Calvin wrote this poem about gun violence and was invited to present it at Girard College's MLK Service Day. I'm biased, but it's good. -------------------------------- In this city, life’s fragile, everyone’s vulnerable A warzone can arise from any block or empty lot There are casualties, and not just the fighters Kids, teens, even baby girls--all... Continue Reading →
Review: John Newton’s Wise Counsel
Gordon, Grant. Ed. Wise Counsel: John Newton’s Letters to John Ryland Jr. Carlisle, PA: The Banner of Truth Trust, 2009. It is with much sadness that my reading of Wise Counsel has come to an end. I began in May of this year and slowly worked through the 83 letters of John Newton written to... Continue Reading →
Review: Jose Humphreys’ Seeing Jesus in East Harlem
Humphreys, Jose. Seeing Jesus in East Harlem: What Happens When Churches Show Up and Stay Put. Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2018. I first heard of Jose Humphreys from an IVP Podcast on gentrification. I’m a church planter in Philly who is deep in the mix of a neighborhood in transition. There are drug dealers... Continue Reading →
Some reading for over the holidays
My focus will primarily be on the Image of God, but I will most likely take a brief excursus into slavery in the NT and early church.
Remember Death: a brief review
I still remember the cold and indifferent eyes of the two young men who just walked past me. Maleek* was just shot seventeen times in front of our house. A crowd had gathered as we waited for the cops to give another scoop and run. The shots ringing out, the blood-stained shirt, the lifeless body.... Continue Reading →
Part 3 of my D.Min. Proposal: Ministry Model
This is the section of the proposal which outlines how I will go about implementing the proposed ministry. This is what makes the D.Min. different from the traditional PhD. It has a focus and termination in the local church. That's what I appreciate about the D.Min. as opposed to the PhD. Ministry Model The goal... Continue Reading →
Quest: A Portrait of An American Family
Meet the Raineys. Quest: A Portrait of An American Family is an intimate documentary that follows a north Philadelphia family over the span of almost a decade. Watch the Trailer: https://youtu.be/B2MSj93suYA It’s worth pausing to hear some of the comments from Director Jonathan Olshefski. This is how he describes his project:[1] Philadelphia is often at... Continue Reading →
Thought’s on Eric Mason’s Woke Church, part 1
*These are just a few initial thoughts taken from ch. 1 Mason, Eric. Woke Church: An Urgent Call for Christians in America to Confront Racism and Injustice. Chicago, IL: Moody, 2018. The church is asleep when it comes to issues of race and injustice. Well, it certainly seems awake given all the rancor swirling around,... Continue Reading →
Part 2 of My D.Min. Proposal
Here is the section of my D.Min. proposal that addresses the historical precedents and cultural conditions of the research question I am addressing. It is similar to the Literature Review for PhD dissertations. Introduction There is a crisis of identity within the urban context. Our concern is, how may we apologetically address this identity crisis?... Continue Reading →
