Mobilizing for the Common Good: The Lived Theology of John M. Perkins

by Peter Slade (Editor), Charles Marsh (Editor), Peter Goodwin Heltzel (Editor)

Overview

Born into a sharecropping family in New Hebron, Mississippi, in 1930, and only receiving a third-grade education, John M. Perkins has been a pioneering prophetic African American voice for reconciliation and social justice to America's white evangelical churches. Often an unwelcome voice and always a passionate, provocative clarion, Perkins persisted for forty-years in bringing about the formation of the Christian Community Development Association (CCDA)-a large network of evangelical churches and community organizations working in America's poorest communities-and inspired the emerging generation of young evangelicals concerned with releasing the Church from its cultural captivity and oppressive materialism. John Perkins has received surprisingly little attention from historians of modern American religious history and theologians concerned with questions of race, justice, and reconciliation. In 2009, the Project on Lived Theology hosted academics and practitioners for its Spring Institute on Lived Theology (SILT) at the University of Virginia. This book project grew from the rich interdisciplinary conversations that took place as participants considered the significance of Perkins's life and work. Mobilizing for the Common Good is an exploration of the theological significance of John Perkins. With contributions from theologians, historians and activists, this book seeks to understand Perkins's life in theological and historical context. It contends that Perkins ushered in a paradigm shift in twentieth-century evangelical theology that continues to influence a growing movement of Christian community development projects and social justice activists today. Contributions from Michael Anders, Mae Cannon, Kelly West Figueroa-Ray, Lisa Sharon Harper, Paul Louis Metzger, A. G. Miller, Lowell Noble, Ted Ownby, Soong-Chan Rah, Chris Rice, Cheryl J. Sanders, Ronald J. Sider, Christian T. Collins Winn, and Lauren Winner

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781617038594
Publisher:	University Press of Mississippi
Publication date:	07/11/2013
Pages:	240
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Peter Slade, Ashland, Ohio, is an associate professor of religion at Ashland University. He is the author of Open Friendship in a Closed Society: Mission Mississippi and a Theology of Friendship.


Charles Marsh, Charlottesville, Virginia, is a professor of religious studies and the director of the Project on Lived Theology at the University of Virginia. He is the author of multiple titles including Reclaiming Dietrich Bonheoffer: The Promise of His Theology.


Peter Goodwin Heltzel, New York, New York, is associate professor of theology and the director of the Micah Institute at New York Theological Seminary and an ordained minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). He is the author of Jesus and Justice: Evangelicals, Race, and American Politics and Resurrection City: A Theology of Improvisation.

Table of Contents

Foreword Ronald J. Sider vii

Introduction Peter Slade xiii

Part I Relocation-Considering the Journey

The Black Apostle to White Evangelicals Albert G. Miller 3

The Church as Family and the Politics of Food Distribution Lauren F. Winner 16

Brotherhood and Its Limits Ted Ownby 32

A Quiet Revolution and the Culture Wars Peter Slade 60

Part II Redistribution-Challenging the Church

A Prophetic Vision in an Age of Profit Paul Louis Metzger 83

Between Two Gardens: An Organic Salvation for Community Development from the Biblical Narrative Michael Andres 93

Religionless Ecclesiology and the Missional Church Peter Goodwin Heltzel Christian T. Collins Winn 108

"Lady, Give Me a Drink": Reading Scripture, Shaping Community Development Kelly West Figueroa-Ray 123

Prophetic Ministry, the Prosperity Gospel, and Gentrification Cheryl J. Sanders 130

Part III Reconciliation?Continuing the Journey

Communities of Resurrection and the Transformation of Bodies Chris Rice 145

Love, Reconciliation, and the Solidarity of Pain Mae Elise Cannon 161

Only Love Wins: Justice and Public Policy Lisa Sharon Harper 169

Moving toward the Next Evangelicalism Soong-Chan Rah 176

Appendixes

Let Justice Roll Down: A Conversation with John Perkins Charles Marsh 189

The Four Ministries of the Holy Spirit Lowell Noble 203

Contributors 213

Acknowledgments 217

Index 218