by Andre E. Johnson R3 Editor The week of January 11-16, 2015, I taught an immersion class in Ferguson, Missouri. These are some of my reflections of that week. Read Part 1 here. Read Part 2 here   When we got up Monday morning, we headed to class to start the “classroom portion” of our time together. After a rundown of the syllabus and an explanation of the class and assignments, our host, Deb Krause shared her involvement with the movement.... Read more

by Sharon Lauricella R3 Contributor In the 1980’s, Wendy’s hamburger restaurants launched a marketing campaign featuring the slogan, “Where’s the beef?” The advertisement featured three senior ladies examining an exaggeratedly large hamburger bun with an equally exaggeratedly small meat patty inside, followed by the most irritated of the ladies exclaiming, “Where’s the beef?” Since the advertisement aired, the slogan has become an applicable exclamation in the US and Canada whenever questioning the validity or reliability (in non-statistical terms, of course)... Read more

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As part of the Teach, Eat and Learn Symposium at Gifts of Life Ministries, students from Memphis Theological Seminary offer their reflections from their experiences in Ferguson, Missouri. R3 editor, Dr. Andre E. Johnson moderated the panel discussion.   Read more

On January 17th, 2015, a large group of African-American presidents and deans in theological education posted “An Open Letter to Presidents and Deans of Theological Schools in the United States.” The text of that letter can be found here Our colleagues’ statement was a “call for action in light of the current state of social justice” in the United States, a recognition that even as many things have changed, many things still remain the same: racial oppression and injustice still... Read more

by Andre E. Johnson R3 Editor The week of January 11-16, 2015, I taught an immersion class in Ferguson, Missouri. These are some of my reflections of that week. See Part 1 here   I hear my neighbor crying, “I can’t breathe” Now I’m in the struggle, and I can’t leave.-Ferguson Protest Song We arrived at Eden Theological Seminary Sunday evening January 11. After settling in our rooms, we then prepared for the 15-minute ride to Ferguson, Missouri where we... Read more

Recent events in Ferguson, Mo., are a reminder that racial tensions — and racial ills — are alive and well. The shooting of an unarmed black teenager by a white Ferguson police officer on Aug. 9 has called attention to underlying racial injustices in the St. Louis area. Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon in November named the Ferguson Commission to work toward dealing with a host of issues related to racial inequity and injustice in the St. Louis area back in... Read more

“God made Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve,” she sneered in the way only a 9-year-old can sneer. “Judge not lest you be judged,” I piped back. In the woods at Girl Scout camp, I claimed a version of my faith that might have space for queer people. Even back then, I found no connection between a Gospel of saving love and the hatred for LGBT people I read about in the news, the rejection I heard from my... Read more

By his sophomore year at Brown University, Lex Rofes knew he wanted to pursue a career in Judaism. Whether as a rabbi or a teacher, he was committed to working in the service of American Jewry. So when a recruiter from a rabbinical college came to speak in his junior year, Rofes made sure he was in attendance. “I was certainly thinking of it as a real option,” he said. That is, until a friend raised her hand and inquired... Read more