Robert McAfee Brown Lectureship Series |
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are pleased to announce our November 2008 Robert McAfee Brown Lectureship.|
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Introduction:(About Dr. Borg From Wikipedia): Marcus J. Borg is a fellow of the Jesus Seminar and a liberal religious author. He holds a D.Phil. from Oxford University and is Hundere Distinguished Professor of Religion and Culture, an endowed chair at Oregon State University. He lectures widely and occasionally appears in the national news media. He is currently president of the Anglican Association of Biblical Scholars and a columnist for Beliefnet. A best-selling writer, Borg is among the most widely known and influential voices in progressive Christianity. Borg was born in 1942 into a Lutheran family of Swedish and Norwegian descent, the youngest of four children. He grew up in the 1940s in North Dakota, and attended Concordia College, Moorhead, a small liberal arts school in Moorhead, Minnesota. While at Moorhead he was a columnist in the school paper and held forth as a Conservative. After a close reading of the Book of Amos and its overt message of social equality he immediately began writing with an increasingly liberal stance and was eventually invited to discontinue writing his articles due to his new-found liberalism. He did graduate work at Union Theological Seminary, and obtained masters and D.Phil degrees at Oxford under George Caird. Anglican Bishop N.T. Wright had studied under the same professor, and many years later Borg and Wright were to share in coauthoring The Meaning of Jesus: Two Visions, an amicable study in contrast. Following a period of religious questioning in his mid thirties, and numinous experiences similar to those described by Rudolf Otto, Borg became active in the Episcopal church, in which his wife serves as a priest. Borg advocates entering into relationship with God as more important than belief about God. He has a panentheist understanding of God, which sees God as both indwelling in everything and transcendent. He teaches that a historical-metaphorical approach to the Bible is more meaningful for today's world than is the historical-grammatical approach or that of biblical literalism. He also distinguishes between the pre-Easter Jesus, who was a Jewish mystic and the founder of Christianity, and the post-Easter Jesus, who is a divine reality that Christians can still experience personally. Borg does not believe that the bible has to be taken literally if it is to be taken seriously. Indeed, he purports that truths can be found in the many messages and metaphors of the Bible stories even though he states that such stories may not have actually happened at all. Rather than asking what the events in certain New Testament stories actually were, he challenges his audience with another question - what effect must this man Jesus have had on the people he came into contact with for so many rich stories to have been written about him after his life? About the Robert McAfee Brown Lectureship:The annual Robert McAfee Brown Lectureship was established in 1998 with the proceeds of a bequest to First Presbyterian Church from Ruth English, a long-time member of the congregation. Today the lectureship is funded by a continuing grant from the First Presbyterian Church endowment fund.
Previous Lecturers:Previous lecturers-in-residence include Rita Nakashima Brock, Rabbi Michael Lerner, Walter Wink, Naomi Tutu, Tom Hunter, Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer, Janet Walton, Ched Myers, Katherine Paterson and Dorothy Soëlle. We've compiled a list of books you might wish to borrow or purchase. Please visit your local independent bookstore, like Keplers in Menlo Park to purchase these books. If you do shop through Amazon, please use the links below because a percentage of any sale is donated by the folks who host our web site to the Ecumenical Hunger Program and America's Second Harvest. Our hosts donate 100% of their Amazon Associate fees to those programs. 2007 Lecturer Rita Nakashima Brock Recommended
2006 Lecturer Rabbi Michael Lerner Recommended Books
2005 Lecturer Walter Wink Recommended Books
2004 Lecturer Naomi Tutu Recommended Books
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No Future Without Forgiveness by Desmond TutuWith a clarity of pitch born out of decades of experience, Tutu shows readers how to move forward with honesty and compassion to build a newer and more humane world. Click here to order this book from Amazon.com |
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The Words of Desmond Tutu One hundred selections from the Archbishop's speeches, sermons,
and writings chosen by his daughter, Naomi; Tutu's vision
of a new South Africa; a chronology of his life; full text
of his Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech. Click here to order this book from Amazon.com |
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Country of My SkullCountry of My Skull captures the complexity of the Truth
Commission's work. The narrative is often traumatic, vivid,
and provocative. Krog's powerful prose lures the reader actively
and inventively through a mosaic of insights, impressions,
and secret themes. This compelling tale is Antjie Krog's profound
literary account of the mending of a country that was in colossal
need of change. Click here to order this book from Amazon.com |
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A Human Being Died That Night by Pumla Gobodo-Madikizela
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Tom Hunter
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2003 brought the wonderful modern-day minstrel, Tom Hunter to Palo Alto. Through songs and stories Tom helped us bring vitality back into our spiritual and everyday lives. Click here to visit Tom's web site where you can listen to a few snippets of his music, purchase CDs and cassettes, and learn more about the many aspects of Tom's incredible ministry.
