Compiled by Jim Nieman and Chris Moon
Emmanuel Christian Seminary at Milligan will offer a new concentration in Christian Spiritual Formation as part of its Master of Divinity program starting this fall. The concentration will provide a professional course of study focusing on the processes and traditions of practice that support a transformative, flourishing, and joyful life of Christian discipleship.
“Spiritual formation is at the core of what we do at Emmanuel,” said Dr. Gary Selby, professor of ministerial formation. “As we prepare the next generation . . . , we aim to strengthen spiritual formation in a way that is informed by Scripture, theology, and traditions of Christian spirituality, as well as the most cutting-edge knowledge about human, social, and psychological development that we have available to us.”
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News Briefs
Woodlawn Park Church of Christ in Baltimore and Change Starts with Hope hosted a Juneteenth Freedom March the afternoon of June 19 that started at Baltimore Police Headquarters and concluded at the Frederick Douglass–Isaac Myers Maritime Park.
Juneteenth is an annual celebration of the liberation from slavery in the United States.
Woodlawn Park minister Elmer V. Sembly III and Michelle Edison, founder of Hope Starts with Change, were guests of Kentucky Christian University president Terry Allcorn for a two-part conversation on his podcast last week where they discussed their ministries and the Juneteenth march. (We wrote about the Woodlawn Park church last July, “Changing Church Culture to Achieve God’s Mission.”)
Also on Juneteenth, Johnson University asked several folks—faculty, staff, students, and alumni—to share their thoughts about the day or to share a resource the community can learn from. There were several Facebook posts throughout the day.
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Greg Taylor, lead pastor with Second Church of Christ in Danville, Ill., was among those who spoke out publicly against gun violence after a recent wave of shootings in his community.
Six people were shot in Danville in less than three days, according to WCIA.com. The news channel reported on the frustrations of community activists, including Taylor, after the outburst of violence.
“If we want Danville—if we want Vermilion County—to be the special place we think it is, it takes everyone to be involved to make a difference,” he told WCIA.com.
Taylor added, “Being passive, being silent is never the answer. Going to social media and criticizing your community, in my opinion, is never the answer.” Instead, the answer involves “rising up and saying, ‘How can we make a difference?’”
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William and Robin Butler of Pioneer Bible Translators received the 2020 Johnson University Alumni Distinguished Service Award earlier this year. For 40 years the Butlers worked to help the Waran people in Papua New Guinea translate the Word of God into their language. Read more in Johnson Magazine, accessible here. Click here to read Greg Pruett’s article about the Butlers, “To the Least and the Last,” from the November 2019 Christian Standard.
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Funeral services for Eleanor Carol Leavell Barr, 39, the wife of U.S. Rep. Andy Barr, took place Monday at Southland Christian Church, Lexington, Ky. Burial followed at Lexington Cemetery. Mrs. Barr died suddenly of heart condition June 16, the Courier-Journal reported.
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Crossroads Christian Church in Baxter Springs, Kan., sponsored a “Food Trucks for Father’s Day” event after morning worship Sunday that was also open to the community, KOAM reported.
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Clifton (Colo.) Christian Church runs a drive-through food pantry that serves families on Wednesdays, Fridays, and the third Saturday of every month, KJCT8.com reports.
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Wonder Valley Christian Camp, Salem, Ind., which has canceled most of its events for the year, will host a “Camp and Country” fundraising event July 5 that will include fireworks. The event starts at 6 p.m. Learn more via the camp’s Facebook or in this article at WBIW.com.
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Three California churches came together on Father’s Day for a drive-in worship service at the American Armory Museum in rural Fairfield. It was the first in-person service for any of the churches in more than three months. Participating churches included Hope Christian Church, Experience Church, and The Edge, according to the Daily Republic.
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Southeast Christian Church collected personal items for those struggling during the pandemic at nine of its campuses in Kentucky and Indiana in recent days. The church gathered things like bar soap, deodorant, razors, shaving cream, and toothbrushes for those in need, according to WDRB.com.
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Northside Christian Church, Wadsworth, Ohio, offered free drive-through coronavirus testing from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. today, the Beacon-Journal reported.
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