News of the extended network of faculty, alumni, students, visiting researchers, and mission partners is regularly updated, and some of the big ideas or major events in Global Christianity are covered in the CGCM News.
Handbook of Popular Spiritual Movements in Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia
This new volume, edited by Michael Nai-Chiu Poon and John Roxborogh, will provide broad insight into Christianity in major parts of South East Asia. Not only was CGCM director Dana Robert involved in the planning of the volume, but also a number of BU alumni made contributions, including consulting editor Charles Farhadian (’00), Daryl Ireland (’15), Septemmy Lakawa (’11), and David Scott (’13). 
New England-Maritimes Regional Meeting of the American Academy of Religion Call for Papers
NEMAAR Regional Coordinator James T. Bretzke, S.J. sent out the following announcement about the upcoming meeting:
We have posted our Call For Papers on the AAR/NEMAAR Web-site at https://www.aarweb.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/Membership/Regions/NEMAAR/NEMAAR2016CallForPapers.pdf and we want to encourage as broad a participation as possible.
Panel Proposals and/or 2 or more papers on a common theme are especially welcome. There is no set overall theme for theApril 2, 2016 Conference so we welcome papers in all areas of Theology and Religious Studies.
By January 19, 2016 please e-mail send your one-page, double-spaced Paper Proposal in an electronic file (doc, docx, or pdf) named with your own surname to NEMAAR Regional Coordinator James Bretzke at bretzke@bc.edu with “NEMAAR Paper Proposal” in the Subject Line. Include within the proposal itself your own name, your institutional affiliation, andcontact information.
By the end of January all those submitting proposals will be notified if their proposal has been able to be accepted or not.
All presenters must be active (i.e., "paid up" members of the AAR) by March 1, 2016 in order to be confirmed for the April 2nd Conference.
The Conference will be held at the Boston College School of Theology & Ministry at 9 Lake St., Brighton MA 02135 (at the end of the Green "B" Line (Boston College).
The plenary speaker will be Dr. Kwok Pui-Lan of the Episcopal Divinity School who will be speaking on Postcolonial Studies of Christianity.
Our annual NEMAAR business meeting, chaired by NEMAAR President Dr. Ronald Bernier, will also take place at the Conference.
We are also accepting nominations for the position of NEMAAR Vice-President (who then succeeds to the post of president). If interested please send a brief CV and candidate statement to bretzke@bc.edu.
United Methodist Committee on Relief
BU Alum Jack Amick is currently assistant general secretary for the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) International Disaster Response. Currently, UMCOR has partnered with the International Orthodox Christian Charities in order to assist Syrian refugees living in Jordan.
You can find more information and how to get involved here: http://www.umcor.org/umcor/resources/news-stories/2015/november/1119winterchillinjordan
CGCM at Civilitas
(left to right: Todd Johnson, Dana Robert (CGCM), and Ken Ross)
Civilitas is a new organization that seeks to encourage evangelicals to have important conversations about difficult topics. It is born out of the initiative of the Rev. Doug Birdsall, former president of the American Bible Society and the Lausanne Movement. Birdsall was motivated to start conversations after the white-supremacist Dylann Roof killed nine innocent people at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina on June 17, 2015. Birdsall was saddened, outraged, and disturbed that black men and women could not feel safe in their own churches.
He brought together Christian pastors and academics from diverse backgrounds to have conversations about what happened and how to heal. This effort led to the foundation of the Civilitas Group.
A number of the CGCM's members and affiliates were present at the recent founders dinner in Boston. It was a very well attended event, which bodes well for the future of this important organization.
Tyler (CGCM) and Julie Lenocker
The Civilitas Group is still getting started. More information can be found in an article in Gordon College's The Bell: http://stories.gordon.edu/dialogue-in-action-gordon-student-scholars-and-the-civilitas-group/.
Artist Jim Crane combined comedy and the prophetic tradition
Jim Crane's tragicomics made a powerful impact on readers of motive magazine. They were witty, insightful, and asked viewers to consider the consequences of war, human selfishness, and brokenness. Jim was an art professor at Eckerd College, where he pushed his students to think critically about deeper themes and issues.
After two years of declining health, Jim died in hospice care on November 8, 2015. He was 88.
