Resources

Mindy McGarrah Sharp, PhD Assistant Professor of Pastoral Theology and Ethics Phillips Theological Seminary As I followed the #FergusonSyllabus twitter conversation just before this semester began, I considered ways to address race in a new way in my pastoral care course. Unmasking structures of suffering and developing anti-racist pastoral care practices are already important to both my research and my pedagogy. What is different about race matters this semester? With only one required pastoral theology class in the curriculum, I take seriously my moral obligation to prepare students to be present and responsive to the personal and structural dynamics of...

Jennifer Harvey, PhD Associate Professor of Religion Drake University blog: livingformations.com “The asceticism of teaching is the willingness to teach the students you have rather than the students you wish you had.” The rigor and conviction of Patricia O’Connell Killen’s claim about teaching as a practice has impacted my approach to the classroom more than anything else in the ten years I’ve been working at this difficult craft. A teaching practice of being there, in a spirit of willingness, regardless of who shows up, is a challenge. I suspect I don’t have to convince you of this. Who among us...

Song-Chong Lee, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Religious Studies and Philosophy University of Findlay Due to the racial and religious homogeneity of my institution, which is predominantly white and Christian (the University of Findlay, in rural Ohio), I have unconsciously focused on issues of greatest concern to my students, especially in the beginning of my teaching career – and this has not included race. This is ironic, for I myself am a native born Korean transplanted to the American Midwest. It was not until I taught my Islam course in 2013 that I found this approach deficient. That semester I had...

Fumitaka Matsuoka, Ph.D. Robert Gordon Sproul Professor of Theology Emeritus Pacific School of Religion The Ferguson story reminds me of the “Rashomon Effect,” named for late Japanese movie director Akira Kurosawa’s film Rashomon. In the film a crime witnessed by four individuals is described in four mutually contradictory ways. The Rashomon Effect is contradictory and often has opposing interpretations of the same event by different people. The heart of the matter in the Rashomon Effect is the question of truth and truth-telling. Whose understanding of the truth matters most? In light of the recent killing of Michael Brown, an African.

HyeRan Kim-Cragg, Ph.D. Lydia Gruchy Professor of Pastoral Studies St. Andrew’s College (Saskatoon) I am on sabbatical this year. When the shooting in Ferguson occurred, it got me thinking about the last course I was teaching before I went on sabbatical. I pulled out the syllabus and began taking notes on this event as a “living document.” As a practical theologian, “the situation” is a primary document from which to read and upon which to reflect. It can be used to make sense and meaning of the reality that is unfolding. The course is called, “Race, Colonialism, Canadian Identities, and...

Kenneth Ngwa, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Hebrew Bible Drew Theological School In my “Introduction to the Hebrew Bible” syllabus, a couple of sessions are reserved for the Exodus story: its claims about liberation; the use of official “war gear” against civilians; the dread of nightfall; legislative debates; witness accounts to the sights and sounds of violence; the importance of memory, etc. “After” Ferguson, teaching this biblical story almost sounds too convenient. Yet, engaging race and racism is like solving a math equation: long division with remainders. The burden of structural racism is not just its deadly power,...

Dean J. Johnson, Ph.D. Peace & Conflict Studies Assistant Professor of Philosophy West Chester University of Pennsylvania Silence, guilt and fear are obstacles to justice and democracy. My white brothers and sisters, we have often let the fear of breaking the rules of certain types of discourse trap us. Too often we let fear immobilize us and we remain silent. Let’s take for example the fear of talking and teaching about race as a white person. We believe the discourse of whiteness that says racism and the struggle for racial justice are not white problems and/or that whites are...

Rev. Dr. Mitzi J. Smith, Ph.D. Associate Professor of New Testament & Early Christian Studies Ashland Theological Seminary/Detroit Center One day in 2009 after President Obama took office, I walked into my Greek exegesis class at Ashland Theological Seminary in Detroi t and one of two white male students asked, “Dr. Smith, don’t you think we live in a post-racial society given we have elected a black President and here I am sitting in your class a black female with a Harvard Ph.D.?” I didn’t doubt my student’s sincerity. I’d like to think that he felt safe enough in that space...

Ella Johnson, Ph.D. Assistant Professor of Systematic Theology St. Bernard’s School of Theology and Ministry I didn’t plan to bring it up. In fact, I had made a conscious decision to not talk about it. But, in the middle of class, I said something. I had to. I still wonder if I made the right decision. August 27 was the first day of my Theology of Church and Ministry class. I was prepared with a list of learning objectives I wanted to accomplish: introductions to the class and to each other; review of the course outline; overview of the scope...

I had already completed the syllabus. The required textbook, reading assignments, videos, and other class material already assigned. Matter of fact, I had already sent the syllabus out to the students so they could get an early start on the reading. Everything was done and after my trip to the National Summit on Race in Chicago, I looked forward to having at least a couple of weeks off before the school year started. Then Ferguson happened and I knew my syllabus had to change. This fall, I am teaching a class titled African American Religious Thought at Memphis Theological Seminary. The course focuses on the religious thinking and interpretation of African Americans—both within and outside of the Black Church or Christian tradition. The particular offering this semester focuses on published works of particular African American “theologians,” both of the systematic and public variety. In short, the class offers as a component, the religious thinking of both academic and lay theologians as they struggle to discern the sacred in and around their lives. I put particular interest on how theologies are constructed—thus creating what I have called rhetorical theology. For the class, I assigned the Oxford Handbook of African American Theology edited by Katie Canon and Anthony Pinn. Although pricey, (yeah, that’s another post) the editors offer 34 chapters—divided into 5 sections. Also, what is a huge bonus is that at the end of each chapter, the editors offer a “selected texts” section that lists books for further reading upon the subject covered in the chapter. This is good because the bibliography covers all of the major works within African American theological thought.  With my text in hand, all I needed to do was to create the assignments. I decided that since we meet only on the first Friday of each month during the semester (September-December from 9-5pm), each meeting, except the first, students would complete an assigned reading and offer a review and reflection that the student will present to the class. In addition, students will also select one book from the “selected texts” and submit a book review and reflection.  Believing that theology is contextual and must engage the public, I also added a blogging component to the class. I expect students to make at least sixteen (16) comments on any blog post on the Rhetoric Race and Religion blog throughout the semester. Students of course are encourage to write blog posts for publication, but do not have to submit posts. However, I do expect students to engage on posts, make substantive comments, and offer theological insights on their own. For the final, the student would write a theological reflection on any subject.  However, I added just one more component—all of the reviews and reflections must now focus on what I have called “The Ferguson Fiasco.” The issues and problems in Ferguson are reminiscent of the issues and problems in the late 1960’s when, according to Canon and Pinn, “ministers and academics took a public stand against injustice and demanded a re-visioning of life in the United States that took seriously the humanity of African Americans” (1). Back then, for many African Americans, the prevailing theology of the day did not speak for or to them. Today, many are asking for a theological response to the unrest and tensions in Ferguson. With this class, I hope to move it from a merely academic pursuit of theological inquiry and place student reflection within a context that begs for a theological response.

I am looking forward to our class. I am looking forward to the discussions, the papers, reflections, and yes, even the disagreements. As I engage with students, I also look forward to being challenge by students and growing in my own theological beliefs and commitments. I look forward to this class because I do believe that Ferguson will give students the creative license to do and proclaim an authentic, meaningful and purposeful theology in the public arena.  Work Cited Cannon, Katie G. and Anthony B. Pinn (eds). The Oxford Handbook of African American Theology. Oxford Handbooks, 2014