jail population. He stressed the importance of public awareness regarding the presumption of innocence and the communal harms inflicted by the inability to afford bail. The story of Lavette Days, an early leader in the movement to end cash bail, was shared to illustrate the campaign’s significance.
The summary of Dr. Ringer’s presentation delved into the role of public theology in tackling societal issues such as the elimination of cash bail, the rise of nationalist movements, and the misconstrued concept of “black on black violence.” He called for the construction of community networks to resolve disputes and highlighted the success of the movement against cash bail, which led to a reduction in jail populations.
Dr. Ringer also emphasized the importance of coalition-building and maintaining trust within movements, particularly in the context of rising nationalist sentiments. He challenged the term “black on black violence,” advocating for a reevaluation of public theology to address stereotypes and assumptions about black communities.
Dr. Ringer underscored the critical role of public theology in shaping public policies and addressing social problems.
by Eron Henry | Apr 26, 2024 | News
During morning devotions at the Lott Carey annual Spring Missions Conference, Minister Brenda Troy of the New Salem Baptist Church in Columbus, Ohio, called for Christians to embody the essence of being the “salt of the earth” and the “light of the world.”
Minister Troy emphasized the profound metaphors used by Jesus Christ, urging believers to not only embrace their faith internally but to also express it externally through impactful actions. She highlighted that Christians are entrusted with a dual role – they are recipients of divine light, grace, and mercy, and simultaneously, they are distributors of this celestial illumination.
The world, as Minister Troy noted, is in a state of moral and spiritual decay. It is the responsibility of Christians to act as preservatives, much like salt, slowing down this degradation by actively spreading the good news of Jesus Christ. The metaphor of light further extends this duty, encouraging believers to shine forth in the darkness, guiding others toward the path of righteousness.
Drawing from her personal journey, Minister Troy shared how she has answered the call to be a beacon in her community. Her endeavors in aiding the needy and introducing them to the teachings of Jesus are a testament to her commitment to living her faith out loud, a demonstration of faith in motion.
She reminded conference participants that Christianity is not a passive belief system to be taken for granted. It is a dynamic and living faith that calls for active participation.
by Eron Henry | Apr 25, 2024 | News
At the recently concluded Lott Carey annual Spring Missions Conference, Rev. Dr. Willie D. Francois III, the newly appointed senior pastor of the host church, Fountain Baptist Church in Summit, NJ, addressed the critical role of public theology in safeguarding democracy and championing the cause of Black lives.
Dr. Francois underscored the unprecedented global scale of this year’s elections, with more than 60 countries casting their votes. He posited that the health of democracy is directly reflected in the vitality of public participation. Yet, he expressed deep concern for what he termed “democratic grief,” particularly among younger Black Americans – a profound disengagement stemming from disillusionment with a system that has historically failed them.
The church, according to Dr. Francois, has a pivotal role in mending the wounds of democratic grief. He called for a theological lexicon that identifies systemic injustices as sins, thus framing the struggle for racial justice as a moral imperative. He lamented that only two generations of Black Americans have been born with the unobstructed right to vote, a stark reminder of the persistence of anti-blackness.
He urged the church to transcend doctrinal rigidity and embrace theological imagination, drawing from ancestral wisdom and the interconnectedness of humanity. He emphasized the necessity of fostering hope and practicing “public love” – a proactive love that demands justice and combats oppression.
Echoing the teachings of Jesus, Dr. Francois advocated for a love that is inherently political, one that actively seeks to dismantle systems of domination. He challenged the church to align itself with this radical form of love, thereby redefining discipleship in terms of action rather than mere observance.
In a poignant reference to Melissa V. Harris-Perry’s book, Sister Citizen, he drew a parallel between the participants in a post-war experiment – who struggled to stand upright amidst crooked surroundings – and the contemporary challenge faced by the church to stand for justice in a society marred by systemic inequalities.
Dr. Francois’s message was a clarion call for a countercultural revolution, urging the church to lead in painting a new vision for America – one that is rooted in love, justice, and an unwavering commitment to democracy.
by Eron Henry | Apr 24, 2024 | News
In a recent presentation at the Lott Carey annual Spring Missions Conference, Rev. Dr. Christophe Ringer, an associate professor of Theological Ethics and Society at Chicago Theological Seminary, offered a profound exploration of the value of public theology in addressing societal issues.
Dr. Ringer began by discussing the concept of “social death” and the role of public theology in addressing it. He referenced the biblical story of Lazarus, using it as a metaphor for the role of public theology in unbinding people from social death caused by public policies and practices.
He emphasized that public theology involves critical reflection on society from a religious perspective. This reflection critiques injustices in culture and articulates the sacred aspects of public life necessary for fulfilling and meaningful lives. It also offers resources for a corrective vision where public life is governed by policies that violate democratic virtues and practices.
Dr. Ringer then discussed the current state of Christian nationalism and its impact on society, especially in the United States. He referenced Ta-Nehisi Coates’ work, discussing the concept of freedom and its misuse to justify domination over others, compromising the common good. He argued that this misuse of freedom is not divine but a profound ideology, akin to idolatry.
The speaker suggested that idolatry leads to a false sense of history, which is at the core of the need to prove that unarmed black people shot by the police were the cause of their own death. He argued that the COVID-19 pandemic has unveiled the idolatry of whiteness, which he believes is more accurately captured by the language of ideology than by terms like white privilege or white supremacy.
Dr. Ringer concluded by criticizing federal and local government policies during the pandemic that prioritized corporations over people and politicized mask-wearing and stay-at-home orders. He argued that these policies resulted in sickness and death in their own communities, demonstrating the destructive consequences of pursuing policies that prioritize supremacy and privilege.
The presentation also highlighted instances where individuals and groups are willing to sacrifice the weak, elderly, and homeless for the sake of economic benefits or political ideologies. Dr. Ringer argued that public theology can offer a counter-narrative to these harmful ideologies. Drawing on the teachings of Jesus, Rev. Dr. Prathia Hall’s concept of “freedom faith”, and Martin Luther King Jr.’s views on integration, he suggested that public theology can advocate for a society that values all people regardless of race, gender, or class, and seeks the equality and liberation of all people.
Dr. Ringer echoed Angela Davis’s call to reimagine freedom from the perspective of those who have been denied it, arguing that this vision of freedom calls for full economic, political, and social equality. He suggested that public theology can help society move toward a more just future by encouraging us to question our assumptions and confront our complicity in perpetuating social inequalities. By working toward the beloved community, we can help bring about a more inclusive and equitable society.
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