reconciliation Archives

Golden Rule 2020: a call for dignity and respect in politics

Posted October 15th, 2019

Do you find yourself wishing political leaders would speak more respectfully to one another as they share their perspectives on important issues?

‘A bright spot’ in South Sudan

Posted July 25th, 2019

Just as one country became two with South Sudan’s independence in 2011, Nile Theological College, offering both Arabic and English curriculum tracks, also split into two campuses in two countries the same year.

Coming together for mission and ministry

Posted June 19th, 2019

“Your story is our story.” That’s what a group of visitors from global partners Nile Theological College (NTC) and RECONCILE (Resource Center for Civil Leadership) in South Sudan told members of the staff at Protestant Institute of Arts and Social Sciences (PIASS) when they visited Rwanda recently. Rwanda had just marked the 25th anniversary of the 1994 genocide that killed more than 800,000 Tutsi at the hands of the majority Hutu population.

‘Justice, service and reconciliation’ among goals of new McCormick president

Posted August 29th, 2018

Bringing communities together “in faithful pursuit of justice, service and reconciliation” is one of the goals of David H. Crawford, the new president of McCormick Theological Seminary. Crawford, who had served as interim president, was the Board of Trustees’ unanimous choice to serve as the seminary’s 11th president.

International Peacemaker from Haiti to visit U.S.

Posted August 27th, 2018

Nearly three-quarters of Haitians live on less than two dollars a day; hunger and poverty are daily challenges, as are political turmoil and violence. Despite these obstacles, Fabienne Jean, coordinator of the Hands Together Foundation of Haiti (FONDAMA), works diligently every day to fight for the most vulnerable of those living in her homeland.

Descendants of former slaves and slave owners transcend shared history

Posted August 22nd, 2018

The plaque describing the shared history of two Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) churches is on prominent display for everyone to see as they exit the sanctuary of the 3,000-member First Presbyterian Church in Greensboro, North Carolina. Underneath the Scripture passage declaring “there is neither slave, nor free” from Galatians 3:28 are these words: “Among the 12 founding members of First Presbyterian Church in Greensboro in 1824 were the enslaved servants of the Rev. William D. Paisley (founding minister) and Robert Carson.”

Church started by the former enslaved members of another church acknowledges shared history

Posted July 18th, 2018

The plaque describing the shared history of two Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) churches is on prominent display for everyone to see as they exit the sanctuary of the 3,000-member First Presbyterian Church in Greensboro, North Carolina.

International Peacemaker from South Sudan working toward unity in homeland

Posted July 2nd, 2018

Founded in 2011, South Sudan is the world’s youngest country. But infighting amongst its two most populous tribal groups — friction which dates back to the 19th century — has plunged the country into civil war and forced many of its young citizens to become soldiers instead of doctors, teachers, or farmers. The Rev. Michael Muot Put, from the Nuer tribal community, is working to educate communities about the importance of peace among different ethnic groups and provide a platform based on peace and unity.

Sharing God’s perspective through partnership in Colombia

Posted June 15th, 2018

You won’t go to India to do something an Indian cannot do,” the Rev. Thomas John told me. He was the site coordinator for the Young Adult Volunteer (YAV) program in India, and I was a college senior, interviewing to serve as a YAV on the other side of the globe. I don’t think I had any delusions of single-handedly transforming the world, but I was surely guided by a desire to help, to contribute, to be of service. That was in 2002. Today I serve as site coordinator for the YAV program in Colombia, and I encounter those same motivations again and again in current applicants.

Key to true mission partnership: be humble and really listen

Posted May 22nd, 2018

In 1993, during a study abroad program to Central America, I visited El Salvador, a small Central American nation that had just recently signed peace accords after more than a decade of violent civil war. In a unique exchange with Salvadoran youth, during a Bible study on the beach, we privileged and somewhat sheltered North American college students were interrogated about our countries’ policies and forced to reflect on our own complicity.