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Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer |
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As an example of what one of weekends with Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer was like, click here to read an edited transcript of one of Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer's sessions (thank you Jo Ann Heydron for transcribing it). Jack was our lecturer in 2002. |
2001 Lecturer Janet Walton
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Women at Worship : Interpretations of North American Diversity (edited by Janet Walton) These diverse but unified descriptions of original ceremonies, liturgies, and rites offer suggestions for revitalizing traditional liturgical expressions in relation to women's experiences, and are drawn from the perspectives of Christian, Jewish, African-American, Native American, and Hispanic women. |
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Art and Worship - A Vital Connection by Janet Walton (with forward by Robert McAfee Brown) "Walton has done a superb job in tracing the vital connection that the arts have to worship. She writes with a rich understanding of the arts and recognizes the distinct capacity of 'all forms of art to express what is intangible through discursive language' alone... an excellent and scholarly volume that calls for revitilization of the Church's message through the arts." Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society This book is available at 1st Presbyterian Church through a consignment from the publisher and will be sold in the Narthex and at Adult Study. Contact Craig Wiesner. |
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Feminist Liturgy: A Matter of Justice by Janet Roland Walton Feminist liturgy is liturgy that has been shaped by women and some men who recognized that something was missing in the worship of our synagogues and churches. And not only was something missing, but at times what was expressed was not true, especially for women and other marginalized people. Feminist liturgies began when women and a few men asked themselves what would be true, what would be just. The answers were not found in discussions about liturgy but rather in trying to use symbols, texts, and forms that expressed relationships with God, one another, all created life, more accurately and more authentically. This book traces the story of feminist liturgy: how, when, and why it began the principles that guide it; what it looks like, and what its future may be. Click here to buy it from Amazon (Copies will also be available at 1st Presbyterian Church - Contact Craig Wiesner) |
Books From 2000's Lectureship - Ched Myers
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Binding the
Strong Man: A Political Reading of Mark's Story of Jesus This is a "commentary
on the Gospel of Mark. . . . {Myers attempts to apply} literary
criticism, socio-historical exegesis, and political hermeneutics
in his investigation of Mark--the oldest story of Jesus--as 'manifesto
of radical discipleship.' . . . Myers {seeks to} read Mark's narrative
of Jesus' life and Messianic practice first against the historical
circumstances of first-century Palestine, and then against the backdrop
of contemporary oppression and violence. Mark's Jesus, Myers argues,
offers a compelling model for a Christian practice of non-violent
resistance to social, economic, and political domination." |
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Who will roll Away this Stone?: Discipleship Queries for First World Christians The author of the critically-acclaimed Binding the Strong Man exposes the social and spiritual "stones" that impede us in our development and growth as Christians. "In every age," writes Myers, "disciples despair that the story has ended, only to discover that the stone 'has been rolled away,' reopening the possibility - and imperative - of following the Way of Jesus." As a sequel to Binding the Strong Man, Who Will Roll Away the Stone? brings Myers' study of the gospel of Mark full circle. The first book provided a compelling reading of Mark's gospel as a manual of radical discipleship in the ancient Roman empire. Who Will Roll Away the Stone? picks up and extends the gospel's challenge specifically to those living in the contemporary imperial context. ISBN 0883449471 |
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Angels and other Strangers: Family Christmas Stories With this collection, "the author creates nine insightful stories
that stir the emotions while reflecting the joy of the season. These
tales celebrate (Christmas) through the loneliness, fears, hopes,
and simple beliefs of men, women, and children." |
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Bridge to Terabithia In this classic novel, the friendship between young Jess and Leslie grows as they meet in Terabithia--their secret hiding place--and only ends with the tragic death of one of them. Set in contemporary rural America, "the story is one of remarkable richness and depth, beautifully written." Click here to buy it from Amazon at 20% off! |
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Theology
for Skeptics One of her
most-read books! You don't have to be a skeptic to gain spiritual
insight from this book. |
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Against the Wind - A Memoir of a Radical Christian A Dorothee Soelle memoir! |
