NABPR Region at Large

Jason Hentschel, University of Dayton (Ohio)
jason.hentschel@gmail.com

Can Christians Practices Deform Christians?

Can Christian practices damage Christian faith and life?  Can Christian practices extend harm and violence rather than promoting healing?  In her recent book, The Dangers of Christian Practice:  On Wayward Gifts, Characteristic Damage, and Sin (Yale University Press, 2018), historian Lauren Winner challenges the assumption that the church possesses a set of immaculate practices that will train Christians in virtue.  This session invites papers from various methodological or disciplinary perspectives that address Winner’s argument that, while being gifts from God, practices are also blighted by sin.

Engagements with Pope Francis’ Theological and Moral Vision

This session invites papers that engage Pope Frances’ theological and moral vision from a baptist/free church perspective. Particular attention will be given to papers that consider (1) Pope Francis’ call for a church of and for the poor, (2) his vision of a dialogical church, (3) his particular vision of social justice, and (4) his encyclical Laudato Si’.

After Charlottesville: Christian Theology and White Supremacy

White supremacy is an enduring problem in America and its churches and theology.  The alt-right Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, VA, in 2017, once again, horrifically exposed the persistence of this racialized evil. This session invites papers that: (1) discuss and engage the voices in black and womanist theologies as well as African American religious studies that are contributing to prophetic advocacy and movement building and to a political, moral, and spiritual revolution after Charlottesville; and (2) what does it mean historically, theologically, and morally for white Christians to witness against white supremacy in light of the rise of the alt-right?

Hidden Figures and Missing Voices in Baptist/Free Church Life

The rise of “global Christianity” has not only seen the emergence of international figures – such as the late Billy Graham – but also the opening of space for theological personalities and perspectives from outside traditional enclaves. This session invites proposals that engage such hidden, missing, forgotten, or little-known theological personalities and perspectives from among the baptist/free church traditions. Papers focused on figures from outside of Europe and North America are especially encouraged.