It has been the privilege of Boston University School of Theology to work with the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry to launch a digital archive of motive magazine. This project is deeply connected to Jim and his legacy. As CGCM student Ada Focer "It is such a blessing that we were able to affirm for Jim, at the end of his life, that his work was being made available for a new generation to appreciate."
Claire McNeill of the Tampa Bay Times wrote a wonderfully fitting obituary, and it can be found here: http://www.tampabay.com/news/obituaries/eckerd-colleges-jim-crane-was-an-artist-who-taught-artists/2254057.
Shifting Global Systems?
The Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies will be hosting a graduate student conference on shifting global systems. We encourage students to submit papers!
World Christianity and the Holiness Movement
In September 2015, The Global Institute for the Fourfold Gospel Theology at Seoul Theological University launched the new peer-reviewed journal World Christianity and the Fourfold Gospel. Scholars from around the world contributed articles, launching a new periodical focused on the ways in which the international holiness movement helped to construct world Christianity.
The Advisory Board has three alumni of the Boston University School of Theology: Myung-soo Park ('92), Sung-Deuk Oak ('02), and Brian Clark ('08). In addition, the managing editor is Yeon-seung Lee ('11).
Articles from World Christianity and the Fourfold Gospel will be indexed in Religion Index One: Periodicals, the ATLA Religion Database, published by the American Theological Library Association.
Celebrating the Legacy of Saint Theresa of Ávila
On Monday, November 30 there is going to be an academic, literary, and musical gathering to explore the life and heritage of Theresa of Ávila. Check the fliers below for times and location:
The Indian Presence in the Ecumenical Movement
CGCM visiting researcher Jesudas Athyal's edited book A Light to the Nations: The Indian Presence in the Ecumenical Movement in the Twentieth Century is now available. 
There are a range of contributors in this volume, including Wesley Ariarajah (Former Director of WCC Interfaith department and Professor Emeritus of Ecumenical Theology at Drew University), Fr. K. M. George (Orthodox theologian), Preman Niles (Sri Lankan theologian) and Jayakiran Sebastian (Dean, Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia).
World Council of Churches Publications makes this important book available, and it can be purchased at the American Academy of Religion conference in Atlanta, GA this year (WCC Publications booth 613), or through amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Light-
Highlights of the “African Christian Biography” Conference
The CGCM hosted the conference on the theme of “African Christian Biography: Narratives, Beliefs, and Boundaries,” from Thursday, October 29 to Saturday, October 31. Approximately sixty scholars and graduate students converged on the School of Theology from Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Ghana, Great Britain, and various universities in the United States and Canada to present papers and discuss issues on the theme of African Christian Biography. As an intersection between scholars in religious studies and African studies, the conference was a venue for cross-fertilization between the various fields represented. Furthermore, it was an opportunity to celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the Dictionary of African Christian Biography (DACB).
In the opening plenary, DACB Project Director Jonathan Bonk presented a brief historical overview by looking at the “What?, the Why?, the How?, and the Now What?” of the project. In the Friday morning plenary address, Prof. Lamin Sanneh of Yale University focused his talk on Sir Samuel Lewis whose extraordinary life illustrated the power of human example in the service of religion and society in 19th century West Africa. The afternoon plenary panel with noted scholars Kathleen Sheldon, Richard Elphick, and Diana Wylie addressed, among other questions, the challenge of the portrayal of belief in biography as well as the various uses of biography in historical writing. The dinner plenary by Boston University professor Linda Heywood offered an opportunity to explore the life of a notable 17th century Kongo figure, Queen Njinga.
In the concurrent sessions, questions raised either in the papers or in the subsequent discussion included the role of biography in pedagogy, orality and memory in biography, the use of photography and film in biography, and the use of biography for highlighting the stories of women the Global South. Almost a third of the papers examined the stories of African women, exploring their roles as helpers and leaders, most often unrecognized in the historical record. The discussions also looked at the role of biographers as portrait artists who must paint their subjects with humility and empathy.
In the closing session, the progress of the DACB was praised and many participants offered ideas and challenges for new developments in the future. Conference organizer Dana Robert offered a few words about the book that will be published as a fruit of the conference.