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Designer Children - Reconciling Genetic Technology, Feminism, And Christian Faith by Karen Peterson-Iyer Combining a stunning range of research and clear and accessible writing, Peterson-Iyer walks us through the thicket of ethical issues surrounding genetic engineering. Each chapter is as impressive as the one before. Peterson-Iyer never avoids the hard questions and leaves the reader both informed and grateful." --Karen Lebacqz Amazingly for the first time in human history, couples interested in becoming parents may soon be able to directly pre-select or alter specific genetic characteristics of their offspring. However, this new capacity and its potential to be used for "good" or "evil" are of increasing and pressing moral concern. In Designer Children, Peterson-Iyer constructs some moral ground under society's feet regarding genetic technology. She draws upon the best insights from Christian faith and from feminist thought in order to evaluate the various ways in which to genetically "shape" children. With great clarity and care, she employs the concept of "human flourishing"--as a vision and guide as we wade through the quagmire of ethical questions--to advance specific recommendations about three contemporary types of genetic manipulation: gene therapy to prevent cystic fibrosis; genetic enhancement of memory; and sex pre-selection. KAREN PETERSON-IYER earned her PhD from Yale University and her M.Div from Pacific School of Religion. She is a candidate for ordination in the Presbyterian Church (USA). She lives in Menlo Park, California. |
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Preserving Privilege - California Politics, Propositions and People of Color by Jewelle Taylor Gibbs Gibbs and Bankhead examine the history and current situation in California as it struggles to deal with the ethnic and racial change that will make it the first American state to have a non-white majority in the first decade of the 21st Century. From "shock" and denial, to "bargaining" to change the outcome, they analyze the impact in California and what this may mean for the rest of the country. |
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The Conscience of A Community - Integrating the Public Schools of the Mid-Peninsula
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The Dynamics of Global Dominance: European Overseas Empires, 1415-1980 by David B. Abernethy This magisterial survey of the rise and decline of European overseas empires asks how and why these empires took shape, persisted, and finally fell. In a discussion that encompasses European and non-European actors as well as the economic, social, cultural, and political dimensions of empire, David B. Abernethy explains Europe's long occupation of global center stage and throws new light on today's postcolonial world and the legacies of empire. |
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A Is for the Americas by Cynthia Chin-Lee, Terri De La Pena, Enrique O. Sanchez America--North, Central, and South--is celebrated in this alphabet picture book that moves beyond the U.S. and the English language to the diversity of landscape, culture, and language across borders. D is for El Dia de los Muertos, Day of the Dead. K is for kayak. O is for ocelot, found from Texas to Argentina. R is for Rio Grande, or Rio Bravo, as it is called in Mexico. S is for Salsa. . . . From geography and history to foods, festivals, and flags, each letter has a paragraph discussing the word (its origin, place, usage, etc.), and Sanchez' brightly colored, full-page acrylic-and-gouache paintings evoke the stretch of history--the pyramids of Yucutan, built by the ancient Mayan peoples; the jewelry, masks, and pueblos of the Zuni in New Mexico; the mystery and splendor of Niagara Falls; the icy Arctic tundra. The focus is on Latino and Native American peoples, and the particulars are fascinating, making connections through time and space about what it means to be American. Hazel Rochman |
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Spoken Soul:
The Story of Black English A compelling
exploration of Black English--from its roots to its force in contemporary
culture In this timely book, renowned linguist John Rickford provides
the definitive guide to Black English--from its origins, to its
new directions, to its powerful fascination for society at large.
Drawing on fresh research, Rickford achieves a rare feat: popular
reading filled with genuine revelation. Spoken Soul is loaded with
examples from such icons as August Wilson, Richard Pryor, and Eddie
Murphy. Rickford also crashes through the rigid divisions separating
"high" and "low" culture. Telling the story of the language that
links such apparently disparate figures as Toni Morrison, Jesse
Jackson, and Lauryn Hill, Spoken Soul is a liberating masterpiece.
John R. Rickford (Palo Alto, CA) is the Martin Luther King Jr. Centennial
Professor of Linguistics at Stanford University. Russell J. Rickford
(Philadelphia, PA) has been a reporter for the Philadelphia Inquirer. |
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One Thousand
Days in Siberia : Reviewed on Amazon by Craig Wiesner: "About eight years ago,
I read Peter Sano's story when it was in its earliest form. I knew
then that he should have it published - and finally, he did. Peter
was born in America but at the age of 15, in 1939, he was sent to
Japan to become the adopted son of his childless aunt and uncle.
Drafted into the Japanese army in 1945, Peter was sent to war. By
being in the wrong place at the wrong time, Peter ended up in Siberian
POW and labor camps for three years before finally being released.
During those years, Peter made life bearable for many of his fellow
prisoners, often at his own expense - and though he downplays his
heroism, he kept some people alive who would otherwise have perished.
His is a tale both humorous and tragic and in the end, inspiring.
Today, Peter is back in America, an accomplished architect, husband,
father, and one of the kindest and gentlest souls I have ever met.
It was impossible to put down his manuscript once I started it until
I had devoured every page. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys
tales of triumph over adversity, love beating hate, and quick wits
winning out over the harshest odds." 0803292600 |
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