Alumni
OMSC Moves to Princeton Theological Seminary
The CGCM congratulates the Overseas Ministries Study Center for its move, after 99 years, to Princeton Theological Seminary. Boston University School of Theology graduates and faculty have had a close relationship with the OMSC for many years. Alumnus and distinguished missiologist Dr. Gerald H. Anderson was the Director of the OMSC from 1976 to 2000. During that time, the International Bulletin of Mission Research, which he edited, became the premier English-language journal in mission studies. Research Professor Dr. Jonathan Bonk was Director of the OMSC from 2000 to 2013. During his tenure, the Dictionary of African Christian Biography was founded, with Dr. Michèle Sigg as manager. Prof. Dana Robert, a Contributing Editor to the IBMR, chaired the Program Committee of the OMSC for nine years. Now as it moves to Princeton, she will be one of three members of the Advisory Board of the OMSC@PTS. Another member of the Advisory Board is Bishop Ian Douglas, a distinguished alumnus in Mission Studies and World Christianity. Our association with the OMSC is deep and strong, and we wish it all the best as it begins a new chapter of its existence as OMSC@PTS under Dr. Thomas Hastings and Dr. Easten Law.
This video, produced by the OMSC, celebrates the organization's long history. Further information on the history of the OMSC can be found here.
25 Years of the UMC Order of Deacon
In commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the creation the Order of Deacon in the United Methodist Church, Dr. Benjamin Hartley ('05) recently reflected on The Deacon: Ministry through Words of Faith and Acts of Love, a book he co-authored with Paul E. Van Buren in 1998. This discussion between the two authors appeared in UM & Global, a blog that highlights the global connections in the UMC. Hartley discusses the impact of faculty members at STH in the progress of his thinking about the work of the diaconate.
In fall 2021, Hartley will become Associate Professor of Mission and World Christianity and Director of Strategic Initiatives at Seattle Pacific University. He is an expert on the mission leader John R. Mott, and his essay, "Pragmatic Internationalist: John R. Mott’s Negotiation of Nationalisms and Racism, 1895-1925," will appear in a forthcoming essay collection edited by Drs. Dana Robert and Judith Becker.
“Standing with Women Leaders from Africa and Latin America” Virtual Event
On Monday, May 10, at 10am (EDT), United Methodist Women will host a virtual event, "Standing with Women Leaders from Africa and Latin America," which is the organization's "Voices from the Field" event of this quarter. The discussion will feature four Regional Missionaries: Catherine Akale, Elmira Sellu, Finda Quiwa, and Andrea Reily Rocha Soares. The group will share real-life stories of courage and ingenuity and how United Methodist Women international work impacts the lives of women and their families.
Andrea Rocha Soares is a BU alumna, having received her MDiv with a concentration in mission in 2010. She is a native of Ribeirão Preto, Brazil, and an elder in the Methodist Church in Brazil. She was commissioned by United Methodist Women in 2015.
Register to attend the event here. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. Please save the confirmation; it contains your personal link to the event.
Margaret Rigg Collection Available at Boston University Theo Arts Gallery
Many pieces of artwork from the Margaret Rigg Collection are now available for virtual viewing through the Boston University Theo Arts Gallery. Dating back to the late 1950s and 1960s, the works explore theological themes like crucifixion, la pieta, and the holiness of the body through the lens of the beginning of the Cold War and the burgeoning military-industrial complex. Rigg brought these artworks around to schools, Sunday Schools, and other groups of children to share how art and theology intersect. The media, choice of colors, and, at times, harsh subject matter, reflect the turbulence of the period.
This artwork was preserved as part of the research work of CGCM visiting researcher Dr. Ada Focer ('16) on the Methodist Student Movement. The periodical of the movement, motive magazine, has also been preserved through the work of Dr. Focer, the CGCM, and the STH library. Its issues are available digitally here.
The artwork can also be viewed physically at the School of Theology Library (745 Commonwealth Avenue, 2nd floor, Boston, MA 02215).
Alumnus on “Serving the Global Church as a World Christian”
BU alumnus Dr. Daewon Moon ('17) recently contributed an article to Africanus Journal entitled "Serving the Global Church as a World Christian." In the article, Dr. Moon reflects on his participation in churches in South Korea during his childhood, his time with Youth With A Mission (YWAM), and his training and service in various parts of the world, with a specific focus on his work in Burundi.
Dr. Moon is also preparing to publish his dissertation research on the East African Revival of the 1930s-40s as a book entitled Becoming Saved Ones.
A fellow BUSTH alum, Dr. William David Spencer, also contributed to this issue of Africanus with a review of The Story of Creeds and Confessions: Tracing the Development of the Christian Faith (ed. Fairbairn and Reeves, 2019).
Alumnus Continues to Document Mission Work in Charlotte, NC
BU alumnus Kendal Mobley (’04) and his team recently released “That They All May Be One,” the fourth episode in their Crisis and Compassion documentary (featured in an earlier post). “That They All May Be One” tells the story of the congregation at the Chapel of Christ the King Episcopal Church, which is working to transform the church’s underutilized property into an edible landscape. A new orchard and community garden will address food insecurity and provide an outdoor space where longtime residents and new arrivals can come together in the Optimist Park neighborhood of Charlotte, North Carolina. The episode also explores the church’s role in organizing an emergency property tax relief fund to help longtime residents hold on to their homes as the neighborhood experiences rapid gentrification. Much of the housing in Optimist Park was built by Habitat for Humanity in 1987, in a project led by Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, but many current homeowners are struggling to hold on to their homes as property values skyrocket.Remembering Fr. Vincent Machozi, Congolese Martyr
Five years ago on Palm Sunday, Fr. Vincent Machozi ('15) was shot to death as a result of his efforts to document, protest against, and end violence and exploitation of the people of North Kivu in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Fr. Machozi, who was born in the village of Vitungwe-Isale in North Kivu, was a member of the Augustinians of the Assumption. In order to gain control of valuable coltan mines, many different armed groups terrorized and exacted forced labor from the people living in this region, which borders Rwanda and Uganda. Fr. Machozi ran an important website, Beni Lubero, where he publicized the atrocities for all to see. After spending time in studies at the Boston University School of Theology, Machozi returned to the Congo, where he eventually was selected as president of the Nande community. As a result of his continued work for justice in the region, Fr. Machozi was murdered on March 20, 2016, in Katolu village.
A fuller story of Fr. Machozi's life and struggle can be found in Bostonia magazine and at the Dictionary of African Christian Biography.
BU Alum Co-Authors Book on Grief and Loss
BU alum Dr. Pat McLeod ('09) was recently interviewed by Rabbi Yitzi Weiner as part of a series on “individuals and organizations making an important social impact” for Authority Magazine. Pat and his wife Tammy serve as chaplains at Harvard University. As part of this work, they organized the Mamelodi Initiative in the township of Mamelodi, South Africa, which "connects Harvard students with at-risk youth in a mentoring and educational program to prepare them for college."
In addition to describing his campus ministry work, Pat also describes the story of his son's severe traumatic brain injury--an experience of grief and loss on which he and Tammy reflect in their recent book Hit Hard: One Family’s Journey of Letting Go of What Was — and Learning to Live Well with What Is (Tyndale Momentum, 2019).
Learn more about the McLeod's work at their website.
Documentaries on Faith Community Responses to Pandemic in a North Carolina City
BU alumnus Dr. Kendal Mobley (’04), Associate Professor of Religion and Coordinator of the Spiritual Life Center at Johnson C. Smith University (JCSU), is leading the effort to create a series of documentary videos called Crisis and Compassion, showing how diverse religious communities in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg region of North Carolina are responding to the pandemic by working with local service providers, local government, and other faith communities to meet the needs. Each episode is accompanied by a study guide. Three episodes have been released, with at least three more in the pipeline.
Mobley’s team includes JCSU students Exodus Moon and Iyanla Parsanlal, along with LeDayne McLeese Polaski, Executive Director of Mecklenburg Metropolitan Interfaith Network (MeckMIN). “Leading the Crisis and Compassion project has been exciting and rewarding,” said Mobley. “I’ve been honored to bear witness to the courage and devotion of people and organizations from diverse religious perspectives, and to offer them the chance to tell their own stories. In a very dark time, they offer an example that is enlightening, empowering, and hopeful. They show us the virtues and values that will carry us through this crisis: compassion, respect for human dignity, sacrificial love, humility, unity, and
cooperation.”
Crisis and Compassion is part of a larger project called Bridge Builders Charlotte. Led by Queens University's Belk Chapel and funded by Interfaith Youth Core and the Gambrell Foundation, campus teams from Central Piedmont Community College, Davidson College, JCSU, University of North Carolina Charlotte, Queens University, and Wingate University are strengthening local efforts to help the Charlotte community recover from and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Michel Chambon (’19) Appointed Research Fellow at National University of Singapore
Dr. Michel Chambon, who earned his PhD in anthropology from BU in 2019, has recently been appointed a Research Fellow at the Asia Research Institute at the National University of Singapore. As part of his work on "Religion and Globalisation," his research will focus on Chinese Christians and Asian Catholics.
Chambon is the author of Making Christ Present in China: Actor Network Theory and the Anthropology of Christianity (Palgrave Macmillan, 2020). The work focuses on material culture and uses actor-network theory to investigate the development of Christianity in Nanping